POS UPDATE APRIL 2007
The Planning Officers Society E-Bulletin for POS Members - April 2007
Click on the heading to go straight to what’s new on POS Update this month:
1 DPDs Latest
2 Breaking News
3 Consultation Latest
4 Brief Updates:
Code Of Conduct For Local Councillors --- Affordable Housing Delivered Under Planning Obligations --- DEFRA Hedgerow Survey Handbook --- Town Centre Case Studies ---
5 Society Matters
6 Forthcoming Events
7 Promoting Sustainable Communities Beacon Award Winners
8 Climate Change Latest
9 Surrey Planning Collaboration Project
10 On the Web
11 Correspondence
12 And Finally …..
1 DPDs LATEST
Plymouth Core Strategy found to be sound.
Douglas Machin, the Inspector appointed to examine the soundness of the Submitted Plymouth Core Strategy, reported back to the Council on 3 April stating that it was sound with agreed changes.
The Inspector in his report indicates that the amendments reflect all the changes the Council needs to make, including the minor consequential changes and editing of the submitted DPD that the Council wishes to make. He stated “Having considered all those latter changes, I am content to endorse them and recommend that they be made because they do not materially alter the substance of the Core Strategy. Although they have not been subject to public consultation, I am satisfied that they can be made without prejudice to the statutory process the Council is required to follow in order to adopt the Core Strategy.”
Machin goes on to say “My overall conclusion is that the Core Strategy is founded on a substantial evidence base and it is sound provided the changes I recommend are made. With these changes, the Core Strategy will provide a good framework for the subsequent Area Action Plans that together will allow the City to achieve its Vision. None of the changes require that the Strategy be subject to a further Sustainability Appraisal. There is nothing in this report that prevents the Core Strategy being adopted as soon as the Council wishes.”
The Inspectors letter and report can be downloaded from the Plymouth City website – click here.
Spatial Plans in Practice
The DCLG funded Spatial Planning in Practice project held a workshop in Plymouth in March to find out the views of representatives of a range of sectors of the community. PAS has published a learning note of outcomes from this workshop. The main points raised were:
§ Organisations do see benefits of being involved in LDFs, but there is a need to identify and understand their motivation for this
§ Involvement should be through engagement rather than consultation
§ LPAs need to be more sophisticated when engaging with stakeholder organisations, show more sensitivity to possible barriers and think about ways in which they can make engagement easier.
§ There are constraints to stakeholder involvement – resources, organisational structures and a lack of time are significant barriers.
For more on the project, and to download a copy of the workshop findings, visit the PAS website or click here.
Spatial Plans in Practice - Lessons Report Two: Using Evidence in Spatial Planning. This guidance documents provides the findings from various case study areas focusing on the collection and use of evidence. To access the DCLG report click here.
DCLG Advice Note in the Identification of Sub-Regional Housing Market Areas.
Local and regional planning authorities need to have regard to housing markets when planning for housing. This document provides advice to local authorities working sub regionally in this area. It addresses the preparation of evidence base and policy development. To access the note click here.
2 BREAKING NEWS ………
A note as to how to interpret the 5 year land supply, as required by PPS3, has been made available to GOs and PINS. DCLG has indicated that LPAs can download it from the PINS website. Click here.
3 CONSULTATIONS LATEST
The latest Government consultations include:
Heritage Protection for the 21st Century - White Paper. The proposals in the White Paper are based on three core principles: the need to develop a unified approach to the historic environment; maximising opportunities for inclusion and involvement; and supporting sustainable communities by putting the historic environment at the heart of an effective planning system. Deadline for responses: 1st June 2007. For details Click here.
Changes to Permitted Development: Consultation Paper 1 - Permitted Development Rights for Householder Microgeneration. This consultation paper outlines the Government's proposals for reforming the system governing what householders can do to their own property without the need to apply for planning permission so as to allow the easier installation of microgeneration technologies. Deadline 27 June 2007. Click here.
