Campaign to Protect Rural England in This Issue • Planning Overview • In
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The Dorset Review Campaign to Protect Rural England In this issue • Planning Overview • In Praise of Dorset Vernacular Architecture • Litter Campaigns • District Group Updates • Railways in Dorset: Then & Now Spring 2019 Branch News Issue 112 CONTENTS CHAIR’S REPORT Housing Numbers County: 5,300). I have 2–3 Chair’s Report & Contents been able to obtain the breakdown of In my column in the Autumn 2018 the types of accommodation required 4–5 North Dorset Group Review I referred to the Government’s in the Districts of North and West target of building 300,000 houses per Dorset and Weymouth/Portland. It 5 Dorset Coast Forum Annual year and the devising of a formula might come as a surprise to you that Meeting for Local Authorities (LA) to use 83% of the register is looking for one when planning housing numbers. 6–7 In Praise of Dorset Vernacular or two bedroom accommodation and I also referred to the fact that the Architecture just over 50% in total are single people. latest demographic trends figures, If you compare that with planning 8 Poole and Purbeck Group on which, such a format should be applications you will see that there is a based, showed that housing need 9 A National Park for Dorset huge mismatch between what is being was being exaggerated, and whether built or planned and what is required. or not the Government would act on 10 West Dorset Group It is no surprise therefore, from my these new figures. Indeed they did experience, that the numbers on the 11 Litter Campaigns by issuing an instruction that the old registers don’t appear to alter much 2014 figures where still to be used in 12–13 The Sherborne and District year on year. The current system isn’t the calculations! They then instigated Society delivering the housing needed and the ‘consultation’ on the how the formula authorities don’t really have the power 13 Dorset Local Nature Partnership should be amended in the future. to ‘dictate’ to the major house builders Writing a very detailed response to the type of housing they should build. 14 Dorset Farming Report this consultation Matt Thompson, The Government have accepted CPRE’s Head Of Planning, wrote: ‘The 15 The Star of Dorset Charcuterie Oliver Letwin’s recommendation standard method for the estimation regarding more diversity on sites above 16 East Dorset Group of local housing demand is already 1500 houses but whether this will have deeply flawed and the proposal to much affect is difficult to see. Not 17 Annual Report & Accounts retain the use of the 2014-based many of our housing projects will be household projections is a fudge of 18–19 Tribute to Richard Nicholls for that size of development anyway. staggering ineptitude’. He goes on to 19 Leaving a Legacy say ‘The argument that application of the current standard method New Unitary Authorities 20–21 Minerals and Waste in Dorset formula to new projections results in and Planning a figure (213,000) that is lower than 22–23 Railways in Dorset: By the time you read this the the number of houses delivered in the Then and Now new Unitary Authorities will have previous year is wrong’ and he goes on been formed. As far as planning is 24–25 Dorset Smuggling: Behind the to explain why. concerned it looks as if the Dorset Moonfleet Legend We are all aware of the nonsense County Authority will have one associated with the large numbers of 26 CPRE Recent Publications strategic planning committee which houses that are being demanded that will handle certain strategic town and 27 Dorset CPRE Membership LAs deliver. We have been indicating country planning issues including this for years now, we are still being applications that cross boundaries of 28 Contacts asked to accept these figures and the the 3 local planning committees. These speculative development that goes committees will consider applications with them. CPRE Surrey with others based on East, Central and West have a case currently with the High locations. A map of the areas is below. Court that, if they win, might help Initially the Local Plans for these clarification of whether or not the areas will continue to be considered Protecting Dorset Government is within its rights to policy but with the housing numbers Campaign to Protect Rural England keep adjusting methodology to suit its aggregated across the County. By The contents of this publication are intended requirements. as guidance and general interest. It does not 2024 a composite Local Plan will be constitute legal advice and can be no substitute produced. It is hoped that this will for considered advice on specific problems. Housing Need have more strategic planning in it and Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information printed in this Of course it isn’t just the overall we will endeavour to have as much publication, Campaign to Protect housing numbers that are important. input to that plan as possible. In the Rural England cannot accept As we have said before it is what houses Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch liability for errors and omissions. Authority it is understood they The views expressed in this are needed and where. For example in publication are not necessarily the two Unitary Authorities for Dorset will have one planning committee. those of CPRE. their combined housing registers Currently only Poole has a Local Plan Front Cover image – Cowslips on Hod Hill, show a requirement currently for and they similarly will produce an Blandford Forum, taken by Rupert Hardy 11589 dwellings (Bournemouth, Poole overall plan by 2024. Your local group and Christchurch: 6,289 and Dorset will be inputting to that process. 