July 2018 Northumberland Local Plan Draft Plan for Regulation 18 Consultation Northumberland Local Plan / Spring 2018 Consultation / Feedback Report Page 03 If you need this information in Large Print, Braille, Audio or in another format or language please contact us: (Telephone) 0345 600 6400 (Typetalk) 018001 0345 600 6400 Contents Foreword 9 1 Introduction 11 What is the Development Plan? 11 What is the Northumberland Local Plan? 11 What is the area covered by the Northumberland Local Plan? 12 What exactly will the Northumberland Local Plan replace? 13 What is the relationship with neighbourhood plans? 13 What has been done so far to prepare this Local Plan? 14 What is the purpose and scope of this consultation? 14 Duty to cooperate 15 How to get involved 15 Next Steps - Timetable 16 2 Spatial Portrait 17 Natural, historic and built environment 17 Economy and employment 19 Education and skills 20 Health 21 Population of Northumberland 22 Delivery Areas 22 3 Spatial Vision, Objectives and Outcomes 35 Vision 35 Strategic Objectives 35 Strategic objectives and outcomes 37 4 Delivering the Vision for Northumberland 45 Development strategy 45 Spatial strategy 51 Sustainable development 55 Climate change mitigation and adaptation 57 Health and Wellbeing 58 Green Infrastructure 60 Sustainable design 65 Green Belt in Northumberland 66 Northumberland Local Plan - Draft Plan for Regulation 18 Consultation (July 2018) Contents 5 Economic Development 71 Introduction 71 A planning strategy for the Northumberland economy 71 Forecasting employment growth 73 Measuring and meeting the need for employment land 74 Other means of accommodating employment 89 Rural economy 90 Tourism and visitor development 95 Town Centres, Village Centres and Local Centres 100 6 Housing 115 Introduction 115 Making the best use of our existing housing stock 115 Planning for growth and meeting housing needs over the plan period 117 Distribution of housing requirements 119 Delivering our housing requirements 121 Housing types and mix 126 Delivering affordable housing 127 Homes for older and vulnerable people 133 Management of housing development 137 Gypsies and Travellers and Travelling Showpeople 140 7 Connectivity and Movement 143 Introduction 143 Regional and local transport strategies, plans and policies 143 Promoting sustainable connections 144 Connections with Northumberland's transport network 146 Connections with Northumberland’s core road network 147 Safeguarding existing and future potential rail infrastructure 150 Newcastle International Airport 153 Ports, harbours and beach launch facilities 156 Digital connectivity 158 8 Environment 161 Introduction 161 Northumberland Local Plan - Draft Plan for Regulation 18 Consultation (July 2018) Contents Designated areas 162 Biodiversity and geodiversity 165 Landscape 168 National landscape designations 171 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty 172 Historic and built environment 176 The Frontiers of the Roman Empire: Hadrian's Wall World Heritage Site 179 Conservation Areas 180 Supporting the conservation of heritage assets 182 Design of the public realm 183 9 Water Environment 185 Introduction 185 Water quality 185 Water supply and sewerage 188 Flood risk 192 Sustainable Drainage Systems 196 Coastal change 198 10 Contaminated and Unstable Land, Pollution and Soil Quality 201 Introduction 201 Contaminated and unstable land 201 Pollution 203 Airport Safeguarding Areas 204 Soils and agricultural land quality 205 11 Managing Natural Resources 207 Introduction to minerals 207 Environmental criteria for assessing minerals developments 207 Benefits of minerals developments 210 Mineral and landfill site restoration, aftercare and after-use 211 Mineral resource safeguarding 213 Mineral infrastructure safeguarding 215 Aggregate minerals 217 Northumberland Local Plan - Draft Plan for Regulation 18 Consultation (July 2018) Contents Coal 223 Clays 226 Natural building and roofing stone 228 Conventional and unconventional oil and gas 228 Peat 230 Vein minerals 231 Introduction to waste 232 The amount of waste we need to plan for 232 Waste prevention and minimisation 234 Provision for waste re-use, recycling and recovery capacity 234 Waste disposal 237 Safeguarding waste management facilities 239 Introduction to renewable and low carbon energy 240 Assessing proposals for renewable energy development 240 Assessing proposals for onshore wind turbine development 242 Sustainable design and construction 246 12 Infrastructure, Implementation and Delivery 247 Planning for infrastructure to support sustainable development 247 Community facilities and services 251 Assets of Community Value 254 Delivering well-designed places 256 Open space and facilities for sport and recreation 257 Planning conditions and planning obligations 260 Future