Agenda, decisions and minutes

Councillor Anna Bradnam declared a non-pecuniary interest in that, in her capacity as a crop inspector, she has connection with a company that uses land at the Great Abington former Land Settlement Association Estate. Councillor Bradnam has not been involved in any public consultations or discussions on this matter other than in connection with this Planning Portfolio Holder meeting.

12 January 2016

The Planning Portfolio Holder signed, as a correct record, the Minutes of the meeting held on 12 January 2016.

The Planning Portfolio Holder agreed

a)     that officers work with Great Abington Parish Council to explore a Local Development Order (LDO) for Great Abington Land Settlement Association (LSA), prior to public consultation; and

b)     that officers explore with Great Abington Parish Council the possibility of an Neighbourhood Development Order (NDO) as an alternative to an LDO for the Great Abington Former LSA Estate.

The Planning Portfolio Holder considered a report exploring, alongside Great Abington Parish Council, the potential for a Local Development Order (LDO) or Neighbourhood Development Order (NDO) within the Great Abington Former Land Settlement Association (LSA) Estate.

A Parish Council representative said that the ideal solution would be to see the Former LSA Estate excluded from the countryside while excluding it also from the village framework. This would make things more predictable for applicants. The Portfolio Holder agreed that the former LSA Estate needed an overarching policy.

Councillor Tony Orgee (the local Member) said greater certainty and clarity was needed.

The Portfolio Holder referred briefly to the processes involved for both LDOs and NDOs, and the role played by South Cambridgeshire District Council in each case.

In response to a query from Councillor Orgee, the Planning Team Leader (East) confirmed that two recent applicants had been kept informed about the proposals. The Principal Planning Policy Officer said that no new application would be needed if the proposal was compliant with the terms of the LDO or NDO.

The Planning Portfolio Holder agreed

a)     that officers work with Great Abington Parish Council to explore a Local Development Order (LDO) for Great Abington Land Settlement Association (LSA), prior to public consultation; and

b)     that officers explore with Great Abington Parish Council the possibility of a Neighbourhood Development Order (NDO) as an alternative to an LDO for the Great Abington Former LSA Estate.

The Planning Portfolio Holder received and noted a progress report on performance and service improvement within the Development Management Service.

Appendix 1 was circulated at the meeting, having previously been uploaded to the Council’s website.

The Head of Development Management took those present through the report, and the Principal Planning Policy Officer said that South Cambridgeshire District Council had expressed an interest in becoming a pilot Authority for the Brownfield Register being introduced by the Department for Communities and Local Government. In particular, he explained the concept of ‘Permission in Principle’ (PiP) whereby the government intended to legislate for the grant of automatic permission in principle on brownfield sites identified on those registers, subject to the approval of a limited number of technical details.

Those present discussed the themes flowing from the report, and Councillor Lynda Harford congratulated the Head of Development  Management for producing such positive results in such challenging circumstances, but recognised that Planning Committee members, planning agents and planning applicants also had an important role to play in promoting such improvement further. She said that the adoption of Service Level Agreements would be a crucial part of the process.

The Planning Portfolio Holder welcomed the report, and thanked the Head of Development Management and her Team Leaders, particularly for improving staff morale and for enhancing communication between the Council and other planning stakeholders.

The Planning Portfolio Holder noted the Work Programme attached to the agenda.

Monday 14 March 2016, starting at 2pm

The next Planning Portfolio Holder meeting would take place on Monday 14 March 2016, starting at 2.00pm.

Four Planning Portfolio Holder meetings had been scheduled for 2016-17:

·       Tuesday 7 June 2016 at 10.00am

·       Friday. 9 September 2016 at 10.00am

·       Tuesday 8 November 2016 at 2.00pm

·       Tuesday. 7 February 2017 at 10.00am

Further meetings would be called if, but only if, required as a result of the Local Plan Examination.