Apr 26, 2012 - Ben also gave an overview of the proposed development in Scholes and ... are shown below and will also be
Barwick & Scholes Neighbourhood Development Plan Scholes Public Meeting Minutes of the public meeting held at St Philip’s Church, Scholes on Thursday 26th April 2012 at 7.00pm Panelled by: Cllrs Ben Hogan (Chairman of the NDP Steering Group), Councillor Matthew Robinson (Harewood Ward), Andrew Birkbeck (Localism Officer), George Hall (Scholes Group Leader) Minutes taken by Susie Fieldhouse
1
Detail Welcome and brief overview of the agenda given by Ben Hogan. Apologies received from: Richard & Joan Green Julie Brady Jenny Matthewson Andrew Bagley Sally & John Edwards Ben also gave an overview of the proposed development in Scholes and Barwick and urged people to get behind the Neighbourhood Development Plan stressing that stopping development was not an option and the only way to have a say in any future development was by producing and adopting a plan.
2
Andrew Birkbeck talked about the new Localism Act and how this new legislation is intended to devolve power away from central Government and local councils, strip away red tape and to enable local people to have a say in the future of their area. The Localism Act also introduces a new planning process which makes the planning and development process easier, particularly where this delivers sustainable growth. Andrew gave an overview of the Neighbourhood Development Plan which is also part of the new Localism Act. He explained his role is to support and assist local communities in developing Neighbourhood Development Plans.
3
Matthew Robinson explained that a Neighbourhood Development Plan is a statutory document, unlike other advisory documents like the Village Design Statement and it is the only way in which as a community we can seek to influence the future development of our Parish. He stressed that this was the ‘only show in town’. Development in both villages is inevitable, it cannot be
Action
stopped. Without a Neighbourhood Development Plan in place, we would ‘get what we were given’ without any consideration for what we might want. The Council welcomes communities having Neighbourhood Development Plans in place. They do not wish to be at war with communities. The plan cannot be an anti-development charter but ‘sustainable’ has to go both ways and we can use the plan to specify the infrastructure, open space and facilities that would be needed to make any housing development sustainable. 4
George Hall gave a presentation of “The Story So Far” which covered the following themes:
Background about Leeds City Council’s need to identify sites for the development of 76,000 houses over the next 20 years and progress so far in identifying potential sites How this affects Scholes and Barwick – maps showing areas identified for potential development and projected numbers of dwellings Information about the East Leeds extension on the edge of the parish including a proposed orbital road. What can we as a community do about the proposed development? What is a Neighbourhood Development Plan? Progress to date in respect of our Neighbourhood Development Plan The key to a successful plan What do we need to do next? What will an approved Neighbourhood Development Plan mean for our Parish? How can people get involved / keep track of progress
The presentation will shortly be published on the Neighbourhood Development Plan website www.barwickandscholesneighbrouhoodplan.co.uk. 5
This was followed by a Questions & Answers session. Questions and answers are shown below and will also be published on the NDP website in a section entitled ‘Frequently Asked Questions’. Some of the answers have been developed further since the meeting. Question 1 A question was asked about the panel’s interpretation of ‘Sustainable’. It was suggested that the panel was interpreting the term as Leeds City Council would want us to Answer The Government has determined the term ‘Sustainable’ and the presumption in favour of approving ‘Sustainable’ development. It is considered to mean development in the right place having regard to environment and the needs of infrastructure Question 2 What are the timescales for the plan being completed and also for the development starting? Can the developers start without there being a plan in place and what would happen then? Answer There is nothing to stop applications for development being made and granted now. In fact, in light of the recent lost appeals and the cost this has incurred, it is unlikely that the council would overturn any more planning applications. However if there is an emerging Neighbourhood Development Plan in place, it does have to be taken into account in respect of any application, hence the
need to forge ahead with the plan. The plan itself should be drafted by the end of 2012 but it is likely to be Spring/Summer 2013 before it has been through the statutory processes. A project plan is in place, a Statement of Community Involvement is currently out for public consultation and following the adoption of the SCI, a formal notification will be made to Leeds City Council of our intention to submit a Neighbourhood Development Plan. Question 3 Who would manage the overall architecture of the development? What will stop the various developers cherry picking sites to develop and how can we ensure the required infrastructure is put in place before the development in the places where we want it rather than being slotted in around the cherry picked sites retrospectively? Answer The Neighbourhood Development Plan would endeavour to put policies in place to ensure that the character and nature of any development respect the village identity and where possible extended the approved conservation areas. It is vital that developers would be required to engage with us prior to submitting planning applications, so we would have a greater input prior to the application being considered by the planning authority. Question 4 What is to stop the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) being spent elsewhere and not having any impact on the local area? Answer The Community Infrastructure Levy has to be spent on infrastructure that is directly related to the area of development. The legislation around the CIL is quite new but it is expected that developers will have to legally sign up to this. Question 5 Who decided how many houses could fit onto each of the proposed