1.1 The Spelthorne Local Plan, which has been prepared by the Council in consultation with the community, sets out the policies and allocations that will guide how new development and infrastructure comes forward in the Borough for the next 15 years. The Local Plan supports the sustainable growth of Spelthorne in a planned way, which benefits our communities, environment and economy.
1.2 The Local Plan is a statutory document that forms part of the Council’s strategy to deliver sustainable development, tackle climate change and deliver new homes, jobs and infrastructure for current and future Spelthorne residents. The Local Plan sits within a wider framework of planning documents, including national guidance set out by the government in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), regional and county planning policies and guidance, strategic plans, supporting strategies and background studies. The Local Plan will form the basis on which planning applications will be determined in Spelthorne.
1.3 The Local Plan comprises various parts to be read as a whole. Our destination and objectives set out what the Spelthorne Local Plan is aiming to achieve and the policies and land designations to support their delivery. The policies are split into the high-level strategic policies and allocations, which set out the overall strategy and overarching principles for the Local Plan. The plan also includes the detailed policies which set out the design and technical criteria against which proposed development will be assessed.
1.4 To support the Local Plan the Council can prepare additional guidance, which sets out how a policy is to be implemented in greater detail. These documents are called Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs). The Council will prepare and update SPDs, where required to support the successful delivery of the Local Plan.
1.5 The Staines Development Framework (SDF) is a key SPD. It demonstrates how the town can grow in a sustainable and sensitive way, delivering for our residents, while offering the necessary protection to areas. Critically the SDF is rooted in a commercial reality, essential in demonstrating that Staines can successfully accommodate the growth required for the Local Plan to be successfully delivered, while providing much needed homes for our residents, improving the infrastructure and addressing climate change.
1.6 All Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) are required by the Government, to provide a long-term plan setting out how we will meet our future needs. In Spelthorne, as in much of Surrey and the South East, successfully and sustainably accommodating this growth and new development presents a real challenge. This challenge is all the greater in Spelthorne as a result of our extensive Green Belt, much of which comprises waterbodies and the amount of the Borough at risk of flooding, which limits our supply of land suitable and available for the level of development required to meet our housing need. An up to date, evidence based Local Plan allows us as a Borough to take a proactive approach to planning for and manging growth in a way that most benefits our present and future residents, while protecting what is most important.
1.7 If we do not have a Local Plan development will still take place, however we will not be able to use our own policies to determine the type and location of development, which may result in increased risk to, for example, our strategically important Green Belt, attractive open spaces and heritage assets. We will also be less able to require the improvements to our infrastructure, such as highways and green and blue infrastructure, which are essential to support additional development and deliver a wide range of benefits for our residents.
1.8 Local plans must be positively prepared, justified, effective and consistent with national policy, in accordance with section 20 of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 (as amended) and the NPPF.
1.9 In preparing the Local Plan there are a several stages which must be undertaken. The process involves the gathering and analysis of the evidence necessary to support decision making, extensive consultation with a broad range of stakeholders including our residents, businesses, neighbouring authorities and other public sector partners, statutory bodies and the development industry.
Issues and Options Consultation 2018
1.10 The first consultation on the emerging Local Plan (Regulation 18 consultation) took place in May and June 2018. The Council consulted on the Spelthorne Issues and Options Consultation Paper1, which set out the key issues affecting Spelthorne and the options considered for how we could meet our needs. The paper identified the challenges and constraints for development as well as the opportunities Spelthorne offers for growth and set out four strategic options for development, a brownfield focus; a Green Belt focus; a Staines focus; or a combination of the above.
1.11 The key issues raised during the consultation were as follows:
Preferred Options Consultation 2019
1.12 The public consultation on the Spelthorne Local Plan Preferred Options2 document took place between November 2019 and January 2020. The Consultation took the form of Policies and Site Allocations documents, setting out the preferred approaches to be considered. The selection of sites follows the preferred strategy, following the previous consultation, to maximise building on land in urban areas such as town centres, particularly Staines-upon-Thames, and to consider releasing some 'weakly performing' Green Belt for development.
1.13 The key issues raised during the consultation were as follows:
Pre-Submission Publication Version 2022
1.14 The public consultation on the final draft of the Local Plan (Regulation 19 consultation) will take place from June to September 2022. The Pre-Submission Publication Version is the version of the Plan that the Council intends to submit to the Planning Inspectorate for examination by an independent Inspector. Any proposed changes to the final draft Local Plan are submitted alongside the Plan for the Planning Inspector to decide which are appropriate. The Staines Development Framework as an SPD does not require submission to the Planning Inspectorate but as both documents are so intrinsically linked it is the right approach for them to be considered together.
1.15 The starting point for a Local Plan examination is the assumption that the Council has submitted what it considers to be a sound plan. The plan is positively prepared, based on a strategy which seeks to meet objectively assessed development and infrastructure requirements; is justified by robust evidence; can be delivered; and is consistent with national policy. The Pre-Submission Publication version of the Spelthorne Local Plan is considered to meet the test of soundness and is therefore a step closer to examination and eventual adoption.
1.16 The Examination3 will be a series of open public sessions which members of the public can attend and observe. At the Examination, officers and expert consultants appointed by the Council will be questioned by the inspector on how the Local Plan meets the tests of soundness. It is usual for developers and landowners to attend, often legally represented by barristers, to speak in favour of or oppose elements of the plan. The Council will also be represented by a barrister. There are often complex legal and technical points to be made and defended.
1.17 Members of the public and residents' associations who make representations during the Regulation 19 consultation will be asked if they wish to appear at the Examination in person and speak to the Planning Inspector directly on issues of importance to them.
1.18 Following the Examination, the inspector will issue a report to set out whether the plan can be recommended for adoption and if not, what needs to be changed in order to be found sound.
1.19 Once this has taken place, all Members of the Council will be asked to adopt the plan and the SDF at a formal meeting. If adopted, the policies in the Local Plan and the Staines Development Framework will carry full weight and supersede former policies in older documents.
Figure 1: Spelthorne Local Plan Process
1 The consultation paper and further details on the Issues and Options Consultation can be found here: https://www.spelthorne.gov.uk/article/19957/Issues-and-Options-Consultation-2018
2 The consultation papers and further details on the Preferred Options Consultation can be found here: https://www.spelthorne.gov.uk/article/19902/Preferred-Options-Consultation-2019
3 Further details on the examination process can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/local-plans
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