13 University Road Leicester LE1 7RA Dated: Friday 19th July 2019 Our Reference: A1428-03-01-01-01-AP Your Reference: APP/X2410/W/19/3221952 Hazel Stanmore-Richards Eagle 3D Temple Quay House 2 The Square Bristol BS1 6PN SENT BY E-MAIL ONLY TO [email protected] Dear Hazel, RE: APP/X2410/W/19/3221952 - Land at Maplewell Road, Woodhouse Eaves, Loughborough, LE12 8RA 1.0 Introduction 1.1 We are submitting these representations on behalf of the following interested parties: Mr Michael Price of ‘The Last Outpost’ 19, Mill Road, Woodhouse Eaves, LE12 8RD; Mr Neil Davidson CBE of 175, Maplewell Road, Woodhouse Eaves, LE12 8QY; and Mr Roger Collins, The Stables, 10 Charnwood Rise, Woodhouse Eaves, LE12 8QT against the appeal proposals subject to Planning Appeal APP/X2410/W/19/3221952. 1.2 We would also appreciate it if you would inform the Inspector that Astill Planning Consultants would like to speak at the Hearing on behalf of Mr Michael Price, Mr Neil Davidson CBE and Mr Roger Collins. We would appreciate it if the Inspector would provide us with such an opportunity. 2.0 Representations 2.1 These representations have been prepared to object to Planning Appeal APP/X2410/W/19/3221952 and primarily focus on the following pertinent matters: • Charnwood Borough Council’s current housing land supply position • The distribution of housing growth set out in the development strategy for the Borough 1 • The quantum of development proposed • The nature of the proposed residential development • The remaining years of the plan period and the preparation of the neighbourhood development plan • Sustainable development • The ‘tilted balance’ Charnwood Borough Council’s current housing land supply position 2.2 Paragraph 73 of the NPPF 2019 requires local planning authorities to “identify and update annually a supply of specific deliverable sites sufficient to provide a minimum of five years’ worth of housing against their housing requirement set out in adopted strategic policies, or against their local housing need where the strategic policies are more than five years old”. 2.3 The Charnwood Local Plan 2011 to 2028 Core Strategy (‘the Core Strategy’) was adopted on 9th November 2015 following the publication of the Inspector’s Report into the examination of the Core Strategy on 21st September 2015. The strategic policies contained in the Core Strategy are therefore under five years old. In light of this, it is considered appropriate for Charnwood Borough Council to base its housing land supply calculations on the housing requirement of 820 homes a year that is established in Policy CS1 of the Core Strategy. 2.4 Paragraph 73 of the NPPF 2019 also specifies that a buffer, which is moved forward from later in the plan period, should be added to a local planning authority’s housing land supply calculation. All local planning authorities are required to apply a 5% buffer as a minimum to ensure choice and competition in the market for land. Where a local planning authority wishes to demonstrate a five year supply of deliverable sites through an annual position statement or a recently adopted plan, this buffer should be increased to 10%. Finally, where the Housing Delivery Test indicates that housing delivery in a local planning authority’s area was below 85% of the housing requirement over the previous three years, a 20% buffer should be used. 2.5 By virtue of the provisions set out in footnote 38 to paragraph 73 of the NPPF 2019, the Core Strategy does not constitute a ‘recently adopted plan’. There is also no publicly available information to suggest that Charnwood Borough Council is seeking to prepare an annual position statement at present. Additionally, the Housing Delivery Test results that were published by Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government on 19th February 2019 highlight that over the previous three years (2015-16, 2016-17, 2017-18) housing delivery in Charnwood amounted to 123% of the Borough’s housing requirement. As such, it is deemed to be appropriate for a 5% buffer to be applied in Charnwood’s housing land supply calculation. 2 2.6 When the appeal was submitted on 5th February 2019, Charnwood Borough Council was able to demonstrate a housing land supply of 5.93 years1. This was partly due to the revised guidance on calculating housing land supply in the revised NPPF that was published on 24th July 2018. The Council’s housing land supply position was confirmed in the revised Authority Monitoring Report 2017 to 2018 (December 2018) (‘revised AMR 2017-2018’). 2.7 At paragraph 2.7 of their Hearing Statement the appellant states “The 5.89-year housing land supply has not been justified and explained with no details of the housing land supply detailed.”2 Paragraph 2.7 of the appellant’s Hearing Statement also draws attention to the Council’s revised housing land supply position being “informed by a list of specific sites” that the Council did not publish as part of the revised AMR 2017-2018. 