Hayle Neighbourhood Plan Evidence Report 1 May 2014 2 Hayle Neighbourhood Plan Evidence Report 1 Contents: Topic: page: Introduction 3 Natural Environment & Setting 7 Sustainable Development 20 People and Housing 30 Business, Enterprise and Economy 42 Traffic and Transport 61 Community Well-being 68 Heritage, Culture and the Built Environment 85 Sustainable Tourism 95 Appendix A 99 Appendix B 102 Preface: This first evidence report was prepared during the month of April 2014. It is based on the published and other documents that were found by or provided to the consultants during that month. Readers will find there are gaps in this first report. We recognise that there is more evidence to be gathered before we can prepare a neighbourhood plan for Hayle. As we write, in May 2014, we continue to build the evidence base through research, enquiry and surveys. We will be publishing supplementary evidence reports over the next few months as more evidence comes to light. Any reader that may have recent and relevant evidence to contribute to the neighbourhood planning process is invited to get in touch with the Hayle Town Clerk. Paul Weston, Community Consultant May 2014 © Hayle Town Council, 2014 Hayle NP Evidence Report – May 2014 3 Introduction Planning policy and proposals need to be based on a proper understanding of the place they relate to, if they are to be relevant, realistic and address local issues effectively. It is important that the Neighbourhood Plan is based on robust information and analysis of the local area; this is called the ‘evidence base’. Unless policy is based on firm evidence and proper community engagement, then it is more likely to reflect the assumptions and prejudices of those writing it than to reflect the needs of the wider area and community. We are advised that “the evidence base needs to be proportionate to the size of the neighbourhood area and scope and detail of the Neighbourhood Plan. Other factors such as the status of the current and emerging Local Plan policies will influence the depth and breadth of evidence needed. It is important to remember that the evidence base needs to reflect the fact that the plan being produced here will have statutory status and be used to decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area. It is necessary to develop a clear understanding of the neighbourhood area and policy issues covered; but not to review every piece of research and data in existence – careful selection is needed.”1 The Hayle Neighbourhood Plan is not without planning context. Aside from the strategic framework provided by Cornwall Council’s Local Plan, the town has been the focus of three major planning exercises over the past eight years, not to mention a number of significant planning applications. The three planning exercises which culminated in objectives and policies for Hayle’s future are: The Hayle Area Plan 2005-2025 Hayle Action Area Plan 2008 (incomplete planning exercise) Hayle Town Framework These provide valuable background and context that needs to be understood before the neighbourhood plan can be prepared. To complement these and broaden our understanding of Hayle and its communities we have also referred to a number of other documents which are listed in Appendix A. Hayle has been the focus of a number of regeneration initiatives and studies over the past 10 years. Reports relating to these, and the outputs and lessons from them, are an important part of the evidence base on which the Hayle Neighbourhood Plan will be founded. This report aims to provide a synopsis of the evidence base. We have extracted that which we consider is most relevant from various studies, reports, surveys and research documents and summarised them under a series of topic headings, based on the headings used by the last community-based strategy, the Hayle Area Plan of 2006. Structure of Report Under each Topic we provide a summary of our findings under the following headings/sections: Strategic Context A neighbourhood plan must be in general conformity with national planning policy and the strategic policy as contained in the development plan for the area (the Local Plan). To help understanding, we provide a synopsis or summary of the strategic context for each of the topic areas. These are set out ‘hierarchically’ in text boxes. Each text box contains direct quotes from the document referred to in the heading. For each Topic, we first present the relevant statements from the National Planning Policy Framework 2012. These are followed by the relevant policies from the Cornwall Local Plan – Proposed Submission Version, March 2014. We have then included extracts and/or a summary of the objectives and policies of other strategy documents of Cornwall Council and other bodies with a development or service delivery function that includes or affects the Hayle area. Where we have identified recent and relevant planning policies of the Town Council these too are also highlighted in a text box under ‘Current Situation and Circumstances’. 1 Neighbourhood Planning Roadmap, Locality, 2013 Hayle NP Evidence Report – May 2014 4 Current Situation and Circumstances We provide a summary of recent statistics and other facts together with authoritative opinion that will help aid understanding of the reality of living, working and visiting Hayle in 2014. We provide a reference to the source document of the information or opinion, should the reader wish for more detail. Future Needs and Demands We explore the implications of trends and forecasts where they are discernible. We identify where the strategic policies of Cornwall Council and other bodies are likely to have an impact on neighbourhood planning. We also set out Cornwall Council’s own assessment of the infrastructure needs of the neighbourhood area so as to deliver the Local Plan strategy. Conclusions We draw conclusion from our findings for each Topic under the headings of: Key Questions and Messages –we set out those matters that should be the focus of the next stage of neighbourhood planning Gaps in Our Knowledge & Findings – we identify the gaps and inadequacies in our findings and propose further lines of enquiry that would aid our comprehension of the current situation or the future context Development Potential The future use and development of land is the focus of a neighbourhood plan. The development merits and potential for any or all under-used and available land or buildings is an important facet of the evidence base. Over the past three years much exploration and consideration has been given to the question of development potential in the Hayle area via a ‘Town Framework’ exercise carried out by Cornwall Council with the participation of Hayle Town Council. The results of this exercise have influenced the strategic policies of the Local Plan. Hayle Town Council has accepted the results of the town Framework exercise and the strategic development policies of the Local Plan. The Local plan proposes substantial growth in the Hayle area on a number of ‘strategic sites’. Because this work is so significant (to the future of Hayle and to the neighbourhood planning process) and so well developed, we have prepared a separate paper on “Considering Development Potential and Options for Allocating Development Sites in Hayle”. It reviews existing recent evidence base material which has sought to identify development potential in Hayle and the process that work has gone through and explores the options which could be pursued in Hayle to plan for regeneration and development in the town in the period to 2030. Community Context We have been mindful in preparing the evidence report that the community has, more than most, participated in a number of major planning and regeneration exercises over the past ten years or so. We think it is important that the outputs and outcomes of these exercises are not lost. As a starting point to neighbourhood planning in 2014 we have set out, overleaf) the key themes and objectives that came out of two important community-based exercises in the last decade. These will continue to influence neighbourhood planning for Hayle unless and until they are superseded. Paul Weston, Community Consultant May 2014 Hayle NP Evidence Report – May 2014 5 The following is a summary of the key themes and Hayle Area Action Plan - Draft Objectives 2008 objectives that emerged from the two planning 1. To accommodate within Hayle a significant proportion of the housing and employment requirements for the Penwith district exercises that took place between 2006 -2008. (to meet the needs of all sections of the community), together Together they provide a steer as to the community’s with a balanced mix of appropriate other uses, services and views, aspirations and preferences at the time. facilities and necessary supporting infrastructure to ensure the creation of a sustainable community; 2. To maximise opportunities for the provision of affordable housing to meet the identified needs of Hayle and the wider Penwith District, including the integration within new housing and mixed use developments of a significant proportion and appropriate range (including type, size and tenure) of Hayle Area Plan 2006-2025 affordable homes; Strategic Themes 3. To ensure that residents of Hayle and the surrounding area Hayle: a unique water-front environment have adequate access to and are able to benefit from a range Hayle: the water-sport’s centre of the UK of employment opportunities; Hayle: the national centre for sustainable water-based 4. To strengthen the