2 DORSET Campaign to Protect Rural England – Protecting Dorset • Lord Best’s Affordable Housing Commission • MHCLG Local housing need assessment • The Glover review Landscapes review: National Parks and AONBs • Permitted development for shale gas exploration (Government consultation) • Inclusion of shale gas production projects in the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project Regime Other Issues At National level the project which was mentioned by Crispin Truman as long ago as our 2017 AGM, is reaching its conclusion and more details should be available at the CPRE National AGM and Conference in June. Finally, some of you will be aware that the Local Economic Partnership (LEP) National Park for Dorset prepare an economic strategy for the House and Landscape A key decision of the Countryside Forum whole of Dorset and have been enlarging Design and the Trustees, taken recently, was this to be more of a South West strategic to commit the Branch to supporting a review. The concentration is more on Another important factor, as I have said industrial strategy and they are light on before, is the design of accommodation National Park to cover the new Dorset County. Sandra Brown has commented concept of the rural economy. We have being built. Elsewhere in this Review raised this issue within the CPRE South Rupert Hardy has compared design in on the current status of the National Park proposal on a later page. We sent West Regional Committee and proposed the vernacular of local areas, with what that CPRE should produce a Regional Rural the major house builders are building views into the Glover Review and have just received the first report from the Economic Strategy. The CPRE South West and I won’t steal his thunder by further Regional Chairman, Janette Ward, Richard comment here. What your Trustees have consultant we commissioned to assist with developing the proposal. Once Nicholls and Peter Bowyer may well lead agreed to do is to try early next year to on this as ideas develop. conduct a day conference on housing and this has been finalised it will be made available on our website, for comment. Signing off now but hope to see many of landscape design, aimed at planners and you at the Garden Party on Saturday 20th landowners in particular. We currently July. believe that several eminent architects We have participated in the will agree to participate. So look out for following Consultations: Chair of Trustees further information in due course! Peter Neal • Defra consultation on a deposit return system Sally King, Dorset AONB, guest speaker at Countryside Forum December 2018 Shaun Spiers Campaign to Protect Rural England – Protecting Dorset Campaign to Protect Rural England – Protecting Dorset DORSET 3 NORTH DORSET GROUP North Dorset remains Planning Applications continue to insist a pelican crossing is the best solution to linking the Housing planning applications are under siege estate to Blandford across the busy still coming in fast to ND, although Ever since August 2017 when North Dorset A354, rather than a pedestrian bridge, actual numbers have fallen since District Council (NDDC) admitted that its despite innumerable protests. housing land had fallen well below the early last year. We have been busy government required five years supply, objecting to the most inappropriate Speculative land a spate of speculative schemes has been of them. Richard Jones wrote a good launched by housing developers. The letter against a 61 house development promoters North Dorset Group warned then of the dire application in Marnhull, the fourth We do have good news to report in consequences as five years housing land major one in a year. Derek Gardiner that the Cann Common housing supply is essential for controlling planning wrote an excellent objection to a 39 development for 55 dwellings has been applications under its adopted local plan. dwelling development at Pimperne as turned down as has a smaller proposal well as commenting effectively on the for 9 houses at Spetisbury while Housing Land Supply Scoping Opinion request for no less the appeal mounted by Lightwood than 700 houses between Blandford Strategic regarding its 100 dwelling However, despite a huge rise in planning and Pimperne.