EAST LOCAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN

DEVELOPMENT PLAN SCHEME

FEBRUARY 2018

CONTENTS

1.0 Introduction

2.0 Local Development Plan

3.0 Local Development Plan 2

4.0 Minerals Local Development Plan

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Every planning authority must prepare a Development Plan Scheme on at least an annual basis. This sets out the authority’s timetable for preparing and reviewing their Strategic Development Plan or Local Development Plan and outlines how this will be done. The Development Plan Scheme must also contain a Participation Statement which sets out how people can get involved in the plan preparation process.

1.2 Council does not need to prepare a Strategic Development Plan; instead it is required only to prepare Local Development Plan(s) (LDP). As there is no strategic level development plan for East Ayrshire, the local development plan sets out a strategic vision for the area.

1.3 In April 2017, East Ayrshire Council adopted the East Ayrshire Local Development Plan (2017). This replaced the East Ayrshire Local Plan (2010) for all matters excluding minerals. As stated in previous Development Plan Schemes, the Councils Cabinet decided in August 2013 that a separate Minerals Local Development Plan that would cover all mineral extraction matters should be prepared, in addition to the East Ayrshire Local Development Plan. A separate Minerals Local Development Plan is therefore under preparation. The existing development plan for East Ayrshire now currently comprises the following:

 East Ayrshire Local Development Plan 2017

 Ayrshire Joint Structure Plan – approved November 2007 Minerals  East Ayrshire Local Plan 2010 – adopted October 2010 matters only  East Ayrshire Opencast Coal Subject Plan – adopted March 2003

In addition to the above mentioned documents, the Council has approved a number of statutory Supplementary Guidance and non-statutory Planning Guidance. The statutory Supplementary Guidance forms part of the Local Development Plan (see section 2 below).

1.4 Both the East Ayrshire LDP and the East Ayrshire Minerals LDP will cover the whole of the East Ayrshire area as shown on the map below:

2. EAST AYRSHIRE LOCAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2017

2.1 The East Ayrshire Local Development Plan was adopted on 3 April 2017. To get to this stage, the Plan met all the legislative requirements of the plan making process, as fully reported in previous Development Plan Schemes.

2.2 The proposed plan underwent Examination by the Department of Planning and Environmental Appeals (DPEA) between November 2015 and November 2016. East Ayrshire Council on 23 February 2017 agreed to adopt the Plan as modified, allowing for the Plan to be adopted on 3 April 2017. This was in line with the 2017 Development Plan Scheme, which stated that the Plan would be adopted in March/April 2017.

2.3 The Action Programme was approved by Cabinet on 28 June 2017, within the 3 month timescale set out in legislation. This was again in accordance with the 2017 Development Plan Scheme, which programmed the publication of the Action Programme for June/July 2017.

2.4 The Local Development Plan 2017 was subject to a full and robust Strategic Environmental Assessment, ensuring that environmental considerations were taken on board at an early stage and throughout the plan preparation process. The Environmental Report was consulted on, both at the Main Issues Report Stage and Proposed Plan stage. Following the Examination of the LDP, appropriate amendments were made to the Environmental Report to reflect the finalised position of the plan. Mitigation measures identified in the Environmental Report have been carried forward into the LDP. Following adoption of the Plan and coinciding with the adoption of the final pieces of Supplementary Guidance, a Post-Adoption SEA statement has been prepared and will be published and submitted to the SEA Gateway in March 2018.

2.5 The LDP 2017 refers to several pieces of Supplementary Guidance that require to be produced to support the policies of the Plan. These documents that are clearly linked to policies within the Plan, are therefore statutory and form part of the Development Plan. As per table 1 below, these have all now been produced and adopted, with the exception of the final four, which are subject to final approval by the Scottish Government. In addition, several non- statutory pieces of planning guidance have been produced. One outstanding piece of non- statutory planning guidance remains; a conservation area appraisal for Waterside in the Doon Valley. Preparation of this is underway and it is anticipated that it will be completed during 2018.