Transition from CPA to CAA. This consultation marks the beginning of a wide range of discussion and engagement by the Audit Commission to feed into the design of the Comprehensive Area Assessment (CAA) scheme. The consultation document includes questions relating to Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) 2007 for the next round of national reporting which will be published in February 2008, and the transition from CPA to CAA in 2008/09. Closing date is 14 June. Click here.
Draft Rural Development Programme for England 2007-2013. This DEFRA consultation invites views on the draft Rural Development Programme for England 2007-2013 in the context of an Environmental Report on the Programme’s likely overall impact. The deadline is 5 July 2007. Click here.
Consultation on site waste management plans for the construction industry. The Government is concerned about the small but increasing amount of construction waste that is illegally dumped or fly-tipped. As waste controls tighten there is an increased risk of companies inadvertently employing illegal waste operatives. The consultation package includes an explanation of the proposals, a partial regulatory impact assessment and draft regulations. The closing date is 9 July 2007. Click here.
Recent Consultation Responses by the POS:
English Heritage Policy Position Statement - Mineral Extraction and the Historic Environment click here.
4 BRIEF UPDATES:
A simpler, clearer and more proportionate code of conduct for local councillors has been published by DCLG. The revised model code will apply to all councillors in England and will come into effect on 3 May. The new code will, amongst other matters, remove rules which have stood in the way of councillors acting as advocates for and leaders of their local communities, as proposed in last year’s Local Government White Paper. To view the Order go to http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2007/20071159.htm
DCLG has just let a research contract to the University of Sheffield/University of Cambridge, to look at a possible common starting point for affordable housing negotiations delivered under planning obligations, as detailed in December's Changes to Planning Obligations consultation (https://www.dclg.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1504924). Phil Kirby (Broadland DC) is to be the LPA representative from POS to sit on the steering board for this project.
The DEFRA Hedgerow Survey Handbook provides a standard procedure for local surveys. The document can be found by clicking here.
DCLG has recently published a series of Town Centre Case Studies:
· Southend-on-Sea, Essex - identified as a regional city by East of England Development Agency (EEDA), aspirations are set to transform Southend into a 'regional town centre'.
http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1509478
· Grays, Essex - the main town centre in Thurrock, Grays is the administrative and learning hub for the borough.
http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1509485
· Basildon, Essex - major plans for the £900m comprehensive redevelopment of Basildon town centre. http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1509483
· Lewisham - Lewisham town centre is the borough’s main retail area and an important transport hub. http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1509500
· Erith, Kent - huge investment is bringing new facilities to Erith. http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1509517
5 SOCIETY MATTERS
Society Celebrates 10th Anniversary
The Planning Officers Society was formed in April 1997 by the amalgamation of the former County Planning Officers Society, District Planning Officers Society and the Metropolitan Planning Officers Society. With the formation of a single Local Government Association it was decided by the constituent societies that a single voice for local authority planning practitioners would be the most effective way of pursuing good and effective planning practice within local government.
Below Graeme Bell, Society President in 1997/98, looks back with the benefit of hindsight as to what the Society set out to achieve; and Steve Quartermain, current senior Vice-President, looks at what may lie ahead.
POS Ten Years On
The catalyst for the creation of POS was the merger of the three local authority associations into the new LGA. So, the three planning officer societies took the decision to mirror the change, to reflect the seamless nature of planning across authorities and ensure that planning can speak with one voice. From the outset a key requirement was to support the new LGA with professional and technical advice, to assist in policy formulation and to offer draft recommendations in response to consultations from Whitehall. The welter of guidance, regulation and legislation that has emerged from Eland House has made this a very busy decade for Society. Part of the POS response has been to form POS Enterprises which now provides much of this service and more, very effectively on a consultancy basis. However, I believe it is vital to retain and if possible step up the involvement of more chief planners and their middle managers in the work of Society in advising the LGA. Not only does this give POS greater strength in depth but exposure to the national ‘scene’ is a first class training ground for the next generation of chief planners.
