Our ref: APP/P0119/V/17/3170627 James Fennell/Jenny Hill Lichfields 14 Regents Wharf All Saints Street London 1 October 2018 N1 9RL Dear Sir/Madam TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING ACT 1990 – SECTION 77 APPLICATION MADE BY CRIBBS MALL NOMINEE (1) LTD, CRIBBS MALL NOMINEE (2) LTD, BAYLIS ESTATES LTD AND JOHN BAYLIS LTD THE MALL, CRIBBS CAUSEWAY, PATCHWAY, SOUTH GLOUCESTERSHIRE BS34 5DG APPLICATION REF: PT14/4894/O 1. I am directed by the Secretary of State to say that consideration has been given to the report of Christina Downes BSc DipTP MRTPI, who held a public local inquiry between 5- 27 September 2017 and closed in writing on 14 February 2018 into your client’s application for outline planning permission for alterations and extension of The Mall including the erection of new buildings for uses within Use Classes A1-A5 (shops. Financial & professional services, restaurants & cafes, drinking establishments and hot food takeaway), D1 (non-residential institutions) and D2 (assembly & leisure), C1 (hotel), C3 (dwellings comprising apartments), provision of a new multi-storey car park and alteration to existing entrances. Erection of new bus station including uses within Use Classes A1-A5. Provision of new public realm, including public space and landscaped areas. Provision of new roads and pedestrian routes and cycle ways, including a new pedestrian bridge over Merlin Road and other ancillary works and operations. Temporary works including temporary bus station comprising works to existing surface car parking areas and temporary contractor and car parking compounds and assorted facilities, in accordance with application ref: PT14/4894/O, dated 22 December 2014. 2. On 1 March 2017, the Secretary of State directed, in pursuance of Section 77 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, that your client’s application be referred to him instead of being dealt with by the local planning authority. Inspector’s recommendation and summary of the decision 3. The Inspector recommended that planning permission be refused. Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government Tel: 0303 444 3594 Andrew Lynch, Decision Officer Email: [email protected] Planning Casework Unit 3rd Floor Fry Building 2 Marsham Street London SW1P 4DF 4. For the reasons given below, the Secretary of State agrees with the Inspector’s conclusions, except where stated, and agrees with her recommendation. He has decided to refuse planning permission. A copy of the Inspector’s report (IR) is enclosed. All references to paragraph numbers, unless otherwise stated, are to that report. Environmental Statement 5. In reaching this position, the Secretary of State has taken into account the Environmental Statement which was submitted under the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2011 and the environmental information submitted before the inquiry opened. Having taken account of the Inspector’s comments at IR5, the Secretary of State is satisfied that the Environmental Statement and other additional information provided complies with the above Regulations and that sufficient information has been provided for him to assess the environmental impact of the proposal. Procedural matters 6. The Secretary of State notes at IR6-8 that the inquiry was held in a remote location that was not well served by public transport. For the reasons given at IR6-8, the Secretary of State agrees with the Inspector that in the circumstances and on balance he does not consider that anyone was unacceptably prejudiced or unable to participate if they had wished to do so, and that in terms of the inquiry room, he does not consider that wheelchair users or those with impaired mobility were disadvantaged in this case. For the reasons given at IR9-10, the Secretary of State agrees with the Inspector that it was not necessary for further oral evidence to be heard on the issue of further transport modelling, or on the resolution of Bristol City Council’s Development Control Committee to grant outline planning permission for development proposals at Callowhill Court on 10 January 2018. Matters arising since the close of the inquiry 7. Following the final sitting day of the inquiry, South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) published a consultation document on the emerging South Gloucestershire Local Plan 2018-2036 which was open to consultation between 5 February and 30 April 2018. At the time of writing her report, the Inspector considered the earlier consultation document titled ‘New South Gloucestershire Local Plan 2018-2036 Prospectus’ dated January 2017. Having given careful consideration to the consultation document published in February 2018, the Secretary of State is satisfied that it does not raise any new issues that would require a reference back to parties. 