Planning Application To South Staffordshire Council For the proposed development of 51 No. holiday lodges at Swindon Marina, High Street, Swindon, DY3 4NR On behalf of Mr C Nedic PLANNING POLICY STATEMENT November 2020 0680/03 Swindon Marina – Planning Policy Statement PLANNING POLICY STATEMENT For the proposed development of 51 No. holiday lodges at Swindon Marina, High Street, Swindon, DY3 4NR On behalf of Mr C Nedic November 2020 Christopher Whitehouse MRICS BSc (Hons) RICS Author Accredited Expert Witness Chartered Planning and Development Surveyor Report Status Final Date of Issue November 2020 DISTRIBUTION Date Issued To: November 2020 South Staffordshire Council November 2020 NextPhase Development Ltd November 2020 Mr C Nedic This report has been produced by NextPhase Development Ltd within the terms of the contract with the client and taking account of the resources devoted to it by agreement with the clients representatives. We disclaim any responsibility to N.B the client and others in respect of matters outside the scope of the above. We accept no responsibility of whatsoever nature to third parties to who this report, or part thereof, is made known. NextPhase Development Limited Registered in England and Wales No: 7525574. 0680/03 Swindon Marina – Planning Policy Statement CONTENTS Item Description 1.0 Introduction 2.0 Location & Proposed Development 3.0 Planning Policy 4.0 Planning Considerations APPENDICES Item Description Appendix I EIA Screening Opinion, South Staffordshire Council, dated 20th May 2020 Appendix II Appeal Decision APP/K3415/W/18/3217315, land to the northwest of Broad Lane, Huddlesford, Lichfield 0680/03 Swindon Marina – Planning Policy Statement 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 This Planning Policy Statement (“Statement”) is written on behalf of Mr C Nedic (“the Applicant”) under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to South Staffordshire Council (“the Council”) for the consideration of the development of 51 No. holiday lodges within the grounds of Swindon Marina, High Street, Swindon, DY3 4NR. 1.2 Objectives The predominant objective of this planning application submission is to bring forward a justification for the delivery of 51 No. high quality and green principled holiday lodges to contribute to South Staffordshire’s tourism economy on a site already focused in delivering an important development for South Staffordshire’s tourism socioeconomy. 1.3 The Proposal The proposal seeks to demonstrate that by way of the holiday lodges implementation, the socioeconomic benefits to the tourism economy by way of their implementation outweigh any harm to this Green Belt designated site in the context of their delivery within the surroundings of a 199 berth marina with accompanying built development lawfully commenced on site under reference 10/00312/FUL. 1.4 In this context any landscape and visual harm to this Green Belt location and/or to the adjacent Canal Conservation Area is limited against the associated baseline and the way it prescribes such harm is significantly and substantially outweighed by the socioeconomic benefits brought by way of the implementation of the holiday lodges on the site. 1.5 As such the objective of the application is to demonstrate to the Local Planning Authority that the proposal is proportionate, reasonable and suitable against the 0680/03 Swindon Marina – Planning Policy Statement pertinent policies of the Development Plan and the specific material considerations in relation to this case, in so far as meeting the overarching aspirations of the National Planning Policy Framework (“the Framework”). 1.6 This planning application is supported by accompanying plans consisting of the following: • Visual images of the proposal • Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment (NextPhase) • Ecological Appraisal (Greenscape Environmental) • Transport Statement (RSK) • Flood Risk Assessment (Hafren Water) • Sustainability Statement (NextPhase) • Heritage Statement (NextPhase) 1.7 This statement considers matters in relation to planning policy together with material consideration to demonstrate the development’s suitability in planning terms. 0680/03 Swindon Marina – Planning Policy Statement 2.0 SITE LOCATION & PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT 2.1 Site Location The application site consists of an 8.9 hectare (22 acre) plot that forms the Swindon Marina site, a lawful development for 199 leisure canal mooring berths with ancillary visitor centre and ablution blocks together with landscaping, carparking and a public access way, a scheme of which is confirmed as lawful for existing use under the certified Certificate of Lawfulness of existing use or development issued by South Staffordshire Council on 4th February 2020. The site is situated in the village of Swindon, adjacent to the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal, Smestow Brook and “The Holloway” which becomes Swindon High Street. The backdrop to the west is formed by Swindon Rough a wooded escarpment. To the north is the village of Swindon and to the south a field