Items
No. |
Item |
23. |
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Minutes:
Apologies for absence were received from Cllrs
A Brown (Chairman), Cllr G Mancini- Boyle, Cllr P Fisher, Cllr R
Kershaw, Cllr C Stockton and Cllr J Toye. The Vice Chairman, Cllr P
Grove-Jones served as Chairman for the meeting. Cllr L Withington
was present as a substitute for Cllr P Fisher.
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24. |
PUBLIC QUESTIONS
Minutes:
There were no public questions.
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25. |
MINUTES PDF 207 KB
To approve as a correct record the Minutes of
a meeting of the Working Party held on Monday 15th
August 2022.
Minutes:
The minutes of the Planning Policy & Built
Heritage Working Party meeting held Monday 15th August 2022 were
approved as a correct record.
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26. |
ITEMS OF URGENT BUSINESS
To determine any other items of business which
the Chairman decides should be considered as a matter of urgency
pursuant to Section 100B(4)(b) of the Local Government Act
1972.
Minutes:
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27. |
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST PDF 721 KB
Members are asked at this stage to declare any
interests that they may have in any of the following items on the
agenda. The Code of Conduct for Members
requires that declarations include the nature of the interest and
whether it is a disclosable pecuniary
interest. Members are requested to refer to
the attached guidance and flowchart.
Minutes:
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28. |
UPDATE ON MATTERS FROM THE PREVIOUS MEETING (IF ANY)
Minutes:
- The PPM advised that the Glaven
Valley Rural Conservation Area consultation was being organised and
would be advertised widely including within the Councils
‘Outlook’ magazine. He advised that a further update
would be provided by the end of the year.
- Cllr N Pearce stated that he had
received numerous emails from concerned individuals regarding the
exclusion of the Grade II listed Valley Farm and of the nearby
chalk bed stream from the Rural Glaven Valley Conservation Area
Parishioners were keen to see Sharrington protected and were
willing to submit supporting evidence.
- The PPM encouraged members of the
public to take part in the consultation once launched, and affirmed
that representations would inform decision making after the
consultation concluded.
- Cllr N Pearce commented that whilst
the Glaven Valley it was not his ward, he had been contacted by the
public as a member of the working party. He confirmed he had not
met with anyone on this matter, nor did he have the intention
to.
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29. |
ANNUAL MONITORING REPORT PDF 358 KB
Minutes:
- The PMO introduced the Annual
Monitoring report and highlighted some of the information contained
therein including mandatory indicators, house price changes, new
build average price comparisons and population figures which were
less than expected.
- The PPM added to the introductory
remarks and clarified the purpose of the monitoring report, which
he considered was a useful tool to assess the success of the
previous Local Plan and what could be learnt from it. The principle
purpose of monitoring was to establish the effectiveness of policy
and to spot trends, this he argued, underpinned good quality
decision making. The PPM considered the Council to be in a positive
position noting that the Authority had met its housing delivery
aims over the prior 20 year period, and delivered an additional
1,500 homes to those previously prescribed. Further, the Council
had successfully met its annual delivery target of 400-500
dwellings per annum consistently over the last 4-5 years. With
regards to affordable housing the PPM noted that it was a struggle
to find the right sites, and the stressed the importance of the
rural exceptions programme which, whilst resource intensive, had
delivered 100 affordable dwellings in some years. He affirmed that
the Council were 5th in a National League table for the
delivery of rural expectations housing, commenting that this was a
credit to the organisation and the flexibility built into the core
strategy. He relayed the importance of regular monitoring which
would inform the emerging Local Plan.
- The Chairman expressed her surprise
that population growth did not reach the 2011 census estimate,
given the amount of housing development within the district and
perception of the increased number of people relocating to the
area.
- The PPM advised that there were 5
key sources of information used to project population figures,
including 3 sets of population and household projections from the
O&S and 2 Census results. He noted that none of those reports
produced the same figure and stressed the importance of examining
what sits behind the figures. The PPM stated that there was no
linear link between population growth and house building, in part
because newly built dwellings formed a small amount of the total
stock, and it was important not to disregard the other 95% of
housing. The PPM noted subtle changes which were making household
sizes smaller including the increase of divorce rates as well as
second home ownership; which affected a significant proportion of
some areas of the district. He noted that the 1.5% population
growth was very low and that normally a 5% growth per annum was to
be expected. The PPM advised that there was some scepticism over
the statistics as to whether the population located in the broads,
but within the NNDC boundary, had been recorded within North
Norfolk and not a neighbouring district. If adjusted this would
account for the gap between the projected population figure and the
actual figure. He noted that census results were often modified and
that the data contained therein became ...
view the full minutes text for item 29.