Table 1: Supplementary Guidance and Planning Guidance Statutory Supplementary Guidance Non-statutory planning guidance

Developer Contributions (2017) Community benefits from wind energy development (2017) Affordable Housing (2017) Forestry and Woodland Strategy (2014) Financial Guarantees (2017) Knockroon Design code (2010)

Planning for Wind Energy (2017) Ayrshire Landscape Wind Capacity Study (2013) Heat Generation (2017) Bank Street / John Finnie Street Conservation Area Management Plan (2007) Dark Sky Park Lighting (2017) Conservation Area appraisals (2005)

Public and private green infrastructure / open Galston Conservation Area appraisal (2014) space standards (2017) Shop front design guidance (2017) Conservation Area appraisal (2009) Display of Advertisements design guidance Conservation Area appraisal (2017) (2017) Production of Masterplans (2017) Green infrastructure strategy (2015)

Housing Market Areas (send to Scottish Govt Waterside (Doon Valley) Conservation Area for approval, March 2018) appraisal (underway) Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas (send to Scottish Govt for approval, March 2018) Housing in the Countryside (send to Scottish Govt for approval, March 2018) Householder design guidance (send to Scottish Govt for approval, March 2018)

2.6 The LDP 2017 contains placemaking maps for , Cumnock, Galston, and Dalmellington, which set out the projects and proposals to make the settlements as successful as they can be. Within the LDP, the Council makes a commitment to prepare placemaking maps for the rest of East Ayrshire’s settlements and sets out a timetable for this in the Action Programme. The placemaking maps will be adopted as supplementary guidance and will become part of the LDP. The production of the placemaking maps will complete the outstanding work that remains in relation to the LDP.

2.7 Table 2 below shows the indicative timetable for the production of placemaking maps. The timetable is subject to change; it is dependent on both the willingness of communities to get involved and the work of the Council’s Vibrant Communities team, which is working with communities to prepare Community-led Action Plans. The Action Plans will be used to inform the more spatially focussed placemaking maps.

Table 2: Indicative programme for placemaking maps Year Settlement

2017 and Greenholm Catrine (In progress) and Skares Dalrymple, Hollybush and Skeldon Dalmellington, Waterside and Mills Galston Moscow and Waterside North West Kilmarnock Logan, Lugar and 2018 Gatehead Burnside, Leggate, Connel Park and Bank Glen and Fenwick, Laigh Fenwick and , , Stair, Waterside Hayhill, Sinclairston and Coalhall and Auchencloigh Patna and 2019 , Craigens and Skerrington Kilmarnock town centre and Crookedholm Shortlees Stewarton Cumnock 2020 Dunlop and

3. EAST AYRSHIRE LOCAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2

3.1 Following the adoption of the Local Development Plan 2017 work has now commenced on the preparation of East Ayrshire Local Development Plan 2. The key statutory stages are outlined below.

Main Issues Report and Monitoring Statement

3.2 In advance of the preparation of the local development plan itself, the Council is required to prepare and consult widely on a Main Issues Report (MIR). Given the very recent adoption of LDP1, the MIR for LDP2 will concentrate very much on the real key issues, with the intention that it will form a succinct and focussed document. It will contain one or more reasonable sets of alternatives to allow people to make meaningful comments and to assist the Council in reaching a view on the final content of the local development plan. A Monitoring Statement will be published alongside the MIR which will look at the impact that existing development plans have had on the area and wider development and demographic trends that LDP2 will need to have cognisance of.

The Proposed Plan for East Ayrshire

3.3 Taking into account representations received on the MIR, the Council will prepare and publish the Proposed Plan. This will give the Council’s settled view as to future development of the area. It will contain a Vision Statement which will give a broad view of what East Ayrshire could look like in 20 years. The Spatial Strategy details how the Council proposes to move toward achievement of the Vision and will include a detailed statement of the policies and proposals as to the development and use of land which will guide decisions on planning applications. The Proposed Plan will contain a set of maps of the area and will show the locations for new development for the first 10 years of the plan as well as a broad indication of the scale and location of development for the following 10 years.

