northlincs.gov.uk

PRESENT: – Councillor Wardle in the chair.

Councillors Long (vice-chairman), Collinson, Eckhardt, Fordham, Glover, Mrs Simpson, Stewart, Swift, Whiteley and Wood.

The committee met at Pittwood House, Scunthorpe.

DECLARATIONS OF PERSONAL AND PERSONAL AND PREJUDICIAL PERSONAL INTERESTS–There were no declarations of personal interest.

724 (24) NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE LOCAL DEVELOPMENT FRAMEWORK DRAFT STATEMENT OF COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT – Further to Minute 703, the Head of Planning and Regeneration submitted a report seeking approval to submit the draft Statement of Community Involvement (SCI) to the Secretary of State and to approve the submission document of the SCI for public consultation.

The draft SCI had been issued for public consultation on 25 July 2005 for a period of six weeks. Copies of the documents had been sent to statutory consultation bodies including Yorkshire and Humber Regional Assembly, Government Office for Yorkshire and Humber, Highway Agency, town and parish councils, and adjoining local authorities including parish councils. In addition 509 local/ regional/ national organisations and individuals had been sent letters or emails on the consultation.

Only a small number of representations have been received. These indicated no particular objections, but included requests to be consulted on various Local Development Documents in the future.

Recommended to Council – That the draft Statement of Community Involvement be approved for submission to the Secretary of State, and for the statutory 6-week consultation on the submission document in accordance with Regulation 28 and 29.

725 (25) NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE LOCAL DEVELOPMENT FRAMEWORK – CORE STRATEGY – The Head of Planning and Regeneration submitted a report seeking approval to carry out proposals for initial consultation and community involvement in assessing the issues to be addressed in the Core Strategy of the local development framework. and to hold a seminar for all Members to discuss issues and strategic options for the Core Strategy.

The first and most important Development Plan Document in the recently improved Local Development Scheme was the Core Strategy, which will set down the overall strategy for the future development of North Lincolnshire over the next ten to twenty years.

The document was in the very early stages of preparation and as part of the process the Council was required to undertake considerable public consultation and involvement in its preparation over the next seven or eight months prior to formal consultation on the preferred options for the future strategy.

A short film had previously released in order to raise awareness of the new planning process. A further film had now been commissioned in order to assist in involving the public and stakeholders in identifying issues which need to be addressed in relation to both the Core Strategy and the Community Strategy. The film, which would be accompanied by a questionnaire, would be released in October. It was proposed that a special edition of the Direct magazine, would complement the film. In addition the film and questionnaires would be published on the internet enabling people to respond on line. The film was shown to the committee.

It was also proposed that a full day seminar/workshop be held involving all Members to inform them of the process and programme for preparing the Core Strategy and to have an in depth discussion on the strategic issues which need to be addressed.

Recommended to Council – (a) That the proposals for initial consultation on issues to be addressed in the Core Strategy, in particular for sustainable development within development limits that fully take into account the views of town and parish councils, be endorsed, and (b) that approval be given to hold a seminar/workshop for all members of the council.

726 (26) ADVANCE CROSBY TRANSFORMATIONAL PROJECT BRIEF – The Head of Planning and Regeneration submitted a report seeking approval of the Advance Crosby Transformational Project Brief (ACTPB) for consultation purposes.

The Brief started its process as a project for neighbourhood renewal during 2004 following the successful bid for capital funds from the Regional Housing Board. It had allocated funds of £1.42 million pounds over the next four years by the Regional Housing Board. An Advance Crosby Screening Group developed the project and included representation from North Lincolnshire Council, Crosby Neighbourhood Management Pathfinder and Northern Counties Housing Association. The project brief would help deliver improved housing conditions, improved general environment, 21st century development standards and safe play areas over the next four years. These were the main needs and aspirations identified by local residents during many community planning events that had preceded the preparation of the brief. The residents had clearly identified the need to reverse the physical, social and economic decline of the area over the previous three to five years.

The project brief took full account of and was complementary to the North Lincolnshire Local Plan (NLLP) adopted May 2003 and the Scunthorpe Strategic Development Framework (SSDF) published in May 2005. The brief was both compatible with the aims and objectives of the NLLP and with one of the five central purposes of the SSDF – “a more sustainable place; a community in harmony with its environment”. The implementation of the proposals in the project brief would help improve the quality of life and the quality of the environment for both residents and visitors.

The brief now required approval for a consultation exercise to be carried out .The Housing Services Cabinet Member had already given approval to start negotiations with property owners and their agents to deliver this project. The report leading to this decision was attached as an appendix to the present report.

Recommended to Council – (a) That the report be approved; (b) that authority be given to start negotiations with property owners and their agents to deliver this project in line with the project submission to the Regional Housing Board; (c) that further reports on the progress of the project be presented as appropriate, and (d) that the council expresses its thanks to all those people in the community and officers in the various council service areas who have contributed to the project.

727 (27) REGIONAL SPATIAL STRATEGY – The Head of Planning and Regeneration submitted a report informing the committee of the revised timetable and emerging issues for the Regional Spatial Strategy for Yorkshire and the Humber.

As a result of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, Regional Spatial Strategies (RSS) had become statutory documents. The RSS now formed part of the development plan for local authorities and Local Development Frameworks had to be prepared in conformity with them. The new Yorkshire and Humber RSS was currently being prepared for draft consultation.

The Regional Assembly for Yorkshire and the Humber had produced a briefing note for local authorities to update them on the progress of the emerging RSS This was attached as an appendix to this report The briefing note explained that public consultation on the Draft RSS originally programmed for September 2005 would now take place from December 2005 to March 2006. The revised timetable was to enable further work to be completed on two critical issues. The first issue related to the approach to economic growth and the scale of land required for new development. The second issue concerned the need for further work on how much new housing was needed in the region and the scale of distribution to local authorities.

Officers had been contributing to work on the emerging RSS for some time. The emerging strategy for the Humber sub-region within RSS was to propose the area as an opportunity for growth and regeneration. Officers were working with the Assembly to ensure that this was reflected in the scale of allocations for employment and housing for North Lincolnshire. This was essential if councillors were to be able to make meaningful decisions about the future growth options for North Lincolnshire when developing the new Local Development Framework.

The new sub-regional spatial approach to the emerging RSS provided much greater opportunities for the Local Development Framework and the overall approach was encouraging. However one area of concern was the indicative scale of housing distribution to North Lincolnshire. Officers were continuing to work with the Assembly to ensure that the RSS allocated sufficient housing land to enable the council to meet its future needs and to support the future growth of the area. The committee would be kept informed of the ongoing work in relation to the emerging RSS.

Resolved – That the report be noted and that the committee be kept informed of the progress and content of the emerging RSS for the region.