Agenda item

Report to follow.

The Scrutiny and Overview Committee AGREED to submit the following recommendations of the Orchard Park Working Group to Cabinet:

Recommendation 1 – The decision to require a road adoption strategy for Northstowe should be replicated on all future developments.

Recommendation 2 – The good practice of school provision concurrent with first occupations should be continued.

Recommendation 3 – More consideration should be given to a greater variety of opportunities for social interaction for early occupants of new developments.

Recommendation 4 – South Cambridgeshire District Council should adopt the charging strategy used by Cambridge City Council in connection with pre-application service.

Recommendation 5 – Consideration should be given to further work being carried out on ‘New Town Blues’ and the referral rates to social services and their impacts on costs for councils and other public services.

Recommendation 6 – Funding should be secured for training and/or technical support to be provided for parish councils affected by strategic development applications. There should be greater flexibility in the use of funds allocated.

Councillor Lynda Harford presented the report which set out interim recommendations from the Working Group set up to review the lessons learned from Orchard Park and requested that these be recommended to Cabinet for endorsement.

Councillor Hickford thanked the Working Group for their work to date and Councillor Hales commended and thanked Councillor Harford for her leadership of the Working Group.

Councillor Harford informed the committee that work would be complete by the end of August.

Recommendation 5 regarding ‘New Town Blues’ was discussed:

·         It was suggested that a further piece of work could be undertaken to look at how organisations were picking up the costs further down the line of ‘New Town Blues’.

·         The set up of a cross organisation group was suggested, to look at what intervention and measures could be put in place earlier on in new communities, to prevent issues occurring later on.

·         Such a piece of work would be outside the remit of the current Working Group but could be looked at once the current piece of work was concluded.

·         The Director of Health and Environmental Services informed the committee that the Director of Public Health would be commissioning a Joint Strategic Needs Assessment for new communities. Mr Hill would be meeting with Director of Public Health and would discuss this and the committee’s concerns regarding ‘New Town Blues’ with her.

Councillor David Bard advised that good practice should be shared amongst organisations and that new developments in Europe should also be looked at.

Councillor Alex Riley expressed concern with regard to the lack of community infrastructure being provided for Northstowe. Councillor Riley informed the committee that a community facility was planned for Phase 1 but was not confident about the funding for this. With regard to Phase 2, a town centre facilities were planned but these would be provided after all the housing was built. Councillor Riley expressed concern about this given the estimated number of residents there would be without any town centre facilities.

The Director of Planning and New Communities responded to Councillor Riley’s concerns, making the following points:

·         The Partnerships and Sustainable Communities Manager was working closely with her to ensure a joined up approach.

·         The committee was informed that the allocation of homes in Northstowe would be very different to the allocation that had taken place in Cambourne and led to problems in Cambourne. It was hoped that this allocation, which would be much more sensitive than at Cambourne, would avoid ‘New Town Blues’.

·         A Community Engagement Officer for Northstowe was appointed by the Council in January 2015.

·         Other organisations such as the NHS and Police had been involved in the work on Northstowe and the first PCSO for Northstowe had been appointed, as well as the first vicar. Therefore there would be community representatives in place for the first Northstowe residents.

·         Longstanton Parish Council’s involvement in provision at Northstowe would be very welcome.

·         A school would be ready for the first Northstowe residents, which would also provide a community space for the first residents. A community centre, sports pavilion and hub would then take over the provision of community space from the school.

·         In order to ensure infrastructure would be in place when the Council wanted it to be, funding and triggers would be secured through Section 106. The Council would make sure there was no slippage in the timetable for infrastructure to be in place.

Councillor Alex Riley requested Section 106 for Northstowe Phase 2 be as solid as possible and raised concern that there was not a town park in the Northstowe plans.

The Scrutiny and Overview Committee AGREED the interim recommendations and RECOMMENDED that these be endorsed by Cabinet and forwarded to the Northstowe Joint Development Control Committee.