Poyle Park Manor Solar Farm Appendix a Statement Of
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Poyle Park Manor Solar Farm Appendix A Statement of Community Involvement Stratus Environmental Limited 4245 Park Approach Thorpe Park Leeds West Yorkshire LS15 8GB [This page has been left intentionally blank] Project Quality Assurance Information Sheet Proposed Solar Farm, Poyle Park Manor Statement of Community Involvement Report Number: SBC1044/SCI Report Status: FINAL Report Date: May 2015 Prepared for: Sirius SBC Renewables LLP Prepared by: Stratus Environmental Ltd 4245 Farm Approach Thorpe Farm Leeds LS15 8GB Written and Francesca Wray prepared by: Graduate Planner Reviewed and Rachel Gillen approved by: Development Planner [This page has been left intentionally blank] POYLE PARK MANOR SOLAR FARM STATEMENT OF COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT CONTENTS 1.0 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Proposed Development ............................................................................. 1 1.1 Statement of Community Involvement ......................................................... 1 2.0 PLANNING POLICY OVERVIEW ............................................................................. 3 2.1 Central Government ................................................................................. 3 2.2 Localism Act ........................................................................................... 3 2.3 National Planning Policy Framework ............................................................ 3 2.4 Slough Borough Council Statement of Community Involvement ........................ 4 3.0 COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT ............................................................................... 5 3.1 Approach ............................................................................................... 5 3.2 Pre-Application Engagement ..................................................................... 5 3.3 Public Exhibition ..................................................................................... 5 3.4 Summary of Public Exhibition Feedback and Responses .................................. 7 3.5 Conclusions ........................................................................................... 8 List of Annexes Annex Title A Public Exhibition Advertising Material B Public Exhibition Display Material C Parish Council & Resident Correspondence Poyle Park Manor Solar Farm Statement of Community Involvement 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Proposed Development 1.1.1 Sirius SBC Renewables LLP (the applicant) is seeking planning permission to construct and operate a solar photovoltaic (PV) farm on approximately 12ha of land on the former Poyle Manor North Landfill Site to the south-west of the village of Poyle and approximately 550m to the south-east of the village of Colnbrook on approximate National Grid Reference NGR E 502959, N 176586. 1.1.2 Solar PV currently accounts for 14.9% of renewable electricity capacity in the UK and 3.8% of renewable electricity generation1. At the end of March 2015, there was 5.71GW installed capacity of solar within the UK2 and the UK Renewable Energy Roadmap (updated 2014) states that there is “significant potential for further deployment…with 20GW being our current estimate of the technical maximum level of solar PV deployment by 2020”. 1.1.3 The proposed solar farm would have the capacity of up to 4.5MWp of electricity, providing enough to power over 1,000 homes3 per year and offset up to 2,000 tonnes of CO2 every year. Following construction of the solar farm, the site will be seeded with an appropriate grassland mix. 1.1 Statement of Community Involvement 1.1.1 This report summarises community engagement activity undertaken prior to the submission of proposals for the solar farm at the former Poyle Manor North Landfill Site by Stratus Environmental Ltd (Stratus) on behalf of Sirius SBC Renewables LLP. 1 DECC (2014) Digest of UK Energy Statistics 2 DECC (2015) Solar Photovoltaics Deployment 3 Based on an average annual domestic usage of 4.170 kWh/year Stratus Environmental Limited 1 SBC1044/SCI Poyle Park Manor Solar Farm Statement of Community Involvement [This page has been left intentionally blank] Stratus Environmental Limited 2 SBC1044/SCI Poyle Park Manor Solar Farm Statement of Community Involvement 2.0 PLANNING POLICY OVERVIEW 2.1 Central Government 2.1.1 The previous UK Government’s reform of the planning system in England and Wales, introduced through the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 placed emphasis on public consultation and engagement in the planning and development process. 2.2 Localism Act 2.2.1 The Localism Act gained Royal Assent in November 2011. It contained much information on changes to the planning system, including an emphasis on Neighbourhood Planning. 2.2.2 The Act seeks to empower local communities in influencing planned development in their area. Therefore, community engagement is a crucial part of the development process to establish the wishes of the local community. 2.2.3 It emphasises the importance of developers consulting with local communities before an application is made to allow the views of locals to be taken into consideration whilst development proposals are still evolving. 2.3 National Planning Policy Framework 2.3.1 The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) was published in 2012 as part of the coalition Government’s commitment to overhaul the Planning System. Its aim is to allow the Planning System to provide development that is suitable for the future of communities and the country as a whole, providing for economic growth coupled with social and environmental needs. 2.3.2 The NPPF places great emphasis on sustainable development to ensure these objectives are met. The NPPF states that a key component of sustainable development is the need for community involvement. This will allow for a greater engagement in the planning process to prevent exclusion of stakeholders and ensure that economic, social and environmental needs are adequately considered. This ensures that social sustainability is taken into account in the planning process as part of sustainable development. 2.3.3 Paragraph 66 states that: “Applicants will be expected to work closely with those directly affected by their proposals to evolve designs that take account of the views of the community.” 2.3.4 The above extract has been considered in the consultation process for this development. Stratus Environmental Limited 3 SBC1044/SCI Poyle Park Manor Solar Farm Statement of Community Involvement 2.4 Slough Borough Council Statement of Community Involvement 2.4.1 Slough Borough Council’s Statement of Community Involvement, adopted December 2006, states that the Council believes that “The benefits of involving a wide range of people and organisations throughout the planning process include: More focus on the priorities identified by the local community; Increased understanding of the process; Consensus and ownership of the process; and Influencing site specific proposals” (Paragraph 1.2.1). 2.4.2 Paragraph 6.1.5 states that “…the Council proposes that potential applicants or applications classified as a major application should, at pre-application stage, contact the Local Planning Authority to discuss the level of community involvement and the preferred method(s) of consultation…”. 2.4.3 The Council sets out the possible consultation techniques which it considers appropriate to differing levels of development. “It is considered that the normal means of consultation should be either an exhibition or public meeting at a suitable public venue or by letter with accompanying plans where more appropriate…” (Paragraph 6.1.7) 2.4.4 As set out below in Section 3.3, a public exhibition was held which was advertised to the local parish council, ward members, in the local press and by way of a leaflet drop containing information of the proposal, exhibition and Stratus’ contact details. It is therefore considered that an appropriate level of pre-submission consultation has been undertaken with the local community. Stratus Environmental Limited 4 SBC1044/SCI Poyle Park Manor Solar Farm Statement of Community Involvement 3.0 COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT 3.1 Approach 3.1.1 Sirius SBC Renewables is committed to open and honest dialogue and engagement with the local community and stakeholders regarding its development proposals. The main aims of the consultation activity undertaken were to inform the local community, elected representatives and interested parties about the proposals, and respond to feedback. A range of consultation tools were employed including letters, leaflet drop, public notice, posters and a public exhibition. 3.2 Pre-Application Engagement 3.2.1 Pre-application advice was sought from Slough Borough Council in March 2015 to ascertain the Council’s general thoughts on the suitability of the site for the proposed development. Slough Borough Council issued their pre-application advice in May 2015 which highlighted that assessment work would be necessary to accompany the application. 3.2.2 A Screening Request was submitted on the 5th of May 2015 to establish whether the Council considered that the proposed development would require an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The Council issued their screening opinion on 27th May 2015 and confirmed an EIA would not be required. 3.3 Public Exhibition 3.3.1 The public exhibition was organised to ensure that all members of the public were able to take part if they chose to: The chosen venue for the public exhibition (Colnbrook Village Hall, Colnbrook)