Minutes:
"In carrying out sustainability appraisal the law requires the Council to take into account the objectives of the Local Plan, which include maintaining the existing settlement pattern by directing new development to the main towns and limited development to the excluded villages. A new village at Symondshyde is clearly contrary to this objective as although it is classified as an excluded village the allocation of 1,130 new homes and its recognition as a strategic site cannot reasonably constitute limited development.
The law also requires that the sustainability appraisal assesses reasonable alternatives to any proposed allocation. Tables 6.15 and 6.16 of the sustainability appraisal assess the proposed HAT1 allocation against its reasonable alternatives in and around Hatfield being sites HAT2, 5, 11, 19 and HS12. However, even though the sustainability appraisal states that these sites in and around Hatfield could be also considered as reasonable alternatives to Symondshyde no direct assessment between Symondshyde and these sites was undertaken, which is unlawful.
You will be aware that the Cabinet Housing and Planning Panel is divided on whether the Plan is ready for submission and even some, if not all, of those that support its submission say its 'the least bad position' and recognise the strength of local feeling that late changes to the Plan are being rushed through.
Of course, much of the pressure to submit the plan for examination has come from the threat of the Secretary of State to intervene in delayed Plan making, however, this is ill founded as the Planning Minister issued a statement on 16 March that the Government is highly unlikely to intervene in Plan making until the revisions to the National Planning Policy Framework are in place.
Consequently, the Council does not need to act in such haste and I ask whether it would be better for the Council to delay the submission of the Local Plan and reconsult on modifications that properly assess the suitability of Symondshyde against other already identified alternatives, including HAT2, which incidentally could also accommodate a secondary school and this must be taken into account”?
Answer
The question was answered by Councillor M.Perkins (Executive Member, Planning, Housing and Community).
“The Sustainability Appraisal has taken into account the objectives of the Local Plan. The specific issue of retaining the existing settlement pattern was addressed in criteria 4.4 of the Sustainability Appraisal, where it was considered that the allocation of Symondshyde would have a minor negative effect. This is reported in paragraph 6.410.
The Sustainability Appraisal provides an assessment of all allocations and reasonable alternatives to the same level of detail and is set out in Annex 1 and reported in the Sustainability Appraisal Report. In respect of Symondshyde the Report states at Para 6.405 that “No reasonable alternative sites for a new village were identified by the Council for the purposes of the Sustainability Appraisal. However, the other reasonable alternative sites within or adjacent to Welwyn Garden City, Hatfield and the named villages could all be considered to be reasonable alternatives in their own right. The likely effects of developing these reasonable alternatives are reported earlier in Chapter 6 of this Sustainability Appraisal Report”. This shows that Symondshyde has been assessed in the Sustainability Appraisal against reasonable alternatives.
The Sustainability Appraisal Report also includes at Appendix 5 a statement of reasons why sites have been allocated and others have not.
The report therefore complies with the Regulations as set in Table 1.1 of the Sustainability Appraisal Report.
The Council is debating tonight whether or not the Plan should be submitted but there is no reason to delay its submission on account of the Sustainability Appraisal.”