Proposed Submission Core Strategy

14. COMMUNITIES

Introduction

14.1 A proactive approach to maintaining and further strengthening communities is central to the Sustainable Community Strategy for Rother. It contains priorities relating to children and young people, community safety, culture and leisure, and health.

14.2 The Council's vision for the district seeks to achieve a better quality of life for its residents through greater economic prosperity, greater vibrancy with a more youthful, demographic, decreasing crime and anti-social behaviour, and more leisure and cultural opportunities.

14.3 This chapter looks at the role the planning system can play in helping to deliver these priorities, having regard to their spatial dimension. It also considers the support needed for older people in the district, recognising that most population growth over the plan period will be in these age groups.

Objectives

14.4 The Strategic Objective in relation to supporting communities, identified in Chapter 6 is:

‘To continue to support and further develop vibrant, safe, balanced and inclusive communities.’

14.5 The following objectives elaborate on this strategic objective, and will be used to guide strategy development.

14.6 Hence, the following policy areas are addressed in turn below:

• Community Facilities, Health and Recreation
• Young People
• Older People
• Community Safety

14.7 Developing community life is crucial to the success of the Strategy and policies in this chapter are heavily interlinked with core policies in other sections. In addition, more location specific aspects of community development are addressed in the individual spatial strategies.

Community Facilities, Health and Recreation

Scope and Issues

14.8 The evidence indicates a close inter-relationship between the provision, and use, of community buildings, health facilities and recreation activities in the creation of vibrant, balanced and inclusive communities.

14.9 There are also wider linkages; leisure and sports facilities, along with outdoor spaces, help make the local area more attractive places to live, work and visit, promote the enjoyment of more healthy lifestyles and are integral to the physical and mental well-being of any community.

14.10 Therefore, while each aspect is presented below separately, there is a common theme of effective use of all these resources.

14.11 Evidence collected from a number of surveys and strategies have been used to inform this section and can be seen below (this list is not exhaustive).

• LDF Core Strategy Consultation on Strategy Directions
• Rother District Council Corporate Plan 2006-2016
• Rother District Council Youth Strategy (2010-2016)
• Rother Place Survey (2008)
• Primary Care Development Plan
• PCT Forward Investment Plan
• Parish Council Local Action Plans
• Rother Open Space, Sport and Recreation Study (2007)
• Hastings & Rother – Leisure Facilities Strategy (2009-2020)
• Children and Young People’s Play Policy and Strategy 2007-10

Community facilities

(1)14.12 Participation in community activities, at community halls, village halls, places of worship and other buildings dedicated to community use, has a key role to play in the vitality of settlements. Priorities in relation to community facilities are often set out in Local Action Plans.

14.13 These community facilities⁴⁰) are located throughout the district, in both urban and rural areas and are considered important social and recreational venues for a range of local groups, such as nursery and pre-school groups and uniformed associations (such as scouts and guides) for example. They can also provide a focal point for support services.

14.14 Community facilities play a particularly important role for both young and older people, for educational and recreational purposes, and socialising, whether that be in a small rural community or within a larger urban area.

14.15 Given the large predominantly rural nature of Rother district with many small communities, the provision of community facilities for people to gather and interact, and the opportunity to form links across generations, should be available as locally as possible. This also contributes to reducing the need to travel.

14.16 The policy approach is therefore to strongly support the modernisation, improvement and, where appropriate, replacement of such facilities in order that their availability for community use is maintained and maximised. This recognizes that new or improved community services and facilities will be required over time.

14.17 The loss of facilities that meet a local community need will also be resisted, as this could have a significant impact upon the ability of local residents to access services. In order to fully test the prospect for continued community use, efforts should be made to let and/or sell a property for its continued community use at a realistic price for a minimum period of 12 months.

14.18 In maximising opportunities to access community facilities, there is the potential for the dual use of existing facilities.

Health provision

14.19 Rother’s residents are generally healthier and have a greater life expectancy than the national average. However, life expectancy in most deprived areas of the district is 9 years lower than those in the least deprived areas.

14.20 Good healthcare facilities, as well as encouraging active lifestyles, will be particularly important in the context of an ageing population, especially taking into account the incidence of households with a limiting long-term illness, which is relatively high in Bexhill and Fairlight.

