JAYWICK SANDS PLACE PLAN - Our Ref: D000042 BRIEF FOR THE PROVISION OF CONSULTANCY SERVICES 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Tendring District Council is seeking to appoint a consultancy to produce a Development Framework for Jaywick Sands to guide the phased comprehensive development of approximately 90 hectares of Council owned land and privately owned plots within the existing adjacent residential areas of Brooklands and Grasslands. The area is shown on the attached plan. The Development Framework would be adopted as Supplementary Planning Document following public consultation. 1.2 Tendring District Council is looking for ambitious but solidly realistic guidance which will deliver the regeneration desperately needed for the area and will enable development at Jaywick Sands to be underway quickly. 1.3 The Council has acquired large tracts of undeveloped pasture/marshland at Jaywick Sands west of Grasslands and Brooklands as well as some single bungalow and chalet plots. There are privately owned plots in Grasslands/Brooklands, owned individually and in groups by landlords who rent them out. These are dispersed within the area. The Guinness Trust own a development of two storey houses on the west side of the residential area. Planning permission has recently been granted for 10 houses on Council owned land identified as 17/01032/FUL and 17/01030/FUL. The development of these as 5 starter homes and 5 Council homes has commenced. 1.4 Much of the site, including existing residential development, is within an area at high risk of flooding. Public safety is the highest priority and the Council has worked, in particular with the Environment Agency, to identify a strategy to safeguard and improve public safety as well as achieve wider regeneration benefits. It has already been accepted that regeneration of the area presents an opportunity to improve the safety of existing residents. The agreed approach is to allow new development, including new dwellings, in the area and to manage risk from flooding through bespoke building design rather than by resisting development as a standard sequential test would do. 2.0 OVERALL VISION 2.1 The Council’s vision, which is set out in their emerging Local Plan, is: Jaywick Sands through the provision of a deliverable development framework, will be a sustainable community with associated economic, community and employment opportunities. 2.2 The revitalisation of Jaywick Sands will be through a regeneration plan which identifies constraints and opportunities and provides guidance which will create a high quality and distinctive place. A bold approach and innovative solutions are needed to achieve this in a way that will be commercially viable and deliverable. 1 3.0 OBJECTIVES 3.1 In order to prepare a robust and viable regeneration strategy it is considered the following objectives will need to be met: . To actively and positively engage with stakeholders, including the existing residents, including the Jaywick Sands Residents’ Forum and businesses throughout the preparation of the development framework to ensure their needs and aspirations are understood; . To successfully integrate the existing community into the development framework . To provide guidance that will ensure development will provide safe, high quality, flood resilient homes and other buildings. This will include guidance on the development of plots within the existing built up area. To explore the potential for the inclusion of leisure / tourism based uses and activities . To explore the opportunity for other employment and economic uses . To maximise the use of Jaywick Sands natural assets of the beach and coastal location. To demonstrate that the final mix of uses and quantum of each is deliverable and achievable within the Local Plan period. 3.2 Regeneration should result in a place that Jaywick Sands residents and the wider community of Clacton can be proud of. To that end the community must be genuinely engaged in creating, developing and shaping the framework for development. 4.0 CONTEXT AND BACKGROUND 4.1 Jaywick Sands was founded in the 1930s as holiday chalets and beach huts for Londoners particularly from the Ford car plant in Dagenham. Over time many of the holiday homes were converted to permanent dwellings, partly as a result of people moving from bombed out homes in the Second World War. As they were never intended as permanent homes, many being of wooden construction, the housing does not meet building regulation requirements and the infrastructure is substandard. Some houses are still retained as holiday homes. The area has a particularly high density of 60-100 dwellings per hectare which is at levels expected in the most sustainable and accessible locations rather than edge of settlement. 4.2 Many of the roads are un-adopted and drainage is poor. There have been some recent minor improvements but it is considered these may well be eroded given that the area is on marshland and natural drainage is poor. 4.3 The area is at risk of tidal flooding with the area adjacent to the coastline including existing housing being below sea level. This places significant constraints upon the design of housing which will need to be taken into account. Infrastructure and services are also considerations for flood resilience. 