And it is countering the pressures of the day job where POS continues to achieve another role, for it is a society, not a professional institute or a single issue pressure group. POS is about the people who operate planning in local government as much as it is about the duties they perform. Being a chief planner can sometimes be a lonely job. Pressures can be increased when re-structuring takes that job down the tiers where colleagues may have all the responsibility of delivery without the clout. This is where Society continues to play a unique and vital role offering comradeship and support. Solutions to problems are often common across the country and a problem shared is a problem halved. Planning is the beating heart of council activity, articulating the community strategy and helping turn vision and aspirations of local people into reality. All the more important then that we work towards a stronger Society, leading and supporting colleagues in this vital work.
Graeme Bell
POS Ten Years On and On
In many respects the Society has never been stronger. It is active in many areas of policy formation with the government departments and with the LGA and it has forged strong and significant ties with partner organisations such as the RTPI and PAS (IDeA). But it is not only in the field of strategic thinking that POS is hitting the mark; in its approach to delivery we are demonstrating that planners CAN do it, and do it well and in this the POS plays a key role in disseminating good practice and raising the bar above excellence.
And this is where the Society must continue to build its influence. As a Society all of us are trying to deliver services and outcomes in an increasingly complex planning system which sees it (quite rightly in my opinion) more and more closely integrated with a broader vision of economic and social wellbeing. We need to support the work of the Society’s committees and Cabinet to ensure that the central role planning has in the corporate role of Councils is not only recognised, but suitably resourced. We will continue to press for the role of Chief Officer to be formally recognised as a position within Council’s management teams, as the Council’s role as community leader and place shaper becomes more established.
To really make a difference members need to recognise that as a Society we can only help each other by taking individual responsibility to support the work of the Society and it is for this reason that I see the growth and stability of a regional network to support the Society throughout the country as an objective for the next five years. All organisations are only as strong as their individual membership and it is important that we bring new people and renewed enthusiasm into the running of the Society. To be a leader, whatever your profession, you need to inspire and I know that from the senior planning officers who are involved in the Society there is tremendous confidence that as strong as we feel we have become, we can be stronger, we can be more influential and we can make a difference. This is because planning matters, and unlike Bob the Builder, who fixes things when they are broken, our task is to build sustainable communities; and we can deliver.
Steve Quartermain.
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The POS 10th Anniversary Annual Conference, AGM and President’s Dinner is being held on 17th and 18th May at Kingston upon Thames, Surrey; it focuses on the theme ‘Delivery Through Planning’. Places are still available if you haven’t yet booked.
The invitation and booking form are on the website - click here DOWNLOAD
The Agenda for 17th & 18th May 2007 is also on the website - click here DOWNLOAD
Please note that all of the Committees are invited to meet on 17th to discuss their business plan for the forthcoming year.
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For notes of the meeting of the Development Management Committee held on 12th January at Barnet click here.
6 FORTHCOMING EVENTS
Implementing Sustainable Cities: Planning For Climate Change
Interpreting Policy To Integrate Sustainable Environmental Strategies And Meet Targets Through Quality Urban Planning And Development
4 July, Ibis Hotel, London
Book before 10 May & Save £50 @ www.sustainablecities2007.com
Staying Different, Staying Alive: Milton Keynes, The Next 40 Years
Wednesday 9th May 2007; City Discovery Centre, Milton Keynes
Much loved by its residents, affectionately mocked by everyone else, Milton Keynes, the biggest of England’s 1960s new towns is 40 years old this year. Described as dynamic and a 'can do' place, Milton Keynes is entering a new era of growth and exciting new developments.
This half-day seminar will include presentations from the former Director of Planning of the MK Development Corporation, the Head of Planning at Milton Keynes Council and MK’s most prominent master planner.