Agenda item

The Council welcomes contributions from members of the public.

Statements

Members of the public who wish to speak either in favour or against an application or any other item on this agenda are asked to register in person no later than 2.50pm on the day of the meeting.

The Chairman will allow up to 3 speakers in favour and up to 3 speakers against an application and up to 3 speakers on any other item on this agenda. Each speaker will be given up to 3 minutes and invited to speak immediately prior to the item being considered. The rules on public participation in respect of planning applications are detailed in the Council’s Planning Code of Good Practice.

Questions

To receive any questions from members of the public or members of the Council received in accordance with the constitution which excludes, in particular, questions on non-determined planning applications. Those wishing to ask questions are required to give notice of any such questions in writing to the officer named on the front of this agenda (acting on behalf of the Corporate Director) no later than 5pm on Wednesday 30 March 2016. Please contact the officer named on the front of this agenda for further advice. Questions may be asked without notice if the Chairman decides that the matter is urgent.

Details of any questions received will be circulated to Committee members prior to the meeting and made available at the meeting and on the Council’s website.

The Chairman welcomed all present. He then explained the rules of public participation and the procedure to be followed at the meeting.

Questions had been received from Mr Alistair Wright and Cllr Ernie Clark.

Question from Mr Alistair Wright

What is the step by step process sites go through to prove they are not in flood effected areas ( from all source) and that they will not increase risk to others now or in the future, how is this information used in the sequential and exception test to ensure that the least flood effected areas are used first and that flood prone areas and the floodplain are protected from development by the LPA and how would the council react if sequential tests were not done or pertinent information was not supplied to it? If additional information has been requested but not supplied what is the council's policy for dealing with lacking or missing data?

Response

Government advice, as set out in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), supplemented by the Technical Guidance on Flood Risk is that development should be directed away from areas at highest risk. These are defined as Flood Zones 2 and 3; or land within flood Zone 1 which has critical drainage problems and which has been notified to the local planning authority by the Environment Agency. Where development within these zones is necessary, it should be made safe without increasing flood risk elsewhere.

The Government advice is to steer new development to areas with Flood Zone 1. If a developer can demonstrate that a proposed site is within this flood zone, no sequential or exceptional test is required. The advice on the application of the sequential test in zones 2 and 3 is set out in the Technical Guidance. Proposals for major developments and developments within Flood Zones 2 and 3 should be accompanied by a flood risk assessment. When the Council receives a major development accompanied by a Flood Risk Assessment, it seeks the views of the Environment Agency to inform the decision making process. In this way, the Council and the Environment Agency work together to protect vulnerable flood zone areas. Where the Environment Agency considers that they require additional information to prepare their response on a planning application, the Council requests

that this be supplied by the applicant.

Question from Councillor Ernie Clark, Hilperton Division

I am advised that it is now the policy of WC planning, that all applications for 200+ houses will go to the Strategic Planning Committee irrespective of the officer recommendation and whether or not the local member has called the application in. Is this correct? If it is, when, and by whom, was this decision made as I do not think that it complies with the agreed protocol on planning matters.

Response

The Scheme of Delegation requires that ‘large scale major developments (in housing terms this is defined as 200 or more houses) which by their nature have wider strategic implications and raise issues of more than local importance shall be dealt with by the Strategic committee.’

Not every housing scheme for 200 or more houses will have ‘wider strategic

implications’ and raise issues of ‘more than local importance’ – for example, approval of reserved matters on a site already granted outline planning permission. However, where a site of this scale lies outside of the existing limits of development for a settlement, then it will almost invariably have wider strategic implications as the decision may be cited by other developers of large scale schemes in the same housing market area, thereby raising issues of more than local importance. Furthermore, schemes of this size may well have implications for the housing land supply across the relevant housing market area, and/or may affect more than one parish.