Contrary to what many believe, planning permission does not depend on how few or how many objections are made but on the policies set out in the planning Documents. Hypothetically, every single resident of North Tyneside could object to a planning application but if the application was in line with the planning document policies and didn't fall at any of the limited planning grounds for refusal, planning permission would be a given.
To show the importance of objecting at this early stage, and of getting the proposals changed, your attention drawn to a recent UK Government Document which states that:
"...whilst you can have your say on individual planning applications as they arise, it is important to remember that these will be determined on the basis of the statutory planning documents in the Local Development Framework [including the Core Strategy]. That is why it is vital that you have your say early in the planning process - i.e. when the planning documents are being produced.""Officers will consider all the information...but the policy documents that make up the Statutory Development Plan [including the core strategy] are usually the main basis for the determination of applications. This is why it is important to get involved at this stage in the planning process so that the content of these documents accurately reflect and take into account the views of your community." At present North Tyneside Councils' core planning document is the UDP or Unitary Development Plan. This document is in the process of being replaced by a new LDF (Local Development Framework) at the heart of this sits the Core Strategy. The current UDP Map shows the open spaces, wildlife corridors and land designations proposed to be replace up by the new Core Strategy policies.
The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act (2004) introduced a new two-tiered plan system made up of the LDF and Regional Strategies. The government has since abolished regional strategies allowing councils to make their own decisions on matters like housing targets which were previously determined at a regional level. The Government Planning Portal has a comprehensive explanation of the LDF.
The Core Strategy is an important document, not only will future planning documents follow its policies, but all planning decision will be determined by it. Some of the aims of the changes introduced by the new Law are to achieve community involvement in the planning decisions, the aims are:
The Core Strategy kicked off with the Core Strategy Issues and Options document produced by the Council in November 2006 and put out to public consultation on Friday 1st December 2006 for six weeks. To comply with the public consultation requirements the Council sent the report to "statutory consultees ", placed a copy on its website and placed a copy in public buildings and some libraries.
The Issues and Options document received only 69 responses (approx 0.036% of population), a PDF is available of all the Core Strategy Issues and Options responses. These 69 responses drove the core strategy forward to the "Preferred Options" Stage. Its not surprising that so few responses were received by the Council given the lack of publicity and the public consultation being scheduled over the Christmas and New Year holiday period.
To drive the councils proposals forward to the next preferred options stage a whole bunch of evidence was needed to make it look convincing "inform" it. This was done by the council writing a whole bunch of reports to act and inform the proposals from the Core Strategy Stage 1) Issues and Options.
One of the Documents produced by the Council was the 2009 SHLAA (Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment). This document took potential housing sites across North Tyneside and graded each as to how quick they could deliver housing. Sites capable of delivering homes within 5 years became the key housing sites in the Core Strategy.
Each of the reports or documents was made available to the public by the council. Chances are even if you saw any of these documents you would not really know what they were for. Even less likely that you would be inclined to comment on them until the core strategy preferred options stage puts them in perspective.
This is the stage we are at now, in a nutshell it's the outcome of stage 1 and 2 and the last real chance to have your say on what the council proposes for the core strategy policy. You can download PDF files of the CSPO Consultation Document (Summary) or the Entire CSPO Consultation Document. Both of these documents have the same title, however, it is only the Summary document that was being handed out by the council at the core strategy road-shows.
To give some weight to the preferred options, the council conducted a Sustainability Appraisal of the Core Strategy Preferred Options. The appraisal was completed on the 25th June 2010, two weeks after the NTC cabinet report releasing the CSPO for public consultation dated the 14th June 2010. The Sustainability Appraisal gave a "score" to each of the Key Housing sites, this score was partly used by the council to determine the preferred and rejected key housing sites in the CSPO.
In a half-hearted attempt to involve the community in the Core Strategy process, North Tyneside Council made copies of the Core Strategy document available and held road-shows, they also published an article on page 52 of the July 2010 Widening horizons magazine called "A new plan for the borough" The article, although spread over two pages did not even mention where the housing, waste or travellers sites were proposed - even failing to include the Core Strategy proposals map.This is what the council expect to be in the final Core Strategy, unless a change in direction occurs, all the preferred options from the CSPO will be proposed as policy in the Draft Core Strategy. Like all documents in the LDF this final version of the Core Strategy will have a short period of internal consultation. It's unlikely at this stage that significant changes will be made.
It is unlikely that the planners will change anything from the CSPO. 86% percent of consultees of the Core Strategy Issues and Options agreed that retention of Safeguarded land should be a strategic priority. This majority view was simply ignored and not reflected by the planners in the CSPO.This is the final stage of the Core Strategy before it will be adopted. Like all other stages of the LDF, this stage is also open to the public. This is not a public enquiry as some residents have been led to believe, it is simply an examination that the draft core strategy is "sound". This is done by determining the Nine Tests of Soundness. If this test is passed the Core Strategy will be policy for the next 15 years.
At this stage any objections have to relevant to one of the tests with substantial supporting evidence.
The function of the examination is primarily to assess the submitted document (Core Strategy) against the nine tests. While individuals and organisations may wish to see the plan changed to accommodate their interests or concerns, the examination will not ask whether the plan should change to accommodate what is sought. Rather, it will ask whether the plan is sound in relation to each of the tests, and if not how it should be changed to render it so.