14.21 Access to primary healthcare facilities, particularly doctor’s surgeries, are important within any community, but particularly to one that has a high proportion of older people. The Primary Care Development Plan identifies a number of doctor’s surgeries that will need upgrading, re-locating or replacing in the next few years. Central Bexhill has been highlighted as an area that is expected to require additional or improved provision. Access to the Conquest Hospital (located within Hastings Borough) and Pembury Hopsital (located in Tunbridge Wells Borough) are also important, not least for accident and emergency, and maternity services.

14.22 Current national changes to the structures responsible for identifying and responding to healthcare needs, involving the demise of the local Primary Care Trust, mean that investment plans are presently uncertain. Therefore, further consultation will be undertaken with the relevant health authorities in due course, when bringing forward specific site proposals, to ensure that there is the health service infrastructure to meet the needs of the changing population.

Recreation facilities

14.23 Leisure and sports facilities, along with outdoor spaces, can provide a number of functions within the urban fabric of towns and villages. As well as providing both formal and informal recreation opportunities, and thereby promote the enjoyment of more healthy lifestyles, they can contribute to a network of accessible high green space (see Environment chapter), help make places more attractive to live, work and visit, and are integral to the physical and mental well-being of any community.

14.24 They also perform an important function in terms of the structure of urban and rural areas. Open spaces in more urban areas play an important role in mitigating the impacts of climate change as their cooling and shading effects are likely to become increasingly important with hotter summer temperatures.

14.25 Demographic change within the area will affect future potential demand for open space, sports and recreation facilities. Trends indicate that the numbers of young people (0-29) years will increase as a proportion of the total population as will the proportion of people over 65, whereas the proportion of those aged 35-49 will reduce by over 30%.

14.26 In strategy terms, consideration is given to a number of common themes running through local strategies that bear upon recreation. These are:

• Giving attention to the needs of young people
• Providing the infrastructure which allow residents to be more active
• Maximising the use of existing school and leisure facilities
• Recognising the importance of high quality countryside in the district
• Making effective use of planning obligations.

14.27 The Open Space, Sport and Recreation Study has categorised open spaces within Rother under a number of facility types:

Indoor sports facilities	Provision for children and young people
Parks and gardens	Natural & semi-natural open space
Amenity green space	Outdoor sports facilities
Allotments & community gardens	Cemeteries and churchyards
Green corridors	Beaches and coastal areas

(1)14.28 The Council has adopted the quantitative standards of the Study, which take into account current use and future potential, as well as its recommendations in terms of access and quality. These include both district-wide and more geographically specific standards for Bexhill, Battle, Rye, East Rural Rother and West Rural Rother.

14.29 In terms of indoor sport, the study indicates there is a number of shortfalls in existing provision, which is set to worsen when projected to 2026 if there is no intervention. No sites were identified as surplus to requirements. It also identifies accessibility, quantity and quality issues in relation to play areas, which are particularly significant given the increasing number of young people in the district. The Play Strategy responds to most aspects of play including indoor provision.

14.30 Taking into account the characteristics of the district, the overall strategy context and the findings of the Open Space, Sport and Recreation Study, the main priorities for the provision of both indoor and outdoor sport are:

• Providing sufficient infrastructure to meet the wide ranging recreational needs of the growing population within the district regardless of age;
• Providing sufficient infrastructure in order to ensure there are opportunities for residents to be more active;
• Improving areas which are deficient in sport and recreation provision in overall quantity terms, both now and in the future;
• Where there is no identified need for additional provision, but a demonstrated lack of quality, making provision to improve quality in this area;
• Providing public open space, sports and recreation facilities near to where people live to reduce the impact of visitors on the most environmentally sensitive areas such as the Dungeness to Pett Level Special Protection Area (SPA) and the Dungeness Special Area of Conservation (SAC).

14.31 Shortfalls at the more local level are considered in relation to the relevant locality, while specific proposals will be looked at further in the forthcoming Site Allocations and Development DPD.

Young People

Scope and Issues

14.32 The importance of young people within Rother is set down within the Sustainable Community Strategy and the Rother District Council Corporate Plan, which seeks to create a place of greater vibrancy with a more youthful demographic profile.

14.33 To achieve this, Rother will need to reflect the needs and aspirations of the district’s young people.

14.34 For the purposes of the plan, the term ‘young people’ encompasses a range of different age groups each with different needs, from children in families needing nurseries and play areas, to independent young adults and their families seeking homes and jobs.

