Transformation and Sustainability SHEFFIELD DEVELOPMENT FRAMEWORK PREFERRED OPTIONS FOR THE CORE STRATEGY For consideration by Cabinet, 8 February 2006 Development Services Sheffield City Council Howden House 1 Union Street Sheffield S1 2SH Availability of this document See Chapter 2 ‘How to Comment’ If you would like a copy of this document in large print, audio format, Braille, on computer disk, or in a language other than English, please contact us for this to be arranged: telephone (0114) 273 4212, or e-mail [email protected], or write to: SDF Team Development Services Howden House 1 Union Street Sheffield S1 2SH CONTENTS Page 1. Introduction to Preferred Options 1 2. How to Comment on the Options 5 3. Policy Context and Overall Vision 7 4. Aims and Objectives 11 5. A Spatial Vision for Sheffield 19 6. Preferred Options: Citywide 27 Business and Industry 27 Retail and Built Leisure 32 Housing 37 Open Space and Sports Facilities 43 Environment 45 Waste Management 50 Transport 51 7. Preferred Options: Areas 61 City Centre 61 Lower Don Valley 71 Upper Don Valley 75 Sheaf Valley and Neighbouring Areas 80 North East Urban Area 83 South East Urban Area 87 South and West Area 88 Mosborough/Woodhouse 89 Chapeltown/Ecclesfield 91 Stocksbridge/Deepcar 93 Rural Settlements 96 APPENDIX Emerging and Preferred Options 97 1. INTRODUCTION TO THE PREFERRED OPTIONS What is the Sheffield Development Framework about? 1.1 The Sheffield Development Framework is the City’s response to its new statutory requirement to prepare a Local Development Framework. The Local Development Framework comprises a set of planning documents, which will include Development Plan Documents to replace the existing Unitary Development Plan. What is the Core Strategy? 1.2 The first of these Development Plan Documents is known as the Core Strategy. This will provide the overall spatial strategy for the city. It will answer the question, ‘At a strategic level, what is going to happen, where, and how is it going to happen?’ So, the Core Strategy will: contain the aims and overall strategy and high-level policy make connections with other major strategies such as the: - National planning policy and guidance - Securing the Future: the UK Government sustainable development strategy. - Regional Spatial Strategy - Regional Economic Strategy - The Sheffield City Regional Development Programme element of the Northern Way - South Yorkshire Spatial Vision - City Strategy (Sheffield’s community strategy) and other strategies under its umbrella - Housing Market Renewal ‘Pathfinder’ strategy - Local Transport Plan 2006-2011 identify the main spatial patterns over the next 15 years set out locational criteria where it is not possible to be more specific about spatial policy. 1.3 It will not include development control criteria, though its policies may still be used to support specific decisions on planning applications. What about the issues not covered by the Core Strategy? 1.4 Some issues will be dealt with in other Development Plan Documents: City Policies – setting out all the regulatory policies to guide planning decisions and preparation of planning briefs City Sites – including all the site allocations (housing, business etc.) -1- Proposals Map – providing the spatial dimension for the policies and proposals of all the Development Plan Documents, showing areas and links on an Ordnance Survey map base. Emerging Options for these documents will be available for consultation at the same time as the Preferred Options for the Core Strategy. The timetable for completing these documents is contained in the Local Development Scheme (April 2005 – March 2009). 1.5 At a later stage, we will be preparing Area Action Plans and Supplementary Planning Documents, but these will be started when the main citywide documents have been drafted. How do the Preferred Options fit in? 1.6 Government guidance requires the Council to involve communities in the development of options for its Local Development Framework. This involvement should be a continuous process rather than one discrete exercise. In practice, there need to be defined stages within this process and the first of these was the consultation on Emerging Options for the Core Strategy in June and July 2005. This consultation explored the choices that are available between different types of development and different areas. 1.7 The present stage of the preparation process narrows the Emerging Options down to Preferred Options. These are not yet fully developed policies but indicate the broad directions that the Council has in mind. They take account of: Comments received on the Emerging Options and earlier consultations Sustainability Appraisal Equality Appraisal The new City Strategy The new draft Regional Spatial Strategy Other strategies and masterplans, including the Local Transport Plan 2006-2011, the City Centre Masterplan and development frameworks for the Housing Market Renewal ‘Pathfinder’ area Consideration of the prospects for making the options happen in practice Ongoing technical work. The status of Preferred Options 1.8 Unlike the Emerging Options, the Preferred Options have been approved by the Council, but only as a basis for consultation. They provide an indication of the policies that the Council is thinking of submitting to the Government. 