3.4 Alongside the proposed plan, a Draft Action Programme will be published which will list all actions required to implement the policies and proposals of the Proposed Plan. It will provide timescales and will name the persons/organisations responsible for carrying out each action.

Proposed Plan Examination and Adoption

3.5 Once the Proposed Plan has been advertised for consultation, all objections/responses received will be assessed. At this stage further changes to the plan may be considered necessary and any such changes to the plan would also require to be advertised. However, if no further changes are made by the Council, an Examination will be carried out into all unresolved issues after which the Council, after taking cognisance of the Examination Report, would proceed to adopt the proposed plan. All of the above stages and opportunities for public participation are shown in more detail in the timetable contained in Table 1.

Strategic Environmental Assessment

3.6 A Strategic Environmental Assessment will be carried out for LDP2. This will ensure that environmental considerations are integral to the plan making process from the outset. Where environmental impacts are identified, the SEA will identify mitigation measures that should be incorporated within the Plan. The SEA process is open and transparent; at key stages the public and statutory consultation authorities will be able to comment on the process and see how their comments help shape the SEA and plan making process.

Implications of the Planning () Bill

3.7 East Ayrshire Council is mindful of the implications the Planning (Scotland) Bill may have on plan preparation within East Ayrshire. Relevant elements of the Bill in relation to development plans include; (i) the combining of NPF and SPP into one document that will form part of the statutory development plan; (ii) the move from a 5 year to 10 year time horizon to allow focus on implementation; (iii) the removal of the Main Issues Report stage and; (iv) the introduction of a new ‘gatechecking’ stage to ensure a robust evidence base is in place. There is currently no certainty around either the detail of what the final legislation will comprise of or its timescale for implementation, therefore this development plan scheme sets out how LDP2 will progress under current legislation and regulations. The Council will continue to monitor the progression of the bill and will take steps to amend the LDP procedures if necessary.

Timetable

3.8 Table 3 below details the various stages that require to be undertaken in the preparation of LDP2 and the Strategic Environmental Assessment and sets out a basic timetable for the production of the plan. As noted in the table, early preparation work commenced in 2017.

Table 2: Local Development Plan 2 and Strategic Environmental Assessment and Habitats Regulation Appraisal Timetable

Year/Month LDP2 Process SEA Process

June Call for ‘Priorities, Issues and July Proposals’ undertaken 2017 August Early survey and land audits Baseline Environmental Data

September undertaken. collected October

2017 November Analysis of Call for PIPS responses

December Monitoring statement drafted January February 2018 March April Preparation of Main Issues Report – Prepare Scoping report identification of key locations and

2018 May production of Draft Action Plans for Submit scoping report to those locations including consultation authorities and placemaking. consider/implement responses. June Early engagement with Key Agencies Prepare Environmental Assessment of Main Issues July Report

Habitats Regulation Appraisal August (HRA) of Main Issues Report and Appropriate Assessment if necessary in consultation with SNH. August Consideration of Main Issues Report Environmental Report submitted

and Monitoring Statement at Cabinet to Cabinet, in conjunction with MIR and Monitoring Statement.

2018

September Engagement and public consultation Environmental Report submitted on MIR to consultation authorities and

October issued for public consultation November 2018 Publish HRA and/or Appropriate Assessment where necessary and submit to SNH. December Consideration of representations Consideration of responses to

received on Main Issues Report Environmental Report and HRA and/or Appropriate Assessment 2018 January

February Preparation of Proposed Plan and Environmental Appraisal of March Action Programme Proposed Plan and HRA and/or

April Appropriate Assessment May 2019 June July August Consideration of Proposed Plan at full Environmental Report to September Council; Publication of Proposed Plan accompany Proposed Plan to

and Action Programme Council, followed by publication

2019 Consultation with SNH on Appropriate Assessment (if required)

October Consultation and engagement on Consultation on the Proposed Plan and Action Programme Environmental Report.