sites? Answer The numbers are based on an agreed methodology that has been used throughout the SHLAA process. That doesn’t mean that each site would end up with the exact number stated at present. In the case of Scholes and Barwick there is a good case for using current average housing density to inform decisions about future housing numbers in order to maintain the character of both villages. This could potentially reduce housing numbers. Question 6 With so much housing, how can Scholes remain a village? How can we stop Scholes from being swallowed up in the East Leeds Extension and becoming part of Leeds rather than a village? Answer Firstly, the proposals for housing in our villages are just that and remain so until confirmed in the “Site Allocation” process. Most of the sites are currently protected by Green Belt Policy. Secondly, allocated sites in the East Leeds Extension are not seen as merging the urban area of Whinmoor with Scholes. Our NDP will seek to maintain a development free zone, perhaps including
extensive tree planting and landscaping. We believe the inspector’s report following the former development plan inquiry is encouraging and would indicate general support for this. Question 7 Who is responsible for building a school and for deciding what is needed? Surely we as villagers alone cannot do this? Who will decide if a school is needed and who will pay for it? Answer We will submit evidence to justify any educational provision following consultation with our existing School Governors and others in the secondary sector. The final decision to build schools rests with the Local Education Authority. Land allocation on the development site or funding for any new provision will come from various sources including the Community Infrastructure levy. Question 8 Will having a Neighbourhood Development Plan in place stop in-fill? A number of gardens in Scholes have been built on; can we stop this happening in the future? Answer Latest Government guidance is not in favour of Garden and Back Lands development. Furthermore we can also incorporate any preference for “windfall” development sites in the Neighbourhood Development Plan. Question 9 In view of the forthcoming local election, could voting in another party change the plans for future development? Answer No, it won’t make any difference as all of the main parties are in agreement that there is a housing need and the priority is to encourage growth in the economy. Question 10 Andrew Birkbeck said that the Localism Act will give communities a greater say in their future but it actually sounds as if we are more powerless than ever. Answer The Government are committed to reversing the “top down approach” that is why Neighbourhood Development Plans are so important, they will have legal status and that is why people will have more power to shape the future of their communities. From our perspective what we cannot change is the need for housing development as identified by the Government and Leeds City Council. This is a separate issue to the Localism Act and the two should not be confused. Question 11 If the LDF is in favour of maintaining the identity of villages, why are so many proposed houses for Scholes? Why was Scholes chosen? Answer The land is identified in the Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment.
Land in Scholes was submitted by land owners developers and agents who have an interest in certain sites. Many sites around Scholes are already owned and have been land banked by the developers. This similarly applies to all areas throughout the metropolitan area. Many of the sites identified may not come forward and be approved as they are constrained by Green Belt or other constraints. Question 12 If the plan won’t stop development or reduce the scale, are we wasting our time? Answer The Parish Council would not be promoting a Neighbourhood Plan if it was thought to be a waste of time. Where and how much development takes place can be influenced by policies which we can produce for our plan. Question 13 How can we produce a plan if we don’t know the scale of housing that we are planning for? Answer The policies which we must seek to incorporate into the plan will address the issues relating to any development proposals irrespective of exact size and scale. If sites allocated by Leeds City Council are of such a size and magnitude that they will have a significant impact on our community and Parish we should set an acceptable standard. Question 14 Question for George Hall. What would he consider an acceptable housing density? Answer Current density in Scholes is 21 houses per hectare. This may be appropriate and could be stated in our plan. Question 15 Would objecting to the development proposals still be allowed Answer YES. Individuals or groups of people will still be able object to development proposals. The powers of determination will still rest with Leeds City Council as they are the Local Planning Authority. This will remain even if the Statutory Neighbourhood Development plan is adopted but the LPA will have to give considerable weight to our plan when they determine or approve applications in our Parish. Question 16 How do the council plan to manage the traffic that the additional housing will generate? Answer All planning applications which generate significant volumes of additional traffic must include an assessment that provides information on the effects of any development would have on the immediate area and in some cases the wider highway network.
6
Ben Hogan and Phil Maude both summed up by saying that we all want the best for our village and we need to work together to achieve this. They both urged that we channel our efforts into supporting the Neighbourhood Development Plan as a way of securing the best possible future for our village and our Parish.
7
After the meeting, the following people volunteered to join the Steering Group: Christine Clegg Gill Sinclair Dave Sinclair Keith Pullen Mark Boden Sue Boden Sue Crabtree A warm welcome has been extended to these new members and their support and involvement is greatly appreciated.
8
The next meeting of the Scholes members of the Steering Group will be held on Wednesday 9th May at 7pm at the Sports Pavilion on Belle Vue Avenue. A further public event will be held in Barwick on Saturday 12th May at the village hall. The event will be a drop in session between the hours of 10am and 1pm. All are welcome.