14.35 Current population estimates show that there is a relatively low proportion of young people within the district, with only 14.9% of the population aged 0-14 and 13.0% aged 15-29, compared to 17.6% and 18.9% respectively for the South East. These figures also highlight that the district is “losing” a proportion of its young adults. The maps below show the distribution of young people in Rother.

14.36 Population projections indicate that Rother is likely to experience a 6.1% increase in population of the 0-14 age group from 2006-2026. There is also a projected increase in the 15-29 age group of 4.1%, compared to a decrease of -8.3% in East Sussex over the same period. These increases are partly due to a slight increase in birth rates and the younger age groups working their way through the population.

14.37 Typically, young people move away in order to seek opportunities elsewhere, such as better job prospects and more opportunities in relation to education and training. This resultant out-migration affects the social and economic balance of the district.

14.38 Evidence collected from a number of stakeholder meetings and strategies have been used to inform this chapter and is shown below (please note that this list is not exhaustive).

• East Sussex and Rother Sustainable Community Strategies
• LDF Core Strategy Consultation on Strategy Directions (2008)
• LDF Targeted Consultation with Schools and Colleges – April 2008
• Rother District Council Corporate Plan 2006-2016
• Children and Young People’s Play Policy and Strategy for Rother 2007-10
• Rother Place Survey (2008)
• Rother Open Space, Sport and Recreation Study (2007)
• Hastings & Rother – Leisure Facilities Strategy (2009 – 2020)
• Rural Youth Conference – October 2008
• Workshop of Activities for Young People – March 2009
• East Sussex Children and Young People’s Plan 2008 – 2011 (CYPP)
• Rother District Council Youth Strategy (2010-2016)

14.39 Survey evidence also indicates that over half of young people are dissatisfied with the job prospects and sports and leisure facilities within their area. Consultation events held with local school children and college students as part of preparing this strategy showed that, for secondary school age children, public transport and access to services came out as a key concern, as well as sufficient recreation facilities. For college students, local nightlife was seen as something that could most be improved, as well as wage levels and local cost of living. Public transport was also a significant concern.

14.40 Within the context of an increasingly ageing population, the challenge is to provide the necessary measures that make the district an attractive place for younger people and their families to live and remain in the district. This is a particular issue for Bexhill and further detail can be found in Chapter 8: Bexhill.

14.41 Key areas of support should relate to job prospects, affordable housing, education and training, transport links and recreation facilities, as well as health care, in order to attract and retain young people and their families to remain within the district.

14.42 Young people have a particular need for affordable housing. Some 71% of concealed households ⁴² within the district are young people (aged 29 or under). The main housing need is for owner-occupied housing, but there is a significant proportion, of almost 30%, identifying a need for affordable housing (both social-rented and intermediate tenures). The type of accommodation required points mainly towards flats and terraced properties with 1 or 2 bedrooms, with over 50% stating their preferred location as Bexhill.

14.43 Rother’s prosperity will depend on its young people’s education and skills that will equip them for the workplace. GCSE attainment in the district is improving and consistently higher than East Sussex averages. In 2010, 60.6% of students achieved 5+ A*-C grades including English and Maths compared to 56.2% in 2009.

14.44 The number of 16-18 year olds not in education, employment or training (NEETs) is a priority in East Sussex and figures for Rother in 2010 showed an increase to 8.81% compared to 7.0% in 2009. This is above the East Sussex average of 7.3%. The establishment and expansion of University Centre Hastings has provided a boost for the wider area in terms of higher education in recent years. It is also vitally important that there are local training and job opportunities for young people to reach their full potential.

14.45 In terms of the welfare of children and young people within the district, whilst overall poverty in Rother is below the England average, over 2,400 children are living in low income households. In Bexhill Central, the proportion of 0-15 year olds living in poverty is 26.3%, in Rye is 24% and in Sidley is 42%. This can have a negative impact on children’s lives and their life chances.

14.46 Families in the rural areas can be disadvantaged through poor access to services. Key services that particularly affect the young include access to schools (including nursery schools), play, sport, leisure and community facilities, as well as public transport. Good accessibility to existing services, including locating new development close in locations accessible by a range of transport modes is therefore particularly important for young people.

14.47 The East Sussex Children and Young People’s Plan 2008 – 2011 (CYPP) has identified priorities for Rother which include reducing teenage pregnancy, improving mental health, reducing child poverty, identifying the problems for NEETs, as well as responding to youth homelessness.