2019 November Neighbour notification Submission of HRA and/or Appropriate Assessment to SNH.

December Consider representations received on Consideration of the proposed plan, prepare responses comments/responses to the

2019 and report of conformity and Environmental Report and January participation statement comments from SNH on the

Appropriate Assessment, if February required.

2020 March Amend as appropriate. April Consideration of Plan at full council, Environmental Report to

May incorporating all representations to accompany proposed plan to full the consultation and the proposed council.

2020 Council response.

Submit proposed plan and all Submit Environmental Report to June documentation to Scottish Ministers Scottish Ministers and publicise

2020 and publicise Examination Examination July Examination of Proposed Plan Reporter may refer to August Environmental Report in carrying

September out Examination

2020 October November December

January February 2021 March Reporters Examination Report

March published and submitted to East Ayrshire Council

2021

April Consideration of Examination Report Environmentally appraise and incorporate recommendations modifications.

into Plan. May 2021 Statement of Explanation produced for any recommendations disregarded.

June Proposed Plan with modifications Updated Environmental Report

taken to Council. Authority sought to to accompany Plan to Council. proceed to adoption.

2021

July Publication of any Modifications and Publish and send revised the Proposed Plan as Modified by Environmental Report and HRA

2021 East Ayrshire Council, advertise Record to Scottish Ministers August Notice of Intention to Adopt, and Submit Proposed Plan (as Modified) to the Scottish Ministers September

September Adoption of Plan

2021 October Finalise Action Programme Publish post Adoption SEA

Statement and submit to SEA November Publish Finalised Action Programme Gateway. 2021 for the East Ayrshire Local Development Plan 2* * The Action Programme is to be a working document that will be developed and continually updated as new actions are identified throughout the East Ayrshire LDP 2 process. Working versions of the Action Programme will be published quarterly to reflect changes and identify any new actions.

PARTICIPATION STATEMENT FOR LDP2

3.9 The Council is keen to ensure that all interested individuals, bodies and organisations are given ample opportunity to contribute to the LDP preparation process. The Council does, however, have to balance this with the resources available to undertake engagement and consultation. The following steps will be undertaken in the preparation of the East Ayrshire Local Development Plan 2.

Preparation of Main Issues Report

3.10 In line with the Town and Country Planning (Development Planning) (Scotland) Regulations 2008, the Council will formally seek the views of the following bodies and key agencies in the compilation of the main issues report:

 the Scottish Ministers;  the Health and Safety Executive;  all adjoining Planning Authorities, i.e. Council, Council, Council, Council and Council  Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA)  Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH)  Historic Environment Scotland (HES)  Scottish Water  NHS Ayrshire and Arran  Transport Scotland  Strathclyde Partnership for Transport  Forestry Commission  Scottish Enterprise  Community Councils

In addition, the increased emphasis on placemaking will mean increased working with East Ayrshire Council’s Vibrant Communities and linking to the Community Led Action Plans.

Consultation and Community Engagement on Main Issues Report, Monitoring Statement and Environmental Report

3.11 The following steps will be taken after publication of the Main Issues Report to ensure that the maximum amount of people and organisations can put across their views.

i. Press release in all local newspapers circulating within East Ayrshire, in the Council’s ‘eWords’ magazine and on the Council’s web site, advising people of the consultation period.

ii. A social media engagement strategy will be developed and implemented, in conjunction with the Councils communications team. Given the considerable reach and potential audience of social media, increased emphasis will be given to using this medium as an engagement tool. In particular, this will be targeted at hard to reach groups including youths and young families.

iii. All Council Executive Directors and Heads of Department, together with all Community Councils within the local authority area will be contacted individually for their views.

