Rother Local Plan 2020-2040 (Regulation 18)

Comment

Representation ID: 26806

Received: 31/07/2024

Respondent: Northern Parishes Group

6) The group considers the draft Local Plan is an amalgamation of a planning document, the background to a particular issue and an explanation of the intentions of the authors. The result is that the document is too long which makes it difficult to find the relevant entries. Knowing how so many people prefer hard copy to just online material, Green to the Core must mean reducing paper. It is suggested the document should be restricted to a planning document. This would bring its size down to perhaps 220 pages. It looks as if the authors were keen to include as much as possible, but they would find it a valuable exercise to see what could be taken out. An example of how the document can be pruned without damaging it in any way is the section about the High Weald National Landscape at page 56.
Para 3.50 Add the NPPF reference to the second last sentence. Delete the last sentence.
Para 3.51 This para states the obvious and should be deleted.
Para 3.52 This can be deleted. If the date of the change is thought to be important, it can be added to para 3.50.
Para 3.52-3.55 This detail is for another document. There could be a cross-reference to the High Weald documents.
Para 35.56 and 35.60 This could be deleted as once the Local Plan is confirmed it is the detail of the plan that matters and not the history of the document.
Para 35.57-59 A brief cross-reference is all is required.
7) It is noted that all policies, have at the beginning the words ‘Policy wording’. Maybe this was to distinguish it from the Explanatory text that follows. In fact the Explanatory text is treated by the Planning Inspectorate as part of the policy. The removal of the word ‘Policy wording’ would save at least two pages. If the footer was removed, leaving only the page number, about 40 pages would be saved.
8) The removal of extraneous material not only shortens the Local Plan, but it also gives greater prominence to the policies.

Comment

Representation ID: 26807

Received: 31/07/2024

Respondent: Northern Parishes Group

Cross-referencing
9) One of the many welcome features of this document is the cross-referencing to other policies. An example can be found in the Live Well Locally section at page 63. There other policies are helpfully laid out. However, the description for each policy can probably by reduced by 40%, but their inclusion is significant. It would be helpful to all readers if other policies were listed as cross-references. The obvious ones to add would be the NPPF 2023 entries, which is part cross-referenced within the document. An example of this can be found at page 186, para 5.1. It would be helpful if each of the five NPPF 2023 requirements in the paragraph of the document were identified. If all relevant policies were given a two line entry, the document would be much more helpful.

Comment

Representation ID: 26808

Received: 31/07/2024

Respondent: Northern Parishes Group

The Glossary page 440
10) One of the most helpful sections in the draft Local Plan is the glossary at page 440. Regretfully, it is anticipated that most people will not know about it. It is suggested that where terms like affordable homes, ancient woodland, and gypsy and traveller are referred to, a cross-reference to their definition would be helpful.
11) The authors may wish to give consistency to the capitalization of the entries in the glossary and make all the sentences start with a capital letter. The authors may also wish to change the title from Glossary to Definitions. Where the NPPF or Act of Parliament gives a definition (which would be binding on this document) it would be helpful to add that or give it a cross-reference. The group notices that ‘Spatial development’ is not listed and the authors might consider that would be very helpful. Neither is ‘Spatial’ listed. It may be that it would be better to delete the word spatial in the whole document but unfortunately the word appears in statute. The group also noticed there is not a list of abbreviations. As there are many sections where an abbreviation is given without specifying what it is, a one page list of abbreviations would be helpful.

Comment

Representation ID: 26809

Received: 31/07/2024

Respondent: Northern Parishes Group

Paragraph numbering
12) As local plans are referred to during public inquiries and in the Courts, paragraph numbering speeds up those hearings. It is noted that some policies that stretch to a page, have no paragraph numbers, see page 215. It is also noted that a variety of different ways are used to give numbers and letters to the paragraphs. It is thought that this undermines the presentation of this document. The authors are invited to consider that all policies should have the same numbering style. The suggestion the group makes is as follows. Sections should be A, B, C etc. Paragraphs should be 1, 2, 3 etc. Sub-paragraphs should be a) b) c) etc. Divisions within sub-paragraphs should be i), ii), iii) etc.
Digital links
13) As so many people now use digital copies of documents, the authors are invited to consider that all documents referred to in the Local Plan should have a digital link to the document.
Need for an index
14) Many topics are dealt with in more than one policy. It would help people who are seeing the document for the first time and those who use it use it regularly, for the document to have an index.

Comment

Representation ID: 26810

Received: 31/07/2024

Respondent: Northern Parishes Group

15) The dumping of construction waste on farmland for profit is a very significant problem in the northern parishes. Profits which can be made are great. Licences are easy to obtain and there is no inquiry before or after the grant of a licence. It is thought this policy will have no impact on the illegal dumping of waste.
16) What is required is that planning grants should have conditions about the disposal of construction waste. The enforcement conditions should contain a provision that the building, subject to a grant of permission, cannot be occupied until Rother District Council is satisfied that the waste disposal condition has been complied with. At the moment, the planners at Rother District Council say they have no power to add a condition. It doubtful whether the High Court would agree with them, but in any event if this was put in this policy everybody would agree there is such a power.
17) If it is suggested that Rother District Council has no power to put such a condition The Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 2012/767 Reg 5 (1)(a)(iv) provides matters of ‘development management’ to be subject to policy.

Comment

Representation ID: 26811

Received: 31/07/2024

Respondent: Northern Parishes Group

18) Solar panels and wind turbines have and no doubt will continue to create passionate supporters and passionate opponents. What is required is a balance of all the factors to ensure that the decisions made are correct.

