Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report Local Development Plan 2030 Sustainability Appraisal (SA) Incorporating Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) SA Scoping Report June 2019 Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report Local Development Plan 2030 Forward Planning Team Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council Planning Section Mossley Mill Newtownabbey BT36 5QA Tel: 0300 123 6677 Email: [email protected] June 2019 Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report Local Development Plan 2030 Have your say Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council is consulting on the Antrim and Newtownabbey Local Development Plan draft Plan Strategy 2030. Pre-Consultation on the draft Plan Strategy To allow everyone time to read and understand the draft Plan Strategy and all its associated documents, Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council is publishing all documentation in advance of the formal 8 week period of public consultation. This period of pre-consultation will run from Friday 28 June 2019 to Thursday 25 July 2019. Please note that no representations should be made during this period. Formal Consultation on the draft Plan Strategy The draft Plan Strategy is published for formal public consultation for a period of 8 weeks beginning on Friday 26 July and closing at 5 pm on Friday 20 September 2019. The draft Plan Strategy is published alongside a range of assessments which are also open for public consultation between Friday 26 July 2019 and Friday 20 September 2019 including a Sustainability Appraisal (incorporating the Strategic Environmental Assessment), a draft Habitats Regulations Assessment and a Section 75 Screening and Rural Needs Impact Assessment Report. Please note that representations received after the closing date on Friday 20 September 2019 will not be considered. How to respond The purpose of the consultation is to determine if the draft Plan Strategy is ‘sound’. There are 12 tests of soundness and further information on these tests is available in the Department for Infrastructure’s published Development Plan Practice Note 6 ‘Soundness’. We strongly recommend that you read this and other Departmental guidance if you intend to make a representation to the draft Plan Strategy. It is also recommended that you read the Planning Appeal Commission’s published guidance entitled ‘Procedures for Independent Examination of Local Development Plans’ as this also gives information in relation to soundness and representations. Representations, should be made in writing and we would encourage you to use the methods set out below: Online Via our online consultation hub at: www.antrimandnewtownabbey.gov.uk/draftplanstrategy Downloading a copy of the response form from our website and forwarding it to the Forward Planning Team; or Requesting a copy of our response form to be posted to you or you may collect a hard copy from Antrim Civic Centre or Mossley Mill and return it to the Forward Planning Team. June 2019 Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report Local Development Plan 2030 By Mail Email us at [email protected] In writing to the following postal address: Forward Planning Team Mossley Mill, Carnmoney Road North, Newtownabbey BT36 5QA Come and Meet us We are also holding a series of drop-in events and public meetings where you will be able to speak to a member of the Forward Planning Team about our Draft Plan Strategy. Full details are available on our website or by contacting the Team. Planning Officers are also available between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday at Mossley Mill. They are also available at Antrim Civic Centre by contacting us in advance to arrange an appointment. Keeping the Community Involved The Council wishes to encourage the ongoing involvement of the local community in the plan process. You can sign up to receive our Local Development Plan emails to keep up to date on the progress of the Plan and upcoming events. If you would like to receive our Local Development Plan emails, please contact the Forward Planning Team. General Data Protection Regulation Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council complies with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) by producing a specific Local Development Plan Privacy Notice, which lets you know how we manage any personal information we receive from you. It contains the standards you can expect when we ask for, or hold, your personal information and an explanation of our information management security policy. A copy of our Local Development Plan Privacy Notice is available on our website. All representations received will be published on our website and made available at Mossley Mill and Antrim Civic Centre for inspection at the addresses above. All representations will be forwarded to the Department of Infrastructure in advance of Independent Examination June 2019 Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report Local Development Plan 2030 Overview of SA Scoping Report The Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council Local Development Plan This document forms part of work on a new Local Development Plan (LDP) for the Borough which will look forward to 2030. The purpose of the new Plan will be to inform the public, statutory authorities, developers and other interested parties of how the Borough should develop in the years ahead. Local Development Plans contain policies and proposals that are used when determining planning applications. A good plan will lead to decisions that are consistent and people will know what to expect in terms of change, and the locations where development will be encouraged. The new Antrim and Newtownabbey LDP will be prepared within the context of the Council’s Corporate Plan and will co-ordinate with the Community Planning process to enable us to plan positively and proactively for the future of our Borough. The policies and proposals defined in the LDP will be a vital tool in facilitating the implementation of any land use related objectives contained in our Community Plan. The LDP must also take account of the regional policy context set by the Northern Ireland Executive and Government Departments. This includes the Regional Development Strategy (RDS) 2035, the Sustainable Development Strategy for Northern Ireland, the Strategic Planning Policy Statement (SPPS), and any other policies, advice or guidance such as that relating to relevant landscape character assessments and conservation areas. Draft Plan Strategy In January 2017 the Council published its Preferred Options Paper (POP). The purpose of the POP was to: Promote debate on issues of strategic importance that will influence the shape of future development in our Borough up to 2030; Set out a number of planning issues that we wanted to engage with the public on; and Provide possible options for the strategic direction that our new Local Development Plan might take. The POP was subject to a 12-week period of public consultation in order to provide the opportunity for the public and other key stakeholders to shape the Council’s LDP. Those responses to the POP consultation stage have been important in developing the strategy and development management policies within the draft Plan Strategy. The LDP will consist of two documents that are prepared in sequence. The first stage is the publication of the Plan Strategy, which is then followed by the Local Policies Plan. The draft Plan Strategy was published on 28 June 2019 with a 4-week pre- consultation period followed by an 8-week formal consultation period from 26 July to 20 September 2019. It is a legislative requirement of The Planning Act (NI) 2011 that an appraisal of the sustainability of the Plan Strategy be carried out. The Sustainability Appraisal (incorporating Strategic Environmental Assessment), is also i Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report Local Development Plan 2030 open for public consultation along with a draft Habitats Regulations Assessment, and an Equality (Section 75) Screening and Rural Needs Impact Assessment Report. What is Sustainability Appraisal? Sustainability Appraisal is a statutory process incorporating the requirements of the European Union Strategic Environmental Assessment Directive (2001) (‘the SEA Directive’). A Sustainability Appraisal is being carried out alongside preparation of the Antrim and Newtownabbey LDP. Local Planning Authorities use Sustainability Appraisal to assess plans against a set of sustainability objectives. This process helps to evaluate possible strategic, policy and site specific options, as well as the most sustainable in terms of economic, social and environmental performance. What is the purpose of this document? The purpose of this Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report is to: Identify other policies, plans, programmes and sustainability objectives of relevance to the LDP; Collect relevant baseline information about the environmental, social and economic conditions in Antrim and Newtownabbey and consider how these might change in the future; Identify sustainability issues and challenges which could affect or be addressed by the LDP; Develop the Sustainability Appraisal Framework, consisting of sustainability objectives and appraisal prompts, which will form the basis for assessment of the LDP; and Invite comment on the scope and method of the Sustainability Appraisal. Sustainability Appraisal Objectives for Antrim and Newtownabbey A total of fourteen social, economic and environmental topics have been identified. For each topic sustainability objectives were identified by considering the wider strategic and policy context, and reviewing baseline information