Statement of Consultation - Proposed Submission 2017 Huntingdonshire Local Plan | Statement of Consultation - Proposed Submission 2017 1 Contents Huntingdonshire Local Plan | Statement of Consultation - Proposed Submission 2017 1 Introduction 3 Stage 1 - Initial Issues and Options Stage 1 - Consultation Process 10 Stage 1 - Responses to Consultation 12 Stage 2 - Strategic Options and Policies Stage 2 - Consultation Process 15 Stage 2 - Responses to Consultation 18 Stage 3 - Full draft Local Plan Stage 3 - Consultation Process 42 Stage 3 - Responses to Consultation 44 Stage 4 - Targeted Consultation Stage 4 - Consultation Process 64 Stage 4 - Responses to Consultation 67 Stage 5 - Wind Energy Development Stage 5 - Consultation Process 88 Stage 5 - Responses to Consultation 89 Stage 6 - Consultation Draft 2017 Stage 6 - Consultation Process 90 Stage 6 - Responses to Consultation 92 Appendices A Stage 1 - detail 121 B Stage 2 - detail 127 C Stage 3 - detail 238 D Stage 4 - detail 352 E Stage 5 - detail 412 F Stage 6 - detail 414 Introduction 1 Huntingdonshire Local Plan | Statement of Consultation - Proposed Submission 2017 1 Introduction What does this Statement of Consultation do? 1 To support the Huntingdonshire Local Plan to 2036, this statement of consultation provides a record of: how the Local Plan consultation processes have been carried out; and how the Local Plan has evolved as a result of this consultation. What is the Council required to do in terms of consulting on the Local Plan? 2 The consultation process that the Council has followed in preparing the Local Plan to 2036 is governed by: The Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012; and the Huntingdonshire Statement of Community Involvement (2012) (SCI). 3 In broad terms, the Local Planning Regulations require the Council to: invite relevant bodies and anyone else with an interest to comment on what the Local Plan should contain (Regulation 18); and invite relevant bodies and anyone else with an interest to comment on the final version of the Local Plan, prior to submitting this to the Secretary of State (Regulation 19). 4 The Statement of Community Involvement sets out how the Council meets and goes beyond the requirements of the Regulations in preparing the Local Plan, by including additional stages of consultation. The table below sets out the consultation stages which the Local Plan process has included, identifying for each stage the relevant regulation or SCI paragraph. 3 1 Introduction Huntingdonshire Local Plan | Statement of Consultation - Proposed Submission 2017 What stages has the Local Plan process included? Cabinet approval to start preparation of a district wide 2011 Dec Initiation comprehensive Local Plan Sustainability Scoping Report(1) Feb-Mar 2012 Stage 1 Initial Issues and Options Reg. 18 / May-Jun SCI Para. 4.3 Draft Spatial Strategy and strategic policies (supported by the SCI Para. 2012 Aug-Nov Stage 2 draft Environmental Capacity Study) 4.3 Full draft Local Plan May-Jul (supported by the Initial Sustainability Appraisal Report and the SCI Para. 2013 Stage 3 Environmental Capacity Study) 4.4 Nov-Dec Environmental Capacity Study: Additional Site Assessments(2) Targeted Consultation SCI Para. 2015 Jan-Mar Stage 4 4.4 Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment: Additional SCI Para. Sep-Nov Sites Consultation 2016 4.4 2016 Stage 5 Nov-Jan Wind Energy Developments Huntingdonshire Local Plan to 2036: Consultation Draft 2017 Jul-Aug (supported by the draft Final Sustainability Appraisal, the Habitats SCI Para. 2017 and Stage 6 Regulations Assessment, the Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment (July 2017) and a Call for Sites) 4.4 Oct-Nov Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment: October 2017 1. The report of consultation on the Sustainability Appraisal and responses to comments is included in the Sustainability Appraisal Report. 2. In this document, consultation on sites is included in relation to the Local Plan document. There is currently no content relating to consultation on the Environmental Capacity Study or the Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment as standalone documents. 