County Durham Plan Rural Proofing Report June 2018
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County Durham Plan Rural Proofing Report June 2018 Rural Proofing Report Purpose of this document County Durham is an extensive county extending over 862 square miles and home to around half a million people. It extends from the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Beauty in the west to the Durham Heritage Coast in the east. Around 43% of the population are based in rural areas, from remote and sparsely populated rural areas in the Pennine Dales to larger villages located in the former coalfield communities in the centre and the east. This document sets out the context to rural proofing as a tool to ensure that the appropriate policy response is directed to our rural areas. It explains what the issues are that are facing rural parts of the county, why rural proofing is important to County Durham and how we have embedded it within the development of the County Durham Plan so far. It also provides a summary of how, as a tool, it has influenced the preferred options policy formulation. We will continue to undertake rural proofing as the plan advances through the remainder of the plan making process and update this document as appropriate. Role of rural proofing in plan making Rural proofing aims to make certain that the needs of, and issues affecting, those living and working in rural areas are considered as all new planning policies are developed. We need to consider the impact a planning policy option might have in rural areas and how to assess whether or not a planning option will have a positive or negative impact on rural parts of the county. This in turn informs the adjustment of the proposed planning response to the needs of rural communities. Rural proofing is not about special treatment for rural areas, but about understanding the fact that policies with urban solutions will not necessarily work in rural areas with their dispersed population, settlements and economic markets. We are aware that rural proofing and the credentials of sustainable development need to be considered together and in this context it is important to consider economic sustainability and social sustainability, as well as environmental sustainability. We are also conscious that there is a danger that sustainability is interpreted in practice as focusing on the availability of services, and especially public transport resulting in focusing development in market towns and a few larger villages sometimes to the disadvantage of more rural areas. Therefore we acknowledge that in County Durham, due to the dispersed settlement patterns in our rural areas, that there will be more of a reliance on the car as a means of transport. While the issues of access to services and public transport are important in the development of local plans they are by no means the only issues. This is reinforced by the Town & Country Planning Association1 who have stated that “Opportunities to generate local employment, develop decent homes in attractive settings, and even provide local services such as shops and community centres based on local voluntary efforts should all be added into the ‘sustainability’ equation…” In practice rural proofing seeks to highlight and moderate any overly restrictive planning policies or use of narrow definitions of what constitutes sustainable development all of which can have adverse impacts on smaller settlements in rural areas. Unless the social and 1 A Vision for Rural England – January 2012 RP Report Final JUNE 2018 (CDPPO) Page 1 of 32 economic dimensions of sustainability referred to above are better balanced with the environmental dimension, proposals for rural development may automatically be classed as inherently unsustainable. That is, if the approach to sustainable development is narrowly regarded as development that reduces the need for the private car by concentrating development in larger settlements and limiting development in smaller settlements then this can lead to what is known as the ‘Sustainability Trap’2, referring to the situation whereby a settlement is not considered to be a sustainable location, thus preventing small scale developments for housing or employment that are vital in maintaining thriving communities in rural areas. In reality we need to recognise that remote villages may have specific development needs but at the same time cannot be expected to have a full range of services including public transport. Policy Context This section sets out the policy context within which we must operate. Rural issues in County Durham need to be assessed in the context of European (which is embodied in national legislation), national, and local policy. It is important that the approach of the County Durham Plan to help address the county’s rural issues is in conformity with the approaches contained within policy documents at a more strategic level. The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) was published in March 2012 and is currently under review. This new draft document further strengthens the previous focus with regard to the rural agenda. The NPPF seeks to ensure that the planning system contributes to the achievement of Sustainable Development in a positive way and at the heart of the framework is a presumption in favour of sustainable development (paragraph 11) The NPPF sets out three overarching objectives: a) An economic objective to help build a strong, responsive and competitive economy, by ensuring that sufficient land of the right types is available in the right places and at the right time to support growth, innovation and improved productivity; and by identifying and coordinating the provision of infrastructure; b) A social objective to support strong, vibrant and healthy communities, by ensuring that a sufficient number and range of homes can be provided to meet the needs of present and future generations; and by fostering a well-designed and safe built environment, with accessible services and open spaces that reflect current and future needs and support communities’ health, social and cultural well-being; and c) An environmental objective to contribute to protecting and enhancing our natural, built and historic environment; including making effective use of land, helping to improve biodiversity, use natural resources prudently, minimise waste and pollution, and mitigate and adapt to climate change, including moving to a low carbon economy. 2 ‘Living Working Countryside: The Taylor Review of Rural Economy and Affordable Housing’ July 2008 RP Report Final JUNE 2018 (CDPPO) Page 2 of 32 Rural Economy The current and proposed NPPF sets out the approach to supporting a prosperous rural economy. They state that ‘Planning policies and decisions should enable: the sustainable growth and expansion of all types of business in rural areas both through the conversion of existing and well-designed new buildings. the development and diversification of agricultural and other land-based rural businesses; sustainable rural tourism and leisure developments which respect the character of the countryside; and the retention and development of accessible local services and community facilities, such as local shops, meeting places, sports venues, open space, cultural buildings, public houses and places of worship.’ Rural Housing In planning for housing, the NPPF advises that in rural areas, local planning authorities should be responsive to local circumstances and plan housing development to reflect local needs, particularly for affordable housing, including through rural exception sites where appropriate. They should in particular consider whether allowing some market housing would facilitate the provision of significant additional affordable housing to meet local needs. To promote sustainable development in rural areas, housing should be located where it will enhance or maintain the vitality of rural communities. For example, where there are groups of smaller settlements, development in one village may support services in a village nearby. New isolated homes in the countryside should be avoided unless there are special circumstances. Rural Transport In promoting sustainable transport, the Framework recognises that different policies and measures will be required in different communities and opportunities to maximise sustainable transport solutions will vary from urban to rural areas. Overview of Rural County Durham We recognise that rural settlements of County Durham need to be able to evolve and sustain themselves. Providing balanced opportunities will enable people to live and work in their own rural town or villages and the support of local services is a crucial factor to securing sustainable rural communities. Our planning policies should strive to achieve the balance of encouraging communities to thrive whilst retaining the qualities of an attractive environment that defines the character of the rural settlements in County Durham. Planning policies are required to be flexible. Ideally they should be looking to ensure that businesses are located within or adjacent to existing settlements or clusters of settlements balancing this with a desire to promote sustainability whilst accepting that travel patterns and distances may be greater than in the urban areas of the County. This is further emphasised within the proposed paragraph 85 of the March 2018 consultation draft. Rural settlements across the county are diverse, differing in their scale and their ability to sustain growth. Larger settlements generally offer more service provision as they incorporate more houses, jobs, existing infrastructure, better public transport provision and community facilities. These settlements can provide a critical service centre role for a wider surrounding area and have the ability to accommodate and sustain proportionally higher levels of allocated RP Report Final JUNE 2018 (CDPPO) Page 3 of 32 growth, allowing them to build on their key service centre role, typical to the function of a traditional market town It is important to recognise that some smaller settlements also have an important role to play as localised service centres for their immediate surrounding area, particularly if they are relatively remote from one of these larger settlements. Rural businesses provide many local jobs and services in villages and the rural area.