infrastructure funding opportunities 261 Implementation 262 Monitoring 264 Glossary 267 A Housing Requirements and Neighbourhood Planning Areas 283 B Neighbourhood Plan Housing Site Allocations 285 C Housing Trajectory 287 D Existing Waste Management Facilities 291 Northumberland Local Plan - Draft Plan for Regulation 18 Consultation (July 2018) Contents List of Policies Policy STP 1 Spatial strategy 54 Policy STP 2 Presumption in favour of sustainable development 55 Policy STP 3 Sustainable development 56 Policy STP 4 Climate change mitigation and adaptation 57 Policy STP 5 Health and Wellbeing 59 Policy STP 6 Green infrastructure 64 Policy STP 7 Design principles 66 Policy STP 8 Strategic approach to the Green Belt 68 Policy STP 9 Development in the Green Belt 69 Policy STP 10 Safeguarded land 70 Policy ECN 1 Planning strategy for the economy 72 Policy ECN 2 Blyth Estuary Strategic Employment Area 77 Policy ECN 3 West Hartford Prestige Employment Area 78 Policy ECN 4 ‘Round 2’ Enterprise Zones 80 Policy ECN 5 Windfall employment development 81 Policy ECN 6 General employment land - allocations and safeguarding 85 Policy ECN 7 Key general employment areas 87 Policy ECN 8 Areas for flexible employment uses 87 Policy ECN 9 Additional flexibility in general employment areas 88 Policy ECN 10 Loss or depletion of employment land 89 Policy ECN 11 Employment uses in built-up areas and home working 90 Policy ECN 12 A strategy for rural economic growth 91 Policy ECN 13 Meeting rural employment needs 92 Policy ECN 14 Farm / rural diversification 94 Policy ECN 15 Tourism and visitor development 96 Policy ECN 16 Green Belt and tourism and visitor economy 99 Policy ECN 17 Hierarchy of centres 102 Policy ECN 18 Defining centres in Main Towns 103 Policy ECN 19 Maintaining and enhancing the role of centres 108 Policy ECN 20 Proposals outside centres 110 Policy ECN 21 Keeping high streets vibrant 112 Policy ECN 22 Hot food takeaways 114 Policy HOU 1 Making the best use of existing buildings 116 Policy HOU 2 Provision of new residential development 118 Policy HOU 3 Housing development site allocations 123 Policy HOU 4 Housing types and mix 127 Policy HOU 5 Affordable housing provision 130 Policy HOU 6 Exception sites 132 Policy HOU 7 Homes for older and vulnerable people 136 Policy HOU 8 Management of housing development 139 Policy HOU 9 Provision for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities 142 Northumberland Local Plan - Draft Plan for Regulation 18 Consultation (July 2018) Contents Policy TRA 1 Promoting sustainable connections 145 Policy TRA 2 The effects of development on the transport network 146 Policy TRA 3 Improving Northumberland's core road network 149 Policy TRA 4 Rail transport and safeguarding facilities 151 Policy TRA 5 Newcastle International Airport 154 Policy TRA 6 Ports, harbours and beach launch facilities 157 Policy ICT 1 Planning for wireless telecommunications and broadband infrastructure 159 Policy ICT 2 New developments 159 Policy ICT 3 Infrastructure alignment 160 Policy ICT 4 Network capacity 160 Policy ENV 1 Approaches to assessing the impact of development on the natural, historic and built environment 165 Policy ENV 2 Biodiversity and geodiversity 167 Policy ENV 3 Landscape 169 Policy ENV 4 Tranquillity, dark skies and a sense of rurality 171 Policy ENV 5 Northumberland Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty 173 Policy ENV 6 North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty 175 Policy ENV 7 Historic environment and heritage assets 177 Policy ENV 8 Frontiers of the Roman Empire - Hadrian's Wall World Heritage Site 180 Policy ENV 9 Conservation Areas 181 Policy ENV 10 Supporting the conservation and enhancement of heritage assets 182 Policy ENV 11 Design of the public realm 184 Policy WAT 1 Water quality 187 Policy WAT 2 Water supply and sewerage 191 Policy WAT 3 Flooding 194 Policy WAT 4 Sustainable Drainage Systems 198 Policy WAT 5 Coastal erosion and coastal change management 199 Policy POL 1 Unstable and contaminated land 202 Policy POL 2 Pollution and air, soil and water quality 204 Policy POL 3 Airport Safeguarding Areas 205 Policy POL 4 Soil and agricultural land quality 206 Policy MIN 1 Environmental criteria for assessing minerals proposals 208 Policy MIN 2 Criteria for assessing the benefits of minerals proposals 210 Policy MIN 3 Mineral and landfill site restoration, aftercare and after-use 212 Policy MIN 4 Safeguarding mineral resources 213 Policy MIN 5 Safeguarding minerals related infrastructure 216 Policy MIN 6 Aggregate minerals 219 Policy MIN 7 Coal 225 Policy MIN 8 Clays 227 Policy MIN 9 Natural building and roofing stone 228 Policy MIN 10 Conventional and unconventional oil and gas 230 Policy MIN 11 Peat 231 Northumberland Local Plan - Draft Plan for Regulation 18 Consultation