North Warwickshire Local Development Framework Statement of Community Involvement Submission Draft November 2006 North Warwickshire Statement of Community Involvement: Submission Draft – November 2006 1 Contents Abbreviations Used in this Document 4 1 Introduction 5 Part A: Consulting on Development Planning 2 A New Planning System: Local Development Frameworks (LDFs) 8 3 Links with Other Plans and Policies 10 4 Who We Will Consult 11 5 How We Will Consult 13 6 Local Development Documents (LDDs) and Sustainability 16 Appraisal (SA): When We Will Consult Part B: Consulting on Planning Applications 7 Introduction 26 8 The Application Process 26 9 Consultation During the Application Process 28 10 Other Types of Application 35 11 Alleged Breaches of Planning Control 36 12 Data Protection and Copyright 37 Part C: Monitoring 13 Review and Monitoring of the SCI 39 Appendices 1 Local Development Frameworks 2 Specific Consultation Bodies 3 General Consultation Bodies / Other Consultees 4 Equality Impact Assessment 5 Determination of a Planning Application 6 Relevant Planning Considerations 7 Occasions where the Council is under a Statutory Duty to publicise applications 8 Neighbour Notification Guide If you require further assistance, or information in another language, large type, Braille or audio tape format, please contact the Forward Planning Team: North Warwickshire Borough Council, PO Box 6, The Council House, South Street, Atherstone, Warwickshire, CV9 1BG Tel: 01827 719499/250 E-mail: [email protected] North Warwickshire Statement of Community Involvement: Submission Draft – November 2006 2 Preface Stages in the Preparation of a Statement of Community Involvement for North Warwickshire Information gathering Consultation on Initial SCI Questionnaire Production of draft SCI document Consultation on draft SCI June / July 2006 Preparation and submission of SCI November 2006 Representations on submitted SCI WE ARE HERE Independent Examination February 2007 Binding Report April 2007 Adoption Summer 2007 North Warwickshire Statement of Community Involvement: Submission Draft – November 2006 3 Abbreviations Used in this Document AMR Annual Monitoring Report DPD Development Plan Document LDD Local Development Document LDF Local Development Framework LDS Local Development Scheme PPS Planning Policy Statement RSS Regional Spatial Strategy SA Sustainability Appraisal SCI Statement of Community Involvement SPD Supplementary Planning Document North Warwickshire Statement of Community Involvement: Submission Draft – November 2006 4 1 Introduction 1.1 The Government attaches great reaches independent examination, importance to community issues are clearly understood. involvement in the planning process. They seek more active 1.3 This document sets out the way in involvement of communities, which North Warwickshire stakeholders and commercial Borough Council will involve interests as early as possible in communities, stakeholders and the planning system, so called commercial interests in drawing ‘front-loading’1. For North up its Local Development Warwickshire Borough Council, it Documents and determining is important that the communities planning applications. of North Warwickshire have sufficient opportunities to enable The Borough of North Warwickshire them to effectively express their views on local development that 1.4 North Warwickshire is the most affects them. northern Borough within the County of Warwickshire, situated 1.2 Getting communities involved at in the very heart of England and an early stage in the planning covering 110 square miles. Its system has benefits for both the neighbours include the urban Council and the community itself. areas of Nuneaton and Bedworth, It ensures that there is sufficient Tamworth, Birmingham, Coventry time for all parties to be fully and Solihull, and the shire counties aware of any issues that there of Leicestershire and Staffordshire. may be, thus enabling negotiation Figure 1 below shows the location to take place so that problems or of the Borough within concerns are sorted out at the Warwickshire earliest opportunity. Therefore by the time that the document 1.5 The Borough is predominantly rural in nature, with over half of its area designated as Green Belt. 1 ODPM (2004) Creating Local Development Nearly 62,00 people live in the Frameworks: A Companion Guide to PPS12 North Warwickshire Statement of Community Involvement: Submission Draft – November 2006 5 Borough (2001 Census), the population being dispersed between the small Market Towns of Atherstone, Coleshill and Polesworth and a number of villages and smaller settlements, many of which are former mining communities. Figure 1: Location of North Warwickshire within the County of Warwickshire Source: Warwickshire County Council North