Older People

Scope and Issues

14.48 The next 15 years will see a distinct population shift in Britain as we move towards an ageing society. Evidence nationally shows, between 1961 and 2001, the population aged 65 and over increased by 51 per cent. The average age of the UK population increases by 3 months every year. East Sussex already has the highest proportion of people over 65 than the rest of the country.

14.49 Rother’s own demographic profile shows that there is a high proportion of older people within the district. Rother has the largest and fastest growing number of people over 65 in the county. Most recent estimates (2010) indicate that 28.7% of the population are aged over 65, compared to 17.2% in the South East and 16.6% in Great Britain as a whole. The map below shows that the largest proportion of older people live in the coastal area, notably in Fairlight (38.9%) and Bexhill (36.4%).

14.50 Population projections indicate that a high proportion of future population growth will be in older age groups; the percentage of those aged 65+ will increase considerably between 2006-2026, while the proportion of those aged 65-74 years will increase by 23.1%, and those 75+ will increase by 30.9%.

14.51 In 2006, the elderly dependency ratio ⁴³ in Rother was 50, and is projected to increase to 64 by 2026, which is the highest in East Sussex.

14.52 The majority of Rother households aged 65+ are owner-occupiers whilst the remaining 15% of households rent from an RSL or from the private rented sector. In terms of specialist accommodation, the majority of sheltered housing provision is centred around the towns in the district, with a limited supply within rural Rother.

14.53 Evidence collected from a number of strategies have been used to inform this chapter and can detailed below (please note that this list is not exhaustive).

• LDF Core Strategy Consultation on Strategy Directions (2008)
• Rother District Council Corporate Plan 2006-2016
• Pride of Place – Rother Sustainable Community Strategy to 2026
• Delivering Housing Solutions, 2007-2012 - Housing Strategy
• Staying home, living well – Housing and Support Strategy for Older People and carers in Hastings and Rother – 2007-2027
• East Sussex Supporting People Strategy (2005-2010)
• Joint Commissioning Strategy for Older People (2007)
• Lifetime Homes, Lifetime Neighbourhoods - National Strategy for Housing in an Ageing Society

14.54 The most recent Place Survey (2008/09) indicates that residents in the district aged over 65 believe that improving public transport, affordable decent housing and job prospects are in the top 10 priorities for improvement in Rother.

14.55 The Hastings and Rother Housing and Support Strategy (2007-2027) seeks to enhance the social inclusion, well-being, dignity, choice and independence of older people in Hastings and Rother. It indicates that the majority of people want to remain in their own homes as they age, and that this helps maintain people’s links with their community and friends to prevent them from becoming isolated. Hence, it seeks to enable them to remain in their own homes for as long as possible or move to a more suitable home, whilst developing a range of sustainable options for housing, care and support in later life.

14.56 The Housing Strategy (2007-2012) also identifies older people’s needs as a distinct area of demand, with a number of similar approaches..

14.57 It is clear that that mainstream housing provision must meet the requirements of older households, particularly as disability is strongly linked to age. ‘Lifetime homes’ standards are intended to help people adapt to their changing needs as they age without the need to move home.

14.58 The SHMA suggests that there is a clear trend towards retirement migration within Rother. This has implications for the vitality of settlements and level of healthcare and other service requirements. It also has implications in terms of housing pressures, rising prices and declining economic activity rates. However, there are also potential benefits with the stability, social capital and cohesion that older households can bring to local neighbourhoods.

14.59 Consideration can be given to the need for alternative housing models to deliver a range that meets the varying needs of an ageing population. More older person households is likely to increase the demand for supported and other specialist accommodation, such as sheltered housing. The Housing and Support Strategy seeks to develop an extra care housing scheme in the area, also with provision for older people with dementia and learning disabilities.

14.60 In order to support older people in their independence and good health, it is important that development is located so that older households can have good access to a suitable range of facilities. This can be particularly challenging in rural areas.

14.61 The well-being of older people in Rother’s communities is influenced by opportunities for activity and social engagement. Access to community facilities play a large part in maintaining and promoting active and social communities. They provide a valuable resource for older people who either volunteer or participate in the activities or services which it provides.

14.62 Consideration will be given to the allocation of sites specifically for the delivery of older persons (including extra care) housing given any demand arising through the Site Allocations and Development DPD.

14.63 Attention is drawn to the other chapters which contribute to this policy, including the promotion of lifetime homes, grants for refurbishment or adaptation (Housing), regard to safety, security, and connectivity in urban design (Environment), providing good quality healthcare and promoting healthy active lifestyles (Community facilities).

