Newcastle-Under-Lyme B.C Statement of Community Involvement Adopted August 2006 This document is available in large copy prints, audio cassette, Braille or languages other than English. If you require the document in one of these formats, please contact: Regeneration and Planning Services Civic Offices Merrial Street Newcastle Staffs ST5 2AG Tel: 01782 742467 Email: [email protected] Newcastle-Under-Lyme B.C Statement of Community Involvement Adopted August 2006 Statement of Community Involvement Table of Contents Table of Contents ................................................................................................ 2 This page is intentionally blank ......................................................................... 3 1. Introduction .................................................................................................. 1 1.1 What it is.................................................................................................................................................................................1 1.2 The role of the SCI in the Local Development Framework ..............................................................1 1.3 What the Statement of Community Involvement will achieve ...................................................... 2 1.4 Resources Implications ................................................................................................................................................ 2 1.5 How it links with the Community Strategy...................................................................................................3 This page is intentionally blank ......................................................................... 5 2. Community Involvement in Newcastle-under-Lyme .................................. 6 2.1 Local Conditions .................................................................................................................................................................6 2.2 Reaching hard to reach groups ..............................................................................................................................7 3. Local Development Documents.................................................................... 8 3.1 Who we will be engaging? ........................................................................................................................................... 8 3.2 Inclusivity and equality of opportunity ........................................................................................................... 9 3.3 What we will be engaging on.................................................................................................................................... 9 3.4 When we will be consulting ......................................................................................................................................11 3.5 How people can get involved...................................................................................................................................13 3.6 What we will do with your comments..............................................................................................................17 4. Development Control .................................................................................. 19 4.1 Introduction.......................................................................................................................................................................19 4.2 What we will do at pre-application stage.....................................................................................................19 4.3 What we will do when an application is registered ...............................................................................19 4.4 How people can be involved....................................................................................................................................20 4.5 What happens once an application has been determined................................................................21 5. What Happens Next with the Statement of Community Involvement .... 23 5.1 The process of adoption..........................................................................................................................................23 5.2 Review Mechanisms for the Statement of Community Involvement.....................................23 6. Getting Help With Planning Matters .......................................................... 25 6.1 Planning Aid ........................................................................................................................................................................25 6.2 Planning Consultants ....................................................................................................................................................25 APPENDIX A – DEVELOPMENT PLAN CONSULTATION BODIES...................... 27 SPECIFIC CONSULTATION BODIES ........................................................................................................................27 GENERAL CONSULTATION BODIES.........................................................................................................................29 APPENDIX B – CONSULTEES: PLANNING APPLICATIONS.............................. 32 Publicity – Planning Applications ........................................................................................................................................35 APPENDIX C – NON-STATUTORY CONSULTEES: PLANNING APPLICATIONS 36 GLOSSARY.......................................................................................................... 38 Newcastle-Under-Lyme B.C Statement of Community Involvement Adopted August 2006 This page is intentionally blank Newcastle-Under-Lyme B.C Statement of Community Involvement Adopted August 2006 1. Introduction 1.1 What it is 1.1.1 This Statement of Community Involvement (SCI) sets out the Council’s policy for involving the public, community and interest groups, developers and landowners as well as statutory consultees in the planning process, both in planning policy and in dealing with planning applications. 1.1.2 It sets out the strategy for making community groups aware of how and when they can become involved in the planning system, identifies the types of groups that need to be involved and ways of involving them effectively. This will be a statutory document, meaning that once this statement is adopted, the Borough Council will be obliged to comply with the requirements for consultation and community engagement that are set out in it and all planning documents will be prepared in accordance with it. 1.1.3 The Borough Council affirms that the proposals set out in this statement are achievable within their budgetary constraints. The proposals are the product of a number of considerations including: · Community aspirations · The availability of staff and other resources · Central government guidelines · The information needed for inclusive decision making 1.2 The role of the SCI in the Local Development Framework 1.2.1 The preparation of this statement is part of a number of significant changes to the planning system that were introduced by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Each local authority is now obliged to produce a Local Development Framework (LDF) for its area. This will consist of several component Local Development Documents: · Local Development Scheme (LDS) (see Glossary) · Statement of Community Involvement · Core Strategy* · Site-Specific Allocations* · Area Action Plans* · Supplementary Planning Documents · Annual Monitoring Report 1.2.2 The asterisked documents, along with the Regional Spatial Strategy for the West Midlands, form the statutory planning framework for Newcastle Borough. Staffordshire County Council deals with minerals and waste policy and planning applications. The County is producing its own Statement of Community Involvement to cover these issues. 1.2.3 Each document is produced separately to suit the needs and purposes of individual authorities. Unlike the previous ‘Local Plan’ system, stakeholder involvement and 1 Newcastle-Under-Lyme B.C Statement of Community Involvement Adopted August 2006 consultation is staggered and forms part of the formulation of each document. The timescales for document production and opportunities for people to get involved are set out in the Local Development Scheme. 1.2.4 There have been certain main aims outlined by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) that all local authorities should attempt to fulfil in terms of their Statement of Community Involvement. These aims will be adapted to the specific local needs of the area. 1.3 What the Statement of Community Involvement will achieve 1.3.1 The main aims that the local authority seeks to achieve through involving people in the development planning process are: · To gain agreement on the form and content of Local Development Documents. · To streamline the lengthy & controversial examination process. · To achieve meaningful involvement throughout the Local Development Framework process. · To gain a better insight into the demands and needs of communities in the area and enhance community safety. · To use community involvement to help to tackle social exclusion in disadvantaged communities. · To attain effective services through proactive community involvement. · To improve ‘sustainability’ of communities, development and service provision. · To attain high