Annual Monitoring Report 2013-14 1
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The Swale Borough Local Plan 2008 Annual Monitoring Report 2013/14 Annual Monitoring Report 2013-14 1 Executive Summary 1 1 Executive Summary 1.1 This is the Annual Monitoring Report (AMR) of the Swale Borough Council Local Plan 2008 for the period 1 April 2013 - 31 March 2014. 1.2 The main headlines this monitoring year are: Housing completions are still below pre-recession levels but importantly are improved from last year (2012-13). Planning permissions granted this year and increasing house prices also indicate that market conditions are improving. The recent level of completions and commitments have had a significant effect on the Council's ability to demonstrate a five year supply of housing. The Council does not have a five year housing land supply. Affordable housing completions this year equate to 34% of the total dwelling completions. This exceeds the 30% target the Borough seeks to achieve. Section 106 agreements and contributions collected this year exceeds £1.2 million and has been collected for education, social services, community infrastructure and town centre improvements. There has been no change in local environmental indicators with Special Protection Areas, Sites of Special Scientific Interest, Local Wildlife Sites or Ancient Woodland remaining unchanged. This year 30% of housing completions were on previously developed land. All employment completions have been on brownfield land, this is a significant achievement given the constraints around delivery on previously developed land. 1.3 This is the first monitoring year since the withdrawal of the South East Plan and therefore this AMR is reporting on the development targets and time scales set by the adopted Local Plan (2008) and the progress of the emerging Local Plan: Bearing Fruits. This has also changed the base date used for the completions trajectory which, in turn, has affected the projected five year housing land supply. 2 Annual Monitoring Report 2013-14 1 Executive Summary Annual Monitoring Report 2013-14 3 Introduction 2 2 Introduction 2.1 This Annual Monitoring Report (AMR) covers the monitoring period 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014. The AMR sets out what has happened in the Borough. It also compares trends against the policies and targets set. The AMR monitors the policies and proposals of the adopted development plan which for the monitoring period consists of the Swale Borough Local Plan 2008 and the emerging Draft Local Plan Bearing Fruits 2031. This is the first monitoring year in which performance against the South East Plan will not be monitored as it was withdrawn in March 2013. 2.2 The Council has a Local Development Scheme (second revision) which was approved November 2010. Following the publication of the National Planning Policy Framework; Planning Policy for Traveller Sites; and viability testing guidance the Local Development Scheme is currently under review and will be published prior to the submission stage of the emerging Local Plan: Bearing Fruits (expected early 2015). 2.3 This report is intended to meet the requirements of Part 8 (Regulation 34) of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012. 2.4 Local Planning Authorities are required to assess whether they can meet the housing requirement for their area. The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) requires that local planning authorities update their five year housing land supply assessment on a yearly basis. The NPPF replaces the former Planning Policy Statement 3: Housing, however, the Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA) Practice Guidance (2007) remains current. 2.5 The Government has now abolished regional strategies and plans. Following the partial abolition of the South East Plan (25th March 2013) it became the responsibility of the local planning authority to determine local housing requirements based on objectively assessed needs. Development Plan Documents 2.6 The Development Plan Documents (DPDs) are the starting point for decision making and will, on adoption, consist of the following: The adopted Local Plan (2008). The emerging Local Plan: Bearing Fruits (previously known as the ‘Core Strategy’) which will contain land use allocations, strategic and development management policies. Emerging Neighbourhood Plans. 2.7 Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) are also material considerations in decision making and the Council has prepared and adopted a number of these on a variety of subjects. 4 Annual Monitoring Report 2013-14 2 Introduction The Local Plan (Formerly the Core Strategy) 2.8 The Local Plan (LP) is the main planning policy document covering the Borough and together with the Kent Minerals and Waste Local Plan and any Neighbourhood Plans, will form the development plan for the Borough. It sets out the vision for the area over the next 10 to 20 years and the policies intended to enable this to be achieved. There are a number of formal stages in the process of producing the Local Plan each governed by legal regulations. 