Proposed Submission Core Strategy

19. IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITORING FRAMEWORK

Scope and Issues

19.1 It is not sufficient for the Core Strategy to just make proposals and policy guidance, there is a requirement to establish a framework to:

1. Ensure that the proposals are put into action at the right time and delivered;
2. Identify infrastructure requirements during the plan period;
3. Assess risk to the spatial strategy if policies are not performing as intended and implement contingencies.

19.2 Planning Policy Statement 12: Local Spatial Planning (PPS12) requires that a Core Strategy must set out clear arrangements for monitoring the effectiveness of policies in meeting plan objectives, identifying the needs, opportunities and constraints affecting the area and for reporting results to the public and other key stakeholders.

19.3 Delivery strategies should contain clear targets or measurable outcomes to assist this process. This ‘plan, monitor and manage’ approach allows for flexibility over the lifetime of the Core Strategy. In accordance with Government guidance, monitoring will be a matter for each Council to decide ⁸⁰.

19.4 In addition to monitoring another key element of the process is to ensure the necessary infrastructure is delivered to support new and existing communities. PPS12 states the Core Strategy should be supported by evidence of what physical, social and green infrastructure is needed to enable the amount of development proposed for the area, taking account of its type and distribution ⁸¹. The infrastructure planning process should identify, as far as possible infrastructure needs and costs, phasing of development, funding sources; and responsibilities for delivery.

19.5 The Spatial Strategies sets out how the district will develop up to 2028 in order to ensure that the overall vision and objectives for the Core Strategy are achieved.

19.6 In April 2010, the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Regulations 2010 came into force. These new regulations give local planning authorities the means to raise funds via a development levy from developers undertaking new building projects in their area. The money can be used to fund a wide range of infrastructure that is needed as a result of development. This includes transport schemes, flood defences, schools, hospitals and other health and social care facilities, parks, green spaces and leisure centres.

19.7 CIL is a tariff-based approach and provides the framework to fund new infrastructure to unlock land for growth. CIL is fairer, faster and more certain and transparent than the system of planning obligations which can be lengthy because of lengthy negotiations between different parties.

Framework for Monitoring and Delivery of Infrastructure

19.8 The following framework is set out to ensure that the strategy is robust in terms of ensuring the effective and timely delivery of development and infrastructure.

Framework for Monitoring and Delivery of Infrastructure To have a clear monitoring framework, linked to the Community Strategy, as well as to the Core Strategy’s vision and objectives; To ensure a continuity of supply of housing and business land; To ensure that there is, or will be, adequate infrastructure to meet the needs of communities and of development; To integrate infrastructure programmes of key agencies; To provide requisite flexibility in the strategy together with contingencies based on a risk assessment that still meet the overall vision; To implement a Community Infrastructure Levy framework to secure infrastructure and deliver the vision for Rother.

Monitoring Framework

19.9 Monitoring of the Core Strategy is an essential element of the Local Development Framework process. It is important to assess whether the DPD is being implemented satisfactorily.

19.10 Recent guidance from Central Government has indicated monitoring will be a matter for each Council to decide what to include in their monitoring arrangements. Through the Annual Monitoring Report (AMR), Rother will employ the use of indictors and targets to measure performance, a set of appropriate indicators has been chosen from a number of sources.

19.11 A monitoring framework of policies should employ a measure of contextual indicators - relating to the social, economic and environmental conditions in the district, and output indicators – measurable changes and outcomes resulting from implementing planning policies. The Council will adopt a set of indicators to be used to monitor progress towards the vision for an “improved quality of life” for the residents of Rother district⁸².

19.12 The identification of a set of indicators that reflect local aspirations and the establishment of a process for determining these, should be of real assistance to decision-makers – officers, councillors and LSP Board members – in developing and evaluating strategies, plans and actions.

19.13 The locally accountable AMR will be the principal component in the monitoring framework, bringing together all the necessary information to successfully monitor the implementation of the LDF in one place. The AMR will be able to measure whether a Core Strategy policy is meeting the spatial objectives; need adjusting or replacing because they are not working as intended; or need changing to reflect changes in national or regional policy.

19.14 In addition to the AMR, the Council publishes a bi-annual assessment of housing land supply to assess and demonstrate the extent to which existing plans fulfil the requirement to identify and maintain a rolling five year supply of deliverable land.

19.15 The Monitoring Schedule relating to the spatial objectives, targets and the use of indicators can be found in Appendix 5 of this document.

Implementation and Infrastructure

19.16 The spatial strategy set out in the Core Strategy will be achieved through the policies set down in the document. An important component will be to ensure the necessary infrastructure is provided to support existing and new development. This will be achieved through a number of mechanisms including developer contributions through Section 106 Agreements or a Community Infrastructure Levy to absorb additional stress on infrastructure capacity.

19.17 To comply with PPS12, the Core Strategy should demonstrate what ‘essential’ infrastructure will be delivered in the lifetime of the Core Strategy to deliver the spatial strategy. Sound infrastructure planning should be underpinned by flexibility and deliverability.

19.18 An Infrastructure Schedule can be found in Appendix 4 and is a summary of infrastructure capital critical to the delivery of the Vision for the District. It includes information on costings, phasing, identification of possible funding sources and who would be responsible for bringing forward the scheme. At the time of writing the information will be as accurate as it is possible but given the lengthy time scales and economic uncertainly some of the figures will be subject to change. Changes will be updated through the Annual Monitoring Report.

19.19 A separate document entitled the Infrastructure Delivery Plan (IDP) will provide further details on current capacity and identify shortfalls in provision to accommodate addition future growth in population, industry and commerce. This will be considered as a ‘live’ document and updated periodically through the AMR. It is intended the IDP will eventually inform a future Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), as well as Section 106 Agreements.

Phasing

19.20 Government guidance promotes a “plan-monitor-manage” approach to ensure that decisions keep in line with the vision and objectives. For example, where there is an identified 5-year supply of land for housing, the Council may consider whether granting further permissions would undermine achievement of its strategy objectives. However, it should not refuse applications purely on grounds of prematurity.

19.21 It is particularly important to give consideration both to assist the absorption of development in social and infrastructure terms into communities, and to ensure a continuity and balance in the supply of residential and employment land.

19.22 It is generally assumed that outstanding permissions and existing housing allocations (which have been demonstrated in the SHLAA and through Housing Monitoring as deliverable) will be developed in the earlier phases of the Plan. Particular care should be taken in villages which are also still absorbing recent and ongoing developments.

19.23 Hence, for some settlements with recent or committed higher levels of development, any additional allocations will normally be phased in the latter part of the plan period.

19.24 The supply of available land will be assessed through the preparation of the Annual Monitoring Report, bi-annual Housing Land Supply Position Statements and review of the Council's SHLAA (Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment).

19.25 A‘ trajectory’ for housing completions over the period 2011-2028 will be based on the annual average of development rates set out in the Overall Development Strategy, with the exception of Bexhill, which is set out in chapter 9.

19.26 The trajectory shown in Appendix 3 illustrates potential take-up over the period 2011 – 2028 on this basis, also having regard to outstanding planning permissions. This is likely to be optimistic in the early years of the strategy due to the general slowdown in the house-building market, but is accepted on the basis of not unduly restricting development that will contribute to economic recovery and sustainable growth.

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⁸⁰ Preparation and Monitoring of Local Plans, 30th March 2011 ⁸¹ PPS12 paragraph 4.45 ⁸² Measuring Quality of Life in Rother - Towards a core set of ‘vision-led’ indicators