Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies or substitutions for the meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Cllr Christopher Newbury.

To approve and sign as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 1 December 2021.

The minutes of the meeting held on 1 December 2021 were presented for consideration, and it was,

Resolved:

To approve and sign the minutes as a true and correct record.

To receive any declarations of disclosable interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

There were no declarations of interest.

To receive any announcements through the Chair.

The Chairman drew the Committee’s attention to a Planning Inspectorate appeal decision, where 3 linked appeals in Malmesbury were determined. Two of the appeals were dismissed and one of the appeals allowed. Details of the decisions could be found online here.

The Chairman noted that whilst the Committee was very passionate about Neighbourhood Plans, they should be mindful of the Malmesbury appeal decision and the lack of a five year land supply. As the Committee were aware applications should not be predetermined but should be considered on their own merits.

The Chairman made reference to the lack of an up to date Housing Land Supply figure, at the recent appeal the Inspector had stated that this figure was 4.41, which did not put the Committee in a strong position. It was hoped that the updated Housing Land Supply figure would be available in March 2022 and this would make it much easier for the Committee to make informed decisions.

The Council welcomes contributions from members of the public. To ensure Wiltshire Council COVID-19 public health guidance is adhered to, a capacity limit for public attendance at this meeting will be in place. You must contact the officer named on this agenda no later than 5pm on Monday 10 January 2022 if you wish to attend this meeting. Places will be allocated on a first come first served basis and all requests may not be accommodated if there is high demand.

Statements

Members of the public who wish to submit a statement in relation to an item on this agenda should submit this in writing to the officer named on this agenda no later than 5pm on Monday 10 January 2022.

Submitted statements should:

·       State whom the statement is from (including if representing another person or organisation);

·       State clearly whether the statement is in objection to or support of the application;

·       Be readable aloud in approximately three minutes (for members of the public and statutory consultees) and in four minutes (for parish council representatives – 1 per parish council).

Up to three objectors and three supporters are normally allowed for each item on the agenda, plus statutory consultees and parish councils.

Those submitting statements would be expected to join the online meeting to read the statement themselves, or to provide a representative to read the statement on their behalf.

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 electronically to the officer named on the front of this agenda no later than 5pm on 5 January 2022 in order to be guaranteed of a written response.

In order to receive a verbal response questions must be submitted no later than 5pm on 7 January 2022.

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 members prior to the meeting and made available at the meeting and on the Council’s website. Questions and answers will normally be taken as read at the meeting.

The rules on public participation were noted.

To receive details of completed and pending appeals, and any other updates as appropriate.

There were no updates.

To consider and determine the following planning application.

The following planning application was considered.

Erection of up to 261 dwellings following the demolition of Elm Grove Farmhouse; erection of multi-use community facility (Class F.2); strategic landscaping; access and drainage works; and demolition redundant former agricultural outbuildings

Public Participation

Simone Kermode spoke in objection to the application

Giuseppe Melillo spoke in objection to the application.

Chris Beaver (agent) spoke in support of the application.

Cllr Andrew Bryant of Trowbridge Town Council spoke in objection to the application.

Andrew Guest (Head of Development Management) presented a report which recommended that authority be delegated to the Head of Development Management to grant planning permission with conditions, subject to a s106 agreement for the erection of up to 261 dwellings following the demolition of Elm Grove Farmhouse; erection of multi-use community facility (Class F.2); strategic landscaping; access and drainage works; and demolition redundant former agricultural outbuildings.

The officer drew the Committee’s attention to the amended wording of the recommendation and conditions contained within agenda supplement 2. Two conditions had been added and the highways terms slightly changed, with the agreement of the applicant and Highways. The officer also highlighted that the response from North Bradley Parish Council had not pasted properly within the report, so a hard copy of the full response was given to Members.

The officer gave a brief summary of the application explaining that the land at this site had been allocated under the housing development plan, although it was noted that a small area on the south side that was allocated had been excluded as this was under different ownership. There was also a little extra land included within the application, which was not in the allocations plan, this land was to provide access to the site. These areas were identified by the officer on the presentation slides.

The plans for the site were shown to the Committee (detailed in agenda supplement 1). The site would provide 184 private dwellings and 76 affordable dwellings as well as replacement for the farmhouse, which had its own planning permission. The landscape and ecology plans, including the bat corridors were highlighted.

The officer explained that there was to be a new spine road through the site, which was a requirement of the housing site allocations plan. Drynham Lane was to be closed to traffic but would remain as a route that pedestrians and cyclists could use. Access to Drynham Lane would be provided through the new development.

Members of the committee then had the opportunity to ask technical questions of the officer. In response the officer confirmed that the timescale for agreement of the s106 conditions was 6 months which was realistic, and the applicant was keen to start delivering houses.

In response to queries regarding the provision of affordable houses and whether this met local need, the officer stated that the usual expectation for affordable housing in this area was 30%. For this application the figure was 29% as the site had vacant building credit. The officer stated that he could supply the full report of the housing officer to the Committee outside of the meeting which was what would be agreed for the s106.

In response to further questions the officer stated that delayed inflation index would  ...  view the full minutes text for item 63.

Any other items of business, which in the opinion of the Chairman, should be taken as a matter of urgency.

There were no urgent items.