2.9 The Key Stages can be summarised as: Evidence gathering, consideration of options and issues; The chosen option; A minimum of six weeks in which to receive representations on the development plan document; The formal submission to the Secretary of State; The Public Examination. The 5 year land supply 2.10 Para. 47 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) states that local planning authorities should identify a five-year supply of deliverable housing sites against their housing requirements and should include an additional ‘buffer’ of 5% or 20% to ensure choice and competition in the market for land (moved forward from later in the Plan period). 2.11 The buffer is to be 5% in normal situations, or 20% if a local authority has persistently under-delivered on housing in the past. The Council intends to have a buffer of 5%. The buffer will consist of sites brought forward from later in the plan period, so the overall housing requirement remains the same over the duration of the plan. The Council considers it has not persistently under-delivered as annual completions have remained around or above the five and ten year averages which demonstrates a consistent and sufficient level of completions which cannot be considered persistent under-delivery. The impact of the buffer is that the five year supply must be able to demonstrate meeting a 105% requirement within the first 5 years. 2.12 The NPPF (paragraph 48) states that local planning authorities may include an allowance for windfall sites in the five year supply subject to: Compelling evidence that such sites have consistently become available in the local area and will continue to provide a reliable source of supply; The allowance being realistic having regard to the Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment, historic windfall delivery rates and expected future trends; The allowance should not include residential gardens. 2.13 The purpose of a windfall allowance is to account for housing development on sites where it is not possible to identify sites in advance. The Council does include a windfall allowance within the housing supply trajectory reported in Section 4 of this AMR. Annual Monitoring Report 2013-14 5 Introduction 2 2.14 For this monitoring year completions against the adopted Local Plan (2008) have been recorded within the housing land supply but it does not include sites documented within the Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA). It is anticipated that in future years, housing land supply will include SHLAA sites and emerging allocations, given the advanced nature of the draft Local Plan: Bearing Fruits 2031. 2.15 Paragraph 47 of the NPPF also includes a reference to identifying a supply of specific developable sites or broad locations for years 6-10 and where possible for years 11-15. The Council is required to illustrate the expected rate of housing delivery through a housing trajectory for the plan period. Document structure 2.16 The main body of the AMR is set out by themes on housing, employment and environmental indicator sets. The sections are as follows: Chapter 3 - sets out a portrait of the Borough including issues and challenges facing it, to be addressed in the development plan Chapter 4 - Homes and Communities - analysis of performance towards targets, core and contextual indicators Chapter 5 - Employment - analysis of performance towards targets, core and contextual indicators Chapter 6 - Environment and Climate Change - analysis of performance towards targets, core and contextual indicators Chapter 7 - a summary of progress on implementing the Local Development Scheme 2010; and Chapter 8 - Duty to Co-operate - defining strategic issues, bodies co-operated with and links to the Duty to Co-operate Statement submitted April 2015 (which includes all of the Duty to Co-operate activities undertaken during the monitoring year 2013 - 2014). 2.17 The report concludes with a section on the actions arising from this year's outcomes and any recommendations for next year. 6 Annual Monitoring Report 2013-14 2 Introduction Annual Monitoring Report 2013-14 7 Portrait of Swale 3 3 Portrait of Swale 3.1 The following section sets out the broader character of Swale in terms of the demographic, social, economic and environmental characteristics of the borough. The section includes statistics and commentary used to analyse trends and patterns. The section will also focus on the key characteristics of the area and highlight local issues, setting the scene for future planning in the borough. Landscape 3.2 Swale is the bridging point between north and east Kent, named after the narrow channel of tidal water between mainland Kent and the Isle of Sheppey. It is a Borough of some 139,200 people who primarily live in its three main towns, Sittingbourne, Faversham and Sheerness.(3.1) 3.3 Swale is close both to London and mainland Europe and well connected to the national motorway network.