tapers off where the canal has a strong bend towards the east. 2.2 Hinksford Mobile Home Park is situated approximately 250m to the south and the eastern boundary is formed by the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal. Beyond that side of the valley leads up to Hinksford Lane, the cricket grounds and the parish council facilities. Reynolds Close overlooks part of the site and to the west the residential cul-de-sac of Brooklands also overlooks part of the site. 2.3 The north side of the site is formed by Swindon High Street and in the south east corner is the former lock keeper’s cottage, a modest dwelling. The high street is at a higher level than most of the site and the bridge over the canal gives good views across it. There are views across the whole of the site from the informal paths within Swindon Rough woodland, parts of Brooklands and from Hinksford Lane, the cricket ground and play areas. 2.4 The point of access to the site has been agreed to the provision of conditional and discharge details to South Staffordshire Council as part of 10/00312/FUL which 0680/03 Swindon Marina – Planning Policy Statement includes an internal access road which provides access to the western end of the village core extent of the High Street, with the left turning out of the site leading to the more rural road network beyond. The nature of the highway of High Street is a 30mph zone with highways infrastructure to create natural speed reduction including the canal bridge and other speed restrictions. 2.5 Proposed Development The proposal seeks to bring forward a scheme of 51 No. holiday and leisure lodges for the tourism and leisure market as an ancillary and complementary development to the marina. 2.1 Careful consideration of the location of the caravans has been undertaken; the caravans have been located in situ with the established marina and has not amended the layout associated with the extant permission in any physical manner with the predominant delivery of the lodges to the southernmost extent of the site an area left to green space beyond the build-up of carparking, access road and moorings that form the southernmost extent of the marina layout. 2.2 Other than this the secondary location for the lodges is peripheral to the western boundary of the marina area adjacent to the access road that services the perimeter of the marina and adjacent to the permitted ablution blocks that all sit inside of the secure fencing associated with the marina itself. The location of the lodges has taken into consideration the modelled flood zones of the site, for which an updated Flood Risk Assessment has been provided so as to bring forward the lodges in locations outside of the modelled flood zone and have sought to introduce the lodges in locations wherein visual viewpoints of the site are influenced by that of the water, jetties, access road perimeters and built development associated with the marina. 2.3 The lodges have been situated so as to provide perimeter carparking provided directly off the permitted access drives associated with the marina and implement 0680/03 Swindon Marina – Planning Policy Statement substantial perimeter and island planting to co-align with the landscaping scheme associated with the marina and so as to enhance the naturalistic blending in of the lodges within the locality. 2.4 The lodges themselves provide a relatively modest additional contribution to the built infrastructure associated with the marina, and have been situated so as to be able to be implemented sufficiently within the established topography associated with the lawful marina scheme. 0680/03 Swindon Marina – Planning Policy Statement 3.0 PLANNING POLICY 3.1 The extant Development Plan in relation to the site consists of the following documents: • South Staffordshire Local Plan Core Strategy DPD (2012) • South Staffordshire Site Allocations Document (2018) • Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) including Design Guide SPD, Sustainable Development SPD, Green Belt and Open Countryside SPD and Historic Environment Character Assessment (2011 – Appendix VI) • National Planning Policy Framework (2019); and associated Planning Practice Guidance 3.2 Planning History The most pertinent planning history associated with the site is that in relation to extant permission 10/00312/FUL certified as lawful by the Council within application number 19/00584/LUE dated 4th February 2020. 3.3 EIA Screening An EIA Screening Opinion Request was submitted to South Staffordshire Council in relation to this proposal under the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2017 given that the extant development itself was subject to an EIA. A copy of the screening opinion provided by South Staffordshire Council on 20th May 2020 is provided within Appendix I and identifies given that the proposal was considered not to have a greater than local impact above the works needed for the marina and the proposed development was not likely to have any impact to a substantial extent, magnitude or complexity that an Environmental Impact Assessment is not required for the proposal.