4 Introduction 1 Huntingdonshire Local Plan | Statement of Consultation - Proposed Submission 2017 How to read this Statement of Consultation How to read this Statement of Consultation 5 The Statement of Consultation follows the Local Plan process chronologically, through each stage identified above. To enable the reader to retain a sense of the overall evolution of the Local Plan, for each stage the content is separated out into a summary in the main body of the report, and detail in appendices, as shown below. Hyperlinks are provided in each section, to enable the reader to navigate between the summary and the detail, and the different consultation stages of the Local Plan. Content Stage X summary content Stage X - detailed content Consultation Consultation Names of documents consulted upon; activity content document content Preparation and Dates of consultation Details of specific consultation engagement events and activities Methods of publicity - general Examples of publicity materials Methods of publicity - specific groups Responses to consultation Summary of each main issue raised, Detail of each main issue raised, and the response of the Local Plan to and the response of the Local that issue Plan to that issue Regulations 6 The Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 came into force in April 2012 and govern the process by which a Local Plan is produced. 7 Section 18 of the Regulations requires consultation at the early stages of plan preparation while following sections deal with the detail of representations at the Proposed Submission stage. Section 18 does not specify how many times consultation should be undertaken or for how long, prior to Proposed Submission. 8 All consultations so far have been conducted under Regulation 18. By holding a succession of stages as the Local Plan was developed the Council has ensured that the requirements of the regulations were exceeded. Each stage of the consultation involved automatic notification by the Council's planning policy database, which included people and organisations known to have an interest in Local Plan matters. Where other people were identified as having an interest they were also informed of the consultation period, and this is detailed throughout this Statement of Consultation. 9 The current consultation which this document supports is the last stage to be conducted under Regulation 18 to ensure people have full opportunity to make representations on an up-to-date comprehensive draft of the local plan prior to commencement of more formal processes under Regulations 19, 20 and 22. 10 The next stage which is targeted for the end of 2017 is publication of the Proposed Submission Local Plan under Regulation 19 with its accompanying consultation conducted under Regulation 20. This will be followed by formal Submission of the Local Plan to an independent inspector for examination. Regulation 22 sets out how councils must submit documents and information to the Secretary of State. In accordance with regulation 22(1)(c) (see below) the comments received on the Proposed Submission Local Plan will be summarised for the inspector. 5 1 Introduction Huntingdonshire Local Plan | Statement of Consultation - Proposed Submission 2017 Regulation 18 (1) A local planning authority must— (a) notify each of the bodies or persons specified in paragraph (2) of the subject of a local plan which the local planning authority propose to prepare, and (b) invite each of them to make representations to the local planning authority about what a local plan with that subject ought to contain. (2) The bodies or persons referred to in paragraph (1) are— (a) such of the specific consultation bodies as the local planning authority consider may have an interest in the subject of the proposed local plan; (b) such of the general consultation bodies as the local planning authority consider appropriate; and (c) such residents or other persons carrying on business in the local planning authority’s area from which the local planning authority consider it appropriate to invite representations. (3) In preparing the local plan, the local planning authority must take into account any representation made to them in response to invitations under paragraph (1). Regulation 19 Before submitting a local plan to the Secretary of State under section 20 of the Act, the local planning authority must— (a) make a copy of each of the proposed submission documents and a statement of the representations procedure available in accordance with regulation 35, and (b) ensure that a statement of the representations procedure and a statement of the fact that the proposed submission documents are available for inspection and of the places and times at which they can be inspected, is sent to each of the general consultation bodies and each of the specific consultation bodies invited to make representations under regulation 18(1). Regulation 20 (1) Any person may make representations to a local planning authority about a local plan which the local planning authority propose to submit to the Secretary of State. (2) Any such representations must be received by the local planning authority by the date specified in the statement of the representations procedure. (3) Nothing in this regulation applies to representations taken to have been made as mentioned in section 24(7) of the Act.