2.8 Following the submission of the appeal, Charnwood Borough updated its five year housing land supply position and the Council can now demonstrate a 6.41 years’ supply of specific deliverable housing sites (as at 31st March 2019). 2.9 This calculation is based on the 820 dwellings a year requirement in the Core Strategy; accounts for the past under delivery of homes in the Borough over the plan period (37 dwellings); and includes a 5% buffer. Charnwood’s current housing land supply calculation is therefore considered to comply with the requirements of paragraph 73 of the NPPF 2019. 2.10 It is also worth noting that since the appeal was submitted, the Council’s housing land supply position has increased from 5.93 years to 6.41 years. 2.11 The Council’s housing land supply calculation is provided at Appendix 1 of these representations along with the list of the specific sites which form part of this calculation. This information justifies and explains the Council’s current housing land supply position and thus addresses the concerns raised by the appellant at paragraph 2.7 of their Hearing Statement in relation to how it has been calculated. 2.12 In light of the above, it is concluded that the Council is able to demonstrate a supply of specific deliverable sites sufficient to provide a minimum of five years’ worth of housing against their housing requirement. 2.13 It is important to consider the above factors within the context of footnote 7 to paragraph 11 of the NPPF 2019 which explains that for applications involving the provision of housing, the policies which are most important for determining the application will be out- of-date in situations where: • The local planning authority cannot demonstrate a five-year supply of deliverable housing sites (with the appropriate buffer); or • The Housing Delivery Test indicates that the delivery of housing was substantially 1 The appellant’s Hearing Statement refers to a “5.89-year housing land supply”, but the table at paragraph 6.5 of the revised Charnwood Authority Monitoring Report 2017 to 2018 (December 2018) refers to a 5.93 years’ housing land supply. 2 Please refer to the above footnote. 3 below the housing requirement over the previous three years3 (subject to the transitional arrangements in Annex 1). 2.14 Given that a) Charnwood Borough Council can demonstrate a five-year supply of deliverable housing sites with the appropriate buffer; and b) Housing delivery in the Borough over the previous years has amounted to 123% of its housing requirement, it is considered that the Council’s policies most relevant to the supply of housing are not out-of-date and thus significant weight should be afforded to these policies in the overall planning balance. 2.15 What is more, at paragraph 44 of the Court of Appeal Judgement in Gladman Developments Ltd v Daventry District Council & Anor [EWCA] 2016 Civ 1146 (Appendix 2), LJ Sales established that “…The fact that the Council is able to show that with current saved housing policies in place it has the requisite five year supply tends to show that there is no compelling pressure by reason of unmet housing need which requires those policies to be overridden in the present case...” 2.16 Similarly, the presence of a five-year housing land supply in the Borough of Charnwood demonstrates that the Borough’s housing requirement is currently being met without the need to grant planning permission for additional residential development on land outside the Limits to Development. There is therefore no compelling pressure by reason of unmet housing need in the Borough to override saved policies ST/2, CT/1 and CT/2. As a result, further residential development on sites outside of the Limits to Development, such as on the appeal site, is currently considered to be unnecessary and unjustifiable. Accordingly, the principle of the proposed development is deemed to be inappropriate. Thus, it is contended that the appeal proposal’s conflict with saved policies ST/2, CT/1 and CT/2 should be attributed some weight in the overall planning balance. Ultimately, this weighs against a grant of planning permission for the scheme. The distribution of housing growth set out in the development strategy for the Borough 2.17 Policy CS1 of the Core Strategy sets out the Council’s ambition to make provision for at least 13,940 new homes in the Borough between 2011 and 2028. 2.18 Policy CS1 also establishes the development strategy for Charnwood and sets out how the 13,940 new homes will be distributed across the Borough through the use of a settlement hierarchy, which seeks to direct future development to the most sustainable locations in terms of access to jobs, services and public transport.