iv. Approaches will be made to all Community Led Action Plan steering groups to engage them in the plan making process, helping to ensure local level involvement in shaping the plan.

v. All persons/bodies/organisations that made representation on/objections to the East Ayrshire Local Development Plan (2017) will be contacted for their views on the documents. A database of all interested parties will be built up over time and used for every consultation undertaken in the plan preparation process.

vi. Private sector stakeholders meetings will be held with house builders and local businesses/retailers.

vii. All bodies and key agencies that were consulted during the compilation of the Main Issues Report will be directly consulted again for their view. viii. Two workshops / open days will be held to facilitate the engagement of the general public and local community groups; one in the northern part of East Ayrshire and one in the Southern part. It is intended that the workshops / open days will be widely advertised in the local press, on the Council’s web site and in all local community libraries. Flyers for the events will be placed in shops, supermarkets and other venues used on a regular basis by members of the public. Local community groups will be specifically invited to these events in writing.

ix. Approaches will be made to selected local schools to undertake engagement sessions with local pupils. Sessions will have a dual purpose; to seek the views of young people on the Main Issues, but also to raise aware on a wider basis of the role and importance of planning.

x. Copies of the documentation will also be placed in all local community libraries and in Council Offices for information and consultation purposes. The documents will also be placed on the Council’s website and arrangements made for representations on the documents to be submitted to the Council electronically via a dedicated local development plan email address.

xi. The possibility of working alongside other Council publicity and consultation activity will be examined.

Consultation on the Proposed Plan, Action Programme and Environmental Report

3.12 Once prepared by the Council, the Proposed Plan and its accompanying Action Programme and the Revised Environmental Report will be publicised in the Edinburgh Gazette, in the local press and on the Council’s web site and social media accounts. All of the bodies and organisations previously consulted on the Main Issues Report and Monitoring Report, as described above, will once again be formally consulted and invited to engage in this stage of the plan preparation process. In addition, consultation and engagement will also take place with all relevant service providers and statutory undertakers and with a wide range of national and local organisations having a demonstrated interest in the statutory development planning process.

3.13 In cases where a proposal for development of a specific site is likely to have a significant effect on the use or amenity of that site or of neighbouring land, formal notification of the preparation of the plan will also be given, in terms of Regulation 14(1) of the Town and Country Planning (Development Planning) (Scotland) Regulations 2008, to the owner, lessee or occupier of any premises situated on that site or to the owner, lessee or occupier of any premises situated on the neighbouring land concerned.

Consultation on Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA)

3.14 The Consultation Authorities (Scottish Natural Heritage, SEPA and Historic Environment Scotland) will be consulted via the SEA Gateway at every stage of the Environmental Report. The Report will also be available for public comment along the Plan itself.

4. MINERALS LOCAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN

4.1 When it was agreed, at the Council’s cabinet meeting of 28th August 2013, that a separate Minerals LDP would be prepared, it was anticipated that it would be adopted by August 2017. However it became clear, once the full extent of the issues arising from the liquidation of the coal companies was better understood and known, that this timetable was overly ambitious and revised timetables for the production of the Minerals LDP were produced, and approved by Cabinet in January 2016.

4.2 The Development Plan Scheme 2017 anticipated that the Proposed Minerals LDP would be published in December 2017. Within the 2018 Development Plan Scheme this has now been rolled back to April 2018. The key reason for this is the effort and resources that have been channelled into making a bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund for a Landscape Partnership for the coalfield area. This has resulted in a stage 1 approval from HLF for £2.56million of National Lottery funding for a Landscape Partnership, aimed at reconnecting communities with their landscape. The Landscape Partnership will be integral to the Minerals LDP and will form a key mechanism for implementing some of the aims and priorities of the plan. It will also form the basis for much of the Action Programme.