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30. |
ANY OTHER BUSINESS AT THE DISCRETION OF THE CHAIRMAN AND AS PREVIOUSLY DETERMINED UNDER ITEM 4 ABOVE
Minutes:
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31. |
LOCAL PLAN AND NEIGHBOURHOOD PLAN UPDATE ( verbal)
Minutes:
- The PPM provided a verbal update on
the draft Local Plan, the aim of which was to submit early in the
New Year. He advised that the Regulation-19 consultation exercise
had taken place earlier in the year and that the team were
generating a condensed document detailing responses. Such
documentation would be provided as soon as possible, with ample
time for Members to fully consider ahead of its inclusion as an
Agenda Item. The PPM stated that
complications had arisen as a consequence of Nutrient Neutrality
(NN) guidance but that he had taken the view that it was in the
best interest of the Authority to submit the Local Plan for
examination within this administration. He contended that the
Council were in a better position with NN than it had been 6 months
prior and that there was greater understanding of the boundary and
consequences. Importantly, cost impactions were better understood
which would aid in the creation and implementation of mitigation
strategies. The PPM stated that whilst in abeyance with NN the team
were continuing to update the viability assessment across the
district including the cost assessment, green infrastructure
strategies, NN mitigation, elderly person accommodation and others
which would have a significant impact on the cost of development.
Additional costs for labour and materials had largely been offset
by building value increases.
- The Chairman considered the
implication regarding settlement development distribution was
reasonably fluid due to NN, she expressed some concern about
housing delivery.
- The PPM stated that he felt it was
the right strategy to submit the draft Local Plan and affirmed that
he felt the plan was sound. He acknowledged that if Members
contended that changes were required following receipt of
representations that growth in one areas was too much, but that the
overall housing delivery figure was correct, modifications could be
made to redistribute. Critically, issues would arise if significant
changes were requested by Members, which would affect the timetable
of delivery and would result in the need for further
consultation.
- Cllr J Punchard expressed his
support to process with submitting the draft Local Plan within the
current administration. He considered that serving Members were
more knowledgeable of the process and that new Members would likely
require extensive training to become more cognizant. Cllr J
Punchard asked if the dates specified in the plan could be pushed
back, rather than concluding in 2036.
- The PPM stated that the moving of
the plan period was theoretically possible but would need to be
grounded within a received representation, which it had been. He
noted that in pushing back the end date, the data used to inform
decisions was less reliable.
- Cllr N Dixon enquired when the
examination period would take place, as he was mindful of election
period in 2023.
- The PPM stated that should the
submission of the plan occur early 2023 that he would reasonably
expect an Inspector to be appointed and for preliminary hearings to
start by September 2023. He advised that most examinations of sound
...
view the full minutes text for item 31.
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32. |
INFRASTRUCTURE DELIVERY PLAN PDF 169 KB
Minutes:
- The SPO introduced the
Infrastructure Delivery Plan (IDP) outlined in the Agenda Pack, and
noted that the full extensive document was still at the draft
stage. The contents of the IDP were based on the Local Plan and
would seek to benefit and promote the aspirations of the Local
Plan. Critical, essential and desirable elements were set out on
p.16 of the report. Other considerations included electric vehicle
charging points, costs and the provision of flood lighting,
GI/RAMS, amongst others. He reiterated that this was a live
document at the draft stage.
- Cllr P Heinrich was pleased that the
North Walsham Link was included within the IDP, something he
considered to be critical for the town and area. He enquired if the
whole road was to be encompassed.
- The SPO affirmed that the North
Walsham Link was considered critical to the plan.
- Cllr N Dixon expressed his
disappointment that the full draft document had not been provided
to Members prior to meeting nor was it available at the meeting by
consequence of unforeseen technical issues. He affirmed that he was
very interested to see the IDP, and considered its significant
importance to the delivery of the Local Plan. He commented on his
frustration that the Working Group had not had sight of its
progress for some time, and it was especially critical Members
review the document at this late stage of the process so close to
submission.
- The SPO advised that the was draft
document was not at a stage in which Officers felt comfortable to
share publicly, noting that discussions were taking place in a
public meeting which was being livestreamed.
- Cllr N Dixon stated that it was
essential that a tangible document be provided to Members so that
they may determine where the IDP sits alongside the Local Plan. He
reiterated that this was late in the process and that it was a key
weakness in the past that the appropriate infrastructure had not
been provided at the appropriate time. Cllr N Dixon reiterated his
disappointment and stated that he would draw confidence if he were
able to fully consider the document.
- Cllr L Withington noted that a
briefing had been held the week prior for the Coastal Transition
Accelerator Programme (CTAP) regarding the issue of coastal erosion
and asked if the IDP considered this matter.
- The PPM advised that the IDP related
to the infrastructure required to support the Local Plan and not
broader concerns. He affirmed that he did not expect Members to
agree to recommend the IDP at this stage, advising that this was an
introductory item which was for information only. The PPM stated
that there was a need for further debate on this matter at future
meetings once Members were in possession of the full set of
papers.
- The Chairman requested that such
information be provided before 2023, noting that the Local Plan had
been going on for a number of years.
- Cllr N Dixon asked if an early draft
may be provided ...
view the full minutes text for item 32.
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33. |
EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC
To pass the following resolution (if necessary):
“That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972
the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following
items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely
disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule
12A (as amended) to the Act.”
Minutes:
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34. |
TO CONSIDER ANY EXEMPT MATTERS ARISING FROM CONSIDERATION OF THE PUBLIC BUSINESS OF THE AGENDA
Minutes:
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35. |
ANY OTHER URGENT EXEMPT BUSINESS AT THE DISCRETION OF THE CHAIRMAN AND AS PREVIOUSLY DETERMINED UNDER ITEM 4 ABOVE
Minutes:
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