Solar Pages 47, 48 and 91
19) These are the proposed policies. There are also mentions of solar power on page 36 paras 3.11 and 3.12, page 89 Policy LWL6, page 91 para 4.52, page 412 para 12.18 and page 430. None of these references provide any guidance about the suitability of solar powers or the policies of where they should be sited. The plan should state the policy for solar power. In para (B) above solar panels would be permitted on historic buildings. No specific policy about siting solar panels in sections of the High Weald National Landscape is included. The group considered clear policy needs to be in the plan.

Wind turbines page 48
20) These are the proposed policies. There are also mentions of wind power on page 49 para 3.37 and page 412 para 12.18. None of these references provide any guidance about the suitability of wind power or the policies of where they should be sited. Again, the group considers that these policies should be in the Local Plan.

Both solar and wind power
21) Group considers that the following policies should be added:
a) All applications and all consideration of solar power and wind turbines should be after it has been determined whether the solar power or wind power is domestic or commercial. The generating device is domestic where it is attached to a house and commercial is where it is ground mounted and its primary purpose is to generate electricity for the National Grid.
b) There should be no solar panels or wind turbines on historic buildings or within their curtilage. Historic buildings are those listed by Historic England and those listed by East Sussex HER records.
c) There should be no commercial solar panels or commercial wind turbines in the High Weald National Landscape, unless it is shown but there is no significant damage to the national landscape.
d) No solar panels or wind turbine may generate any light pollution. All applicants for solar panels must specifically address this issue with the issue of avoidable glare.
e) Applicants for solar panels should provide evidence that the panels create no danger to wildlife particularly migrating birds.
f) Applicants are expected to provide ‘all black’ solar panels.

Comment

Representation ID: 26812

Received: 31/07/2024

Respondent: Northern Parishes Group

23) The area of concern here is that the failure to define ‘small-scale’ and ‘major development’, leads developers to always put in applications and say Rother District Council needs houses, so let me provide the houses. A development near a settlement, may be more appropriate than one well away from the settlement. The failure to define the terms also leads to inconsistency. The use of these words also causes a problem because the number of houses may not be the true issue. The word ‘should’ near the beginning of the second paragraph needs clarifying, and is open to developers to argue that ‘as it does not say ‘must’ an application for their houses is appropriate’.
24) An alternative wording would be as follows.
25) ‘All development within the High Weald National Landscape will be refused unless:
a) The development complies with one of the specific exceptions in the NPPF 2023 (or its successor) where development in the High Weald National Landscape is permitted.
b) The development is near a settlement. A settlement is a distinct group of houses within the landscape.
c) The development is in planning harmony with its surroundings.
d) The harm to the High Weald National Landscape is not significant.
e) Policy LWLS: Distinctive Places must be meticulously applied.’
26) This definition will provide Rother District Council planners, developers and the community and understanding of what will be and will not be permitted.

Comment

Representation ID: 26813

Received: 31/07/2024

Respondent: Northern Parishes Group

Design concept page 83-88
27) The group considers this leaves out perhaps the most important part of good design. The group suggests that the first sentence should read, ‘Those that design developments must determine the local design signature, also known as the local design palette. It is possible on rare occasions to depart from the local design signature, but that must only be when the design is wholly exceptional and the reasons for the departure are clearly stated.’ The first sentence of the design concept above has so much leeway that it is unlikely to be understood. The sentence could be replaced by, ‘All development must be visually attractive both from the outside but also from the inside. It must be in proportion to the development and the landscape nearby and must be in proportion inside.’
28) Para iii) is repetitive of Policy GCT9 High Weald National landscape at page 56. Repetition is not needed. A cross-reference to policy GCT9, would be more appropriate.
29) The design guide for the High Weald National Landscape is an incomplete document but does not provide the assistance to developers and others that it should. The design guide does not in fact apply to the areas where the majority of people live in Rother, which is Bexhill.
30) It would be helpful it Rother District Council introduced their own design guide, incorporating the good parts of the High Weald National Landscape guide and other good guides.

Comment

Representation ID: 26814

Received: 31/07/2024

Respondent: Northern Parishes Group

Speed Limits Pg 94
32) A vocal minority have demanded maximum speed limits of 20 mph everywhere they can. A silent majority routinely ignore them. The policy is extremely divisive. The silent majority has recently become a vocal majority. This document may not be the proper place for a mandatory 20 mph limit. If a new development has a mile long access road with no houses, a 20 mph limit would be required. The sentence should be prefaced with ‘Where appropriate’.
33) Perhaps the authors may consider that as speed limits are determined by the East Sussex County Council, Rother District should not have a policy in a plan with a long shelf life, which may later be in conflict with the determining authority.

Street Clutter pg 96
35) The phrase ‘Streamline the placement’ lacks clarity. It is suggested policy could be replaced with, ‘Wherever possible, planners, developers and the community should reduce street clutter. This applies to new and existing clutter and public and privately owned articles. This policy particularly applies to highway and other signage, bin areas and street furniture. All articles in the street should be considered individually and collectively with the neighbouring surroundings.’

Comment

Representation ID: 26815

Received: 31/07/2024

Respondent: Northern Parishes Group

36) This section is very well drafted. However, the problem is that in rural areas many of the requirements would be hard to comply with. Yet, the group does not seek to take any of them out. The section on Rural Car Parking is as follows.

Rural Car Parking
37) The group suggests that the requirement should include emphasis on protecting the High Weald National Landscape, by ensuring at the car park it is hidden as possible. Further the importance of screening should be stressed.
38) The group further suggests there should be a new paragraph, namely,
‘xii) Light Pollution Those designing and managing car parks must make sure light pollution is kept to the minimum. Applications for new parking areas must include a statement about how light pollution has been addressed.’