Proposed Submission Development and Site Allocations (DaSA) Local Plan

The DaSA is seriously flawed as it does not make it clear that the Council proposed to remove Development Boundaries from around some existing settlements provided for in the current Rother District Local Plan - adopted in July 2006.

Inset Map 38 of the currently adopted Local Plan shows a Development Boundary around the settlement of Winchelsea and also the nearby settlement of Winchelsea Beach. In the DaSA draft Inset Map 21 only shows a Development Boundary drawn around Winchelsea. Thus, it is only through a comparison between Inset Map 38 of the adopted Local Plan and draft Inset Map 21 of the DaSA that it can be deduced that the Council intends to remove the Development Boundary from around Winchelsea Beach.

The fact that the Council has not made any reference to this proposed change in the DaSA and to seek therefore, to this achieve this by default, is grossly unfair and unreasonable and could well be missed by those who might otherwise wish to also submit objections to this proposed change.

The Development Boundary as a planning tool provides a clear planning purpose in making it clear where development and redevelopment will be permitted in principle and where it will not be permitted. Moreover, there remains opportunities for infill and redevelopment schemes within the existing Development Boundary and there is no sound reason why such proposals should reasonably be judged against countryside restraint policies, as would be the case if the Development Boundary were to be removed.

The DaSA provides no justification for deleting the Development Boundary around Winchelsea Beach and this should therefore, be reinstated in the DaSA and both Figure 14 and Chapter 12 should be modified accordingly with an appropriate Inset Map provided.