Warwickshire Statement of Community Involvement: Submission Draft – November 2006 6 PART A: CONSULTING ON DEVELOPMENT PLANNING North Warwickshire Statement of Community Involvement: Submission Draft – November 2006 7 2 A New Planning System: Local Development Frameworks (LDFs) 2.1 The Planning and Compulsory Development Frameworks (LDFs). Purchase Act came into effect in The LDF is essentially the Local September 2004. The Act Plan divided up into different introduced a new planning documents with various system, which aims to increase supporting documents that can be public participation in planning, produced at different times. These whilst also creating a planning documents are introduced in more system that is flexible, quicker and detail in Appendix 1. The current more responsive to change. North Warwickshire Adopted Local Plan can be ‘saved’ (ie remain 2.2 The changes between the old and effective) for a period of 3 years new planning systems are from adoption. Any documents highlighted in Figure 2 below. produced under the Local Within the new planning system, Development Framework will Structure Plans and Regional supersede the relevant policies Planning Guidance are being and proposals contained within replaced by Regional Spatial the Local Plan. Strategies (RSSs). The West Midlands Regional Spatial 2.4 The Statement of Community Strategy (formerly Regional Involvement forms an important Planning Guidance for the West part of the LDF, providing a clear Midlands) came into effect on the statement about how the Council commencement of the Planning will consult. and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. It is produced at the 2.5 Public participation will be a very regional level by the Regional important factor in the production Planning Body, the West Midlands of Local Development Regional Assembly. Where there Frameworks. North Warwickshire is a conflict between policies in the Borough Council has produced a Structure Plan and RSS, the RSS Local Development Scheme will take precedence. (LDS)2 which sets out the work 2.3 Local Plans produced at district 2 The LDS is available from the Council’s level are being replaced with Local website www.northwarks.gov.uk or from the Council House. North Warwickshire Statement of Community Involvement: Submission Draft – November 2006 8 programme that the Council will Please refer to the LDS for further follow over the next three years in information. producing the LDF for North Warwickshire. It also sets out further information regarding the new planning system. This is updated on a regular basis. Figure 2: Changes between the old and new planning systems Old Planning New Planning System System Planning Policy Planning Policy National Level Policy Guidance (PPGs) Statements (PPSs) Regional Planning West Midlands Regional Level Policy Guidance for the Regional Spatial West Midlands Strategy Warwickshire Sub-Regional Level Policy Structure Plan North North Warwickshire Warwickshire Local Level Policy Local Plan Local Development Framework North Warwickshire Statement of Community Involvement: Submission Draft – November 2006 9 3 Links with other Plans and Policies 3.1 It is vital that the Local theme areas of the Sustainable Development Framework process Community Plan, ensure delivery ties in with other plans and of actions set out in the Plan and policies produced by the Council, help to broaden community not only to ensure effective participation. The theme groups delivery, but also to ensure that are: consultation on different documents is undertaken in • Children, Young People and tandem where appropriate, to limit Their Families the chances of consultation • Community Life fatigue. • Education and Lifelong Learning 3.2 The North Warwickshire • Environment Sustainable Community Plan will • Health & Wellbeing have a particular influence on the • Local Economy LDF. There are many elements of • Safer Communities the Sustainable Community Plan that have land-use or spatial 3.4 The Local Development planning implications. The Local Framework will be written to reflect Development Framework will be and work alongside the objectives the mechanism by which these of the different themes of the elements of the Community Plan Sustainable Community Plan. The will be implemented. Council will work with the North Warwickshire Community 3.3 The North Warwickshire Partnership using presentations Community Partnership are to the Board, discussions with responsible for production and individual theme groups and joint delivery of the Sustainable consultation processes wherever Community Plan. The possible. Partnership has seven theme groups which develop different North Warwickshire Statement of Community Involvement: Submission Draft – November 2006 10 4 Who we will consult