Decision details

This decision relates to specific delegations to the Cabinet Member for Planning agreed by Cabinet at its meeting held on 6 November 2019.

The Local Plan is being prepared jointly for the Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council authority areas, the proposed content of, and the participation and communication strategy for the Issues & Options consultation was considered by the following meetings:

• Joint Local Plan Advisory Group 1 October 2019
• South Cambridgeshire District Council Cabinet, 6 November 2019
• South Cambridgeshire District Council Scrutiny & Overview, 17 October 2019
• Cambridge Planning & Transport Scrutiny Committee, 7 November 2019

Content of the Issues and Options Report

Cabinet on 6 November-  ‘Approved the Local Plan Issues & Options report text (at Appendix E), supporting documents (at Appendices F, G and H) and consultation process (at Section VIII and Appendix B, chapter 6)’.

Cabinet also: ‘Delegated authority to the Lead Cabinet Member for Planning, in liaison with Cambridge City Council Executive Councillor for Planning Policy and Open Spaces, and in consultation with members of the Joint Local Planning Advisory Group, to consider and agree, as is consistent with this Council’s corporate objectives, any material changes to the Local Plan Issues & Options report text (at Appendix E) and supporting documents (at Appendices A, B (chapter 6), F, G and H) prior to the commencement of the consultation period, including any proposed by Cambridge City Council’

Following the meetings, and in liaison with JLPAG members, amendments have been identified to the Local Plan Issues & Options report text (Appendix E of the cabinet agenda) responding to issues raised at the meetings, making further corrections and addressing typographical errors, and finalising the structure of the document e.g. footnotes and weblinks. These amendments are highlighted in the version appended to this decision as appendix 1.

The purpose of this decision is to approve these amendments.

Local Development Scheme

Consultation on the Local Plan Issues and Options will now take place in January 2020, not Autumn 2019 as previously stated in the adopted Local Development Scheme.

Cabinet on 6 November – ‘Delegates authority to the Joint Director of Planning and Economic Development, in liaison with the Lead Cabinet Member for Planning and Cambridge City Council Executive Councillor for Planning Policy and Open Spaces, to update the Local Development Scheme to reflect the amended consultation period.’

Amendments to the Greater Cambridge Local Development Scheme 2018 to reflect the change in consultation dates have been made in the version attached as appendix 2 to this decision.

The purpose of this decision is to approve these amendments.

Note:

To ensure an aligned agreement on these documents between Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council, the Cambridge City Council Executive Councillor for Planning Policy & Open Spaces is also taking an out of cycle decision on them at the same time.

To confirm the proposed content of the Greater Cambridge Local Plan Issues & Options document, and update the Local Development Scheme, as set out in the documents appended to this decision.

The documents have been refined following extensive scrutiny by members of both Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council.

Option 1: To make further amendments to the proposed content of, and the participation and communication strategy for, the Greater Cambridge Local Plan Issues and Options consultation.

Reason for rejection: the documents have already been subjected to extensive scrutiny by a number of non-statutory and statutory groups and committees. The documents have been refined following these discussions, including in liaison with Members of both Councils who sit on the Joint Local Planning Advisory Group.