8. Following the final sitting day of the inquiry, the emerging West of England Joint Spatial Plan Publication Document was published in November 2017 and submitted to the Secretary of State on 13 April 2018. At the time of writing her report, the Inspector considered the document titled ‘West of England Joint Spatial Plan – Towards the Emerging Spatial Strategy Document’, published in November 2016. Having given careful consideration to the consultation document published in November 2017, the Secretary of State is satisfied that it does not raise any new issues that would require a reference back to parties. 9. On 31 July 2018, the Secretary of State wrote to the main parties to afford them an opportunity to comment on the implications, if any, of the revised National Planning Policy Framework, which was published on 24 July 2018, and on the grant of outline planning permission for the Callowhill Court proposal in Bristol, together with associated S106 2 Agreement. A list of representations received in response to this letter is at Annex A. These representations were circulated to the main parties on 22 August 2018. The Secretary of State has carefully considered all the representations received. Copies of these representations may be obtained on written request to the address at the foot of the first page of this letter. 10. A list of representations which have been received by email following the final sitting day of the inquiry is also at Annex A of this letter. The Secretary of State is satisfied that the issues raised do not affect his decision, and no other new issues were raised in this correspondence to warrant further investigation or necessitate additional referrals back to parties. Copies of these letters may be obtained on written request to the address at the foot of the first page of this letter. Policy and statutory considerations 11. In reaching his decision, the Secretary of State has had regard to section 38(6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 which requires that proposals be determined in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. 12. In this case the development plan consists of the South Gloucestershire Local Plan Core Strategy 2006-2027, adopted in 2013 and the South Gloucestershire Local Plan Policies, Sites and Places Plan (PSP Plan), adopted on 8 November 2017. Since the close of the inquiry, the saved policies of the South Gloucestershire Local Plan were superseded when the PSP Plan was adopted. Although this happened after the close of the inquiry, all parties were aware of the situation and presented their evidence accordingly (IR18). The Secretary of State considers that the development plan policies of most relevance to this case are those set out at IR22-28. 13. Other material considerations which the Secretary of State has taken into account include the National Planning Policy Framework (‘the Framework’) and associated planning guidance (‘the Guidance’), as well as the Bristol Core Strategy, adopted in 2011 and the Bristol Central Area Plan, adopted in 2015. The Secretary of State considers that the material considerations of most relevance to this case are those set out at IR29-33. The revised National Planning Policy Framework was published on 24 July 2018, and unless otherwise specified, any references to the Framework in this letter are to the revised Framework. Emerging plans 14. The emerging plan comprises a new local plan for South Gloucestershire which is intended to cover the period 2018-2036. The emerging West of England Joint Spatial Plan is being produced by South Gloucestershire Council, Bristol City Council, North Somerset Council and Bath and North East Somerset Council. 15. Paragraph 48 of the revised Framework states that decision makers may give weight to relevant policies in emerging plans according to: (1) the stage of preparation of the emerging plan; (2) the extent to which there are unresolved objections to relevant policies in the emerging plan; and (3) the degree of consistency of relevant policies to the policies in the Framework. 16. Taking into account the three limbs above, both emerging plans are at a very early stage and as such can only be afforded little weight. 3 Main issues Consideration one: planning policy context and approach to decision making 17. The Secretary of State notes the retail policy context set out by the Inspector at IR554- 559, and agrees in particular that: there is no dispute that the whole of the Cribbs Causeway area, including The Mall, is out-of-centre for planning policy purposes; the development plan is not silent on the issue of the distribution of retail floorspace in South Gloucestershire after 2021; and that paragraph 7.58 of the PSP Plan makes clear that until there is a new local plan, proposals to meet retail need post 2021 will be considered against the sequential and impact test requirements in national policy. 18. For the reasons given at IR560-561, the Secretary of State agrees with the Inspector at IR561 that, bearing in mind Framework paragraph 86, the hotel would not need to be included in the sequential test.