4.4 Jaywick Sands suffers from considerable social and economic problems. The area is infamous for being the most deprived community in England. The Index of Multiple Deprivation ranks the area first in England. But Jaywick Sands also has a core of longstanding residents with a strong sense of community who are extremely keen to see improvements to the area. 2 5.0 CONSTRAINTS 5.1 The site is subject to a number of known constraints, including: . Within Tidal Flood Zones 2 and 3. Within Impact Zone of Clacton Cliffs & Foreshore SSSI . Adjacent to Essex Estuary Special Area of Conservation, Marine Conservation Zone . Within Local Wildlife Site . Within Nitrate Vulnerable Zone . Potential for archaeological and contamination constraints 6.0 POLICY CONTEXT 6.1 The Local Plan is now over 10 years old and was adopted prior to the National Planning Policy Framework. 6.2 Further, the adopted policies are not achieving their objectives in relation to Jaywick Sands. Key issues being, the nature of the masterplan development options, the failure to properly recognise the flood risk constraints; the cost of enabling and infrastructure requirements; and the strong resistance to the development proposals from the local community. 6.3 As a result the Council has taken the view that because of the unique nature of the situation current Local Plan policies should be set aside for the purpose of bringing forward sustainable development in Jaywick Sands. As such the draft Local Plan policy is more relevant. 6.4 This approach has the support of the Environment Agency subject to the inclusion of measures such as minimum floor levels, flood resilient design and evacuation plans. 6.5 The vision is that regeneration projects will raise the standard of living in Jaywick Sands. Key policies are: Policy SPL1 – Managing Growth: Jaywick Sands identified as part of Clacton-on-Sea Strategic Urban Settlement in Settlement Hierarchy where the majority of the district’s economic growth will be achieved through the identification of new housing and employment sites, investment in town centres, tourist attractions and key infrastructure and regeneration of deprived neighbourhoods. Policy PP14 – Priority Areas for Regeneration: Brooklands, Grasslands and the Village areas of Jaywick Sands are identified as a priority area for regeneration that will be a focus for investment in social, economic and physical infrastructure and initiatives to improve vitality, environmental quality, social inclusion, economic proposals, education, health, community safety, accessibility and green infrastructure. The Council will support proposals for new development which are consistent with achieving its regeneration aims. PPL1 Flood Resilience: All development proposals should include appropriate measures to respond to flood risk and, where appropriate, be accompanied by a Flood Risk Assessment. New development in area of high flood risk must be designed to be resilient in the event of a flood and ensure that, in the case of new 3 residential development that there are no bedrooms at ground floor level and that a means of escape is possible from first floor level. Tendring District Local Plan 2013-2033 and Beyond: Submission Draft (October 2017) Other key background documents 6.6 These include: . Jaywick Strategic Flood Risk Assessment update (April 2015) . Jaywick Vision and Plan 2015-2025 . Tendring District Council Water Cycle Study (September 2017) . Local Wildlife Site Review 2008 . Coastal Communities Team Economic Plan 2016 . Tendring Geodiversity Characterisation Report (2009) 6.7 Attention is drawn to Tendring District Council documents on the website. 7.0 THE PROPOSED USES 7.1 It is intended that development will be predominantly residential and with an element of commercial, leisure and community uses, together with open space. 7.2 Residential to include a mix of house sizes and types including private market, social housing, potentially elderly/extra care. Opportunities for other types of residential development such as self-build plots should also be considered. 7.3 A local centre providing for day to day shopping and services. Consideration to be given to revitalising and expanding existing group (Junction of Tamarisk Way/Broadway or Broadway or Tudor Parade, Marlowe Road) and/or providing a new hub in the new development area. 7.4 Leisure uses – The Council is very keen to explore opportunities to maximise the coastal location for water sports and associated leisure facilities. Jaywick Sands has traditionally been a holiday centre and there is a very large and thriving holiday caravan park immediately to the south of the residential area. Jaywick Martello Tower is a thriving community arts and music space. 7.5 The potential for other employment generating uses should be explored including the possibility of flexible spaces that could change use to meet demand over time.