1.9 The options will begin to influence other plan preparation and if there is significant clear support in the consultation, they might even be considered material in some planning decisions. But, it must be emphasised that they do not replace the Unitary Development Plan. This remains the statutory -2- development plan for the city until the new policies are formally approved. Although the Preferred Options are more recent and take account of changing circumstances they do not carry statutory weight because they have not yet been through the public scrutiny required for that. 1.10 In some areas, there are few or no Preferred Options. This is usually for one of two reasons: It is envisaged that the area will remain fairly stable – no major choices are anticipated and the emphasis will be on regulatory policies in the City Policies document to safeguard the character and conditions of these areas. In other areas, there is a lot of regeneration activity but the impacts are generally quite local. This activity will bring about significant improvements and, hopefully, greater stability to these areas. But there may not be meaningful strategic options for their basic character or land uses. 1.11 We have tried to identify all the strategic spatial choices for the next 15 years. But it is still possible that we have omitted some, for example, because we are not yet aware of new initiatives that major stakeholders are hoping to take. The Preferred Options consultation will help to show if there are still any foreseeable options that we have overlooked. 1.12 But most of the underlying principles that need to inform planning strategy are becoming fairly clear and these have influenced the choice and evaluation of the Emerging Options. These are outlined in Chapter 4, on Aims and Objectives. What about the consultation on issues for the UDP Review? 1.13 Many comments were received in 2002 about the questions posed for the now superseded review of the Unitary Development Plan. Comments made then are being fed into the new process and we will report on this as the work proceeds. That consultation was about the questions that needed asking in considering new policies. The present consultation goes on to pose answers to those questions that are about Core Strategy matters. -3- 2 HOW TO COMMENT ON THE OPTIONS What to comment on 2.1 We have now reached a formal consultation stage for the Core Strategy Preferred Options and the associated Sustainability Appraisal Report. We are also simultaneously carrying out informal consultation on the Emerging Options for the City Policies, City Sites and Proposals Map. 2.2 We would welcome your views on any or all of the above documents but recognise that there is a lot of material and you will want to give us your considered view. Therefore, please concentrate your comments on the aspects that concern you most. Do you support the vision, aims, objectives and spatial vision in the Core Strategy: Preferred Options document? Do you support the Preferred Options for the Core Strategy? When commenting on the Preferred Options please remember to provide us with the option reference number and your reasons. Where to view material 2.3 All documents can be viewed or downloaded on the Council’s website: www.sheffield.gov.uk/in-your-area/planning-and-city-development/planning- documents/sdf Reference copies are available at First Point at: Howden House (1 Union Street in the City Centre) Chapeltown (Station Road) Hillsborough (in the Barracks) and also at all Sheffield Library Branches, including the local studies section of the Central Library. 2.4 If you are unable to visit one of these facilities and do not have access to the internet then please contact the SDF Team (see contact details below) and copies will be made available to you. 2.5 If you wish to buy a hard copy of a document (or an extract) please contact the SDF Team (see contact details below). 2.6 If you would like a copy of this document in large print, audio format, Braille, on computer disk, or in a language other than English, please contact us for this to be arranged (see contact details below). -5- How to send us your views 2.7 You can comment on all of the documents referred to in paragraph 2.1 above in a number of ways: You can download a comment form from the Council’s website: www.sheffield.gov.uk/in-your-area/planning-and-city- development/planning-documents/sdf/consultation-on-the-sdf You can send your comments by email to [email protected] or write to us at: SDF Team Development Services Howden House 1 Union Street Sheffield S1 2SH Please ensure your comments reach us no later than Monday 10 April 2006.