4.3 The Stage 1 funding approval was announced in November 2017. By rolling back the publication of the Proposed Plan, it is able to incorporate the implications of the Landscape Partnership with greater certainty than if the Plan had preceded the outcome of the funding bid. There have been other factors that have made it logical to roll back the publication of the Minerals LDP:

(i) the Scottish Government ban on fracking or hydraulic fracturing. This was announced in October 2017 and provides long term clarity on national government policy, which in turn gives clear direction for the Minerals LDP; and (ii) the emergence of a pilot strategic woodland creation project, working in partnership with the Forestry Commission and local stakeholders, to identify opportunities to increase woodland cover across East Ayrshire. By delaying the Proposed MLDP, it has been possible to examine the linkages between this project and the Minerals LDP, and to give broad support for the project within the Plan, an exciting opportunity for contributing to restoration and environmental improvement across the plan area.

STAGES IN PREPARING THE EAST AYRSHIRE MINERALS LOCAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN

State of the Environment Report

4.4 The first stage of work required under the 2016 Development Plan Scheme was the production of a State of the Environment Report. This is not a statutory process; however, it contributed significantly to the evidence gathering stage of the plan making process and permits an understanding of the scale of environmental challenges faced by East Ayrshire. It also forms the foundation upon which the Strategic Environmental Assessment and Habitats Regulation Appraisal is being carried out. The State of the Environment report was agreed by Cabinet on the 17th August 2016 and published on the 2nd September 2016. It will be updated and published in due course in order to ensure the document remains valuable and fit for purpose.

Monitoring Statement, Main Issues Report and Interim Environmental Report

4.5 A draft Monitoring Statement and Main Issues Report were produced and consulted upon between June and August 2016. The final Monitoring Statement and Main Issues Report were approved by Council on the 15th December 2016, alongside the Interim Environmental Report and were consulted upon during January and February 2017.

The Proposed Minerals Plan for East Ayrshire

4.6 Taking into account representations received on the MIR, the Council will prepare and publish the proposed Minerals Local Development Plan. This will give the Council’s settled view as to future development of the area. It will contain a Vision Statement which will give a broad view of what East Ayrshire could look like in 20 years, in specific relation to Minerals. The Spatial Strategy will detail how the Council proposes to move toward achievement of the vision.

4.7 The Plan will include detailed policies on the development and use of land that will guide decisions on planning applications relating to mineral extraction. The plan will consider the full range of matters relating to minerals extraction, such as environmental considerations, the impact on the amenity of local communities and the need to ensure there is an adequate supply of minerals to meet the identified need.

4.8 Alongside the proposed plan, an Action Programme will be published which will list all actions required to implement the policies and proposals of the proposed plan. It will provide timescales and will name the persons/organisations responsible for carrying out each action.

Proposed Plan Examination and Adoption

4.9 Once the proposed plan has been advertised for consultation, all objections and responses received will be assessed. At this stage further changes to the plan may be considered necessary and any such changes to the plan would also require to be advertised. However, if no further changes are made by the Council, an Examination will be carried out by an independently appointed Reporter into all unresolved issues after which the Council would proceed to adopt the proposed plan taking on board any changes made by the Reporter.

4.10 The stages to adoption are shown in more detail in the timetable contained in Table 4 below.

Table 4: Local Development Plan, Landscape Partnership and SEA process timetable

Month LDP Process Landscape Partnership SEA Process process Year January - State of the Environment report Monitoring Statement and Draft December prepared and published. Main Issues Report, prepared,

published and consulted upon. Scoping Report prepared and

2016 submit to SEA Gateway Main Issues Report prepared and

approved by Council Interim Environmental Report

prepared. January - Publication and consultation of Main Preparation and submission Publication of Interim December Issues Report and Monitoring of Landscape Partnership to Environmental Report and period Statement HLF. of public consultation