Community Safety

Scope and Issues

14.64 A key objective is:

‘to maintain low crime levels and improve the feeling of safety across the district’.

This echoes the Community Strategy and the results from the Place Survey (2008/09) which indicate that the ‘level of crime’ is one of the most important factors in making an area a good place to live.

14.65 Rother is relatively safe. The Place Survey reveals that over nine in ten (92%) residents say they feel safe when outside in their local area during the day, with only 3% saying they feel unsafe. Unsurprisingly, residents feel less safe when outside after dark, with 61% feeling safe and one in 22% feeling unsafe.

14.66 Residents in Bexhill feel the least safe at night (54% feel safe), with significantly more residents in Rye & Eastern Rother (63%) and Battle & Northern Rother (72%) feeling safe. Safety during the day is fairly even across the three ward groups; 91% safe in Bexhill and 94% safe in both Rye and Eastern Rother and Battle and Northern Rother.

14.67 Recorded crime figures, set out below, confirm that Rother is a relatively safe place to live, with lower levels of crime than regional and national averages.

Figure 16: Recorded crime by key offences - rate per 1,000 population (2009/10)

Crime	Violence against the person	Robbery	Burglary dwelling	Theft of a motor vehicle	Theft from a vehicle
England/Wales	15.7	1.4	4.9	2.2	6.2
South East	15.4	0.6	3.4	1.7	5.3
East Sussex	11.8	0.5	1.8	1.5	4
Rother	7.4	0.2	1.8	1.1	3.2

14.68 Although local crime levels are low, the fear that an incident may occur, including anti-social behaviour, is amongst the most important concerns of local communities and influences people’s view of their safety It can deter people from using streets, spaces, places and facilities in the district. This is socially damaging and detrimental to quality of life and the economy. Therefore, it is still important locally to maintain and improve on the levels of crime within the district and to ensure that communities feel safe from crime.

14.69 Evidence collected from a number of strategies have been used to inform this chapter and can detailed below (please note that this list is not exhaustive).

• LDF Core Strategy Consultation on Strategy Directions
• Rother District Council Corporate Plan 2006-2016
• Pride of Place – Rother Sustainable Community Strategy
• Rother Community Safety Plan 2008-2011 (Safer Rother Partnership)

14.70 The Safer Rother Partnership has produced the Rother Community Safety Plan 2008-2011, which focuses on four key areas: violent crime, property crime, road safety, and anti-social behaviour (including youth diversion).

14.71 Physical factors can be employed to promote community safety within Rother. Consideration to the management of the built environment, promoting social well-being and inclusion into the design of services and infrastructure will all help reduce crime.

14.72 For people to be confident of their safety when using community facilities, parks, open spaces, public transport and when they go out at night, it is important that developments are planned in an inclusive way whilst ensuring that people are not unduly concerned for their safety. Schemes should be designed which provide good lighting and natural surveillance, but avoid excessive or dominant security measures, such as steel roller shutters and blank walls at street level.

14.73 Community safety should also consider issues around fire and road safety, particularly for children, pedestrians and cyclists. The management of the public realm should contribute to enhancing community safety in designing all public areas in town centres, housing and employment developments. New development will be expected to integrate crime prevention measures detailed in national guidance, Secured by Design, along with other proven principles of good design, with their use and purpose be set out in Design and Access Statements.

14.74 Specific policy relating to design quality and stewardship of the built environment can be found within Chapter 17: Environment.

---

⁴⁰ The definition of ‘community facilities and services’ ranges from basic health and social services to education, arts, culture and religious facilities (categorised as C2, D1 and D2 in the Use Classes Order 2005) ⁴¹ For the purposes of defining Community Facilities and Services, The definition of ranges from basic health and social services to education, arts, culture and religious facilities (categorised as C2, D1 and D2 in the Use Classes Order 2005) ⁴² Concealed households are people living within a household wanting to move to their own accommodation and form a separate household. A concealed household is taken as a proxy for the extent of concealment of housing need within the District because these households represent a pent up and unmet demand for housing ⁴³ The "elderly" dependency ratio is calculated as the sum of all aged 65+ as a percentage of all people of working age (16-64). A ratio of 50 shows that there are two people of working age for every dependant, a ratio of 100 shows that there is one person of working age for every dependant, a ratio of over 100 indicates there are more dependants than people of working age