Ongoing liaison with HLF to Consideration of responses

2017 Consideration of responses shape and refine the scope of received to Interim Environmental received to MIR and preparation of the Partnership. Report and reviewed to form Proposed LDP Finalised Environmental Report Stage 1 approval secured January Preparation of Proposed Local Submission of permission to Development Plan. start to Heritage Lottery Fund. February Development phase begins 2018 March Appointment of project staff to take forward Landscape Partnership April Consideration of Proposed Minerals Development phase ongoing. Plan by Cabinet

2018 2019 2018 2018 2018 2018

April March February January December November October September August July June May April 2018

ofProposedExamination Plan examination. Publicise all and plan to Scottishdocumentation Ministers proposed Submit StatementParticipation Report ConformityPrepare of with forms) issues unresolved Prepare summary responses. of proposed on plan and prepare Consider consultation and public Programme period of and ProposedPlan Action ofMinerals Publication Proposed

representations received

(Schedule 4

established. steeringPartnership group commencedassessment character Landscape Mid phase Development ongoing underway heritage Built surveys phase Development ongoing - term meetingterm with HLF

Report Report refers toReporter Environmental HRArecord toSubmit Ministers Assessment. necessary, Appropriate and effects) significant if (determinationscreening oflikely Record HRA Prepare to include Gateway Report toEnvironmental SEA revised Publish and submit

2020 2019 2019 2019 2019 2019 January December November October September August July June May April

Programme publish and Approve Action Programme Action Finalise Development Plan Adoption ofLocal Minerals modified Proposed Ministers Send Plan as Advertise intention to adopt Plan as modifiedPlan Modifications ProposedPublish and Consideration by Council accepting any ExplanationStatement of not for Plan Proposed and modified as preparationand of modifications, recommendations Consideration of to submitted planning authority. and published Report Examination

recommendations

Action Conservation Plan. LandscapePreparation of phase Development ongoing application to HLF application stage Submission of 2 stage Finalisation of 2 bid ongoing consultation Community projects. of detailedDevelopment

Gateway. SEA Statement and submit to Publish Post if revisedRecord requi HRA Report Environmental and revised publish Ministers ifmodified required.plan Appropriate ofassessment modified plan. Carry out Environmentally appraise

- Adoption SEA

red .

PARTICIPATION STATEMENT FOR THE MINERALS LDP

Engagement and consultation so far

4.11 Considerable engagement has been undertaken to get the Plan to proposed plan stage. In part due to the locally contentious issue that minerals extraction is, an additional stage of engagement was undertaken under the banner of the ‘Draft Main Issues Report.’ This allowed the Main Issues Report itself to really focus on the important matters and to present real and viable alternatives.

4.12 A range of engagement activities were carried out in relation to both the Draft MIR and the MIR. Community workshops, drop in sessions and public displays were held, alongside notices in local newspapers, the Council website and local libraries.

Consultation on the Minerals Proposed Plan, Action Programme and Environmental Report

4.13 Once prepared by the Council, it is intended that the Proposed Minerals Plan and its accompanying Action Programme and the Revised Environmental Report will be publicised in the Edinburgh Gazette, in the local press and on the Council’s web site and that all of the bodies and organisations previously consulted on the Minerals Main Issues Report will again be formally consulted on the documents. Three information events, one in each of the Kilmarnock, Cumnock and Doon Valley areas, will be held during the consultation period at which members of the public can seek clarification on the content of the plan.

4.13 In cases where a proposal for development of a specific site is likely to have a significant effect on the use or amenity of that site or of neighbouring land, formal notification of the preparation of the plan will also be given, in terms of Regulation 14(1) of the Town and Country Planning (Development Planning) (Scotland) Regulations 2008, to the owner, lessee or occupier of any premises situated on that site or to the owner, lessee or occupier of any premises situated on the neighbouring land concerned.

Consultation on Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA)

4.14 The consultation on the Proposed LDP will be accompanied by consultation on the proposed Environmental Report. Any interested parties will be able to comment on the Environmental Report and these will be considered when finalising the report. The Consultation Authorities will be consulted via the SEA Gateway.