Agenda and minutes

Venue: Committee Room - Town Hall, Station Road, Clacton-on-Sea, CO15 1SE. View directions

Contact: Ian Ford Email:  democraticservices@tendringdc.gov.uk or Telephone  01255 686584

Items
No. Item

24.

Apologies for Absence and Substitutions

The Committee is asked to note any apologies for absence and substitutions received from Members.

 

Minutes:

There were no apologies for absence or notices of substitution received on this occasion.

25.

Chairman's Opening and Introductory Remarks

Minutes:

The Chairman of the Committee (Councillor Turner) made the following opening remarks:-

 

“Good evening fellow Councillors; Officers; and members of the public. New Year, new beginnings.

 

At last, at very long last, we have the finishing line in sight for the major work of this Committee, the Local Plan. This is the 12th meet of this Committee since the start of this Council term in May 2019. We have had in excess of 3,000 pages of reports, none of them easy reading. All requiring thought and study. May I thank all past and present members of this Committee for their contributions, ideas and their diligence. I believe we have produced a robust plan that will serve this District and our Council well. More importantly it is already stopping speculation building and will provide much better and more user friendly homes, which will be cheaper to own and run.”

 

At the appropriate juncture in the meeting, the Chairman made the following introductory remarks in relation to report item A.1:-

 

“Thank you all. Now onto the next step – Full Council on the 25th of January for adoption if the Council so wishes. I must now thank our Officers, in particular, Mr Guiver and his team for their unflagging enthusiasm, application, and knowledge accompanied by their ability to keep their noses firmly pinned to the grindstone. Mr Guiver and his team turned around the Planning Inspector’s final letter by checking and accepting the main and minor modifications in 24 hours. That is despite being given three weeks to do so.

 

Further, I would like us to thank our legal team led by our Deputy Chief Executive, Mrs Lisa Hastings, She has kept us on the straight and narrow and her advice has been invaluable.

 

Finally, Mr. Ian Ford and his team for taking our minutes accurately, unflappably and making sure we Members have been well-served.”

 

 

26.

Minutes of the Last Meeting pdf icon PDF 101 KB

To confirm and sign as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting of the Committee, held on Thursday 11 November 2021.

Minutes:

It was RESOLVED that the Minutes of the last meeting of the Committee held on 11 November 2021 be approved as a correct record and be signed by the Chairman.

 

27.

Declarations of Interest

Councillors are invited to declare any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests or Personal Interest, and the nature of it, in relation to any item on the agenda.

 

Minutes:

Councillor Allen indicated that he would declare an interest if there were any discussions that related specifically to the Frinton Conservation Area as he resided within that area and he was also a Ward Member for Frinton.

 

The Monitor Officer confirmed that this would be accepted for all members of the Committee, who this applied to.

28.

Questions on Notice pursuant to Council Procedure Rule 38

Subject to providing two working days’ notice, a Member of the Committee may ask the Chairman of the Committee a question on any matter in relation to which the Council has powers or duties which affect the Tendring District and which falls within the terms of reference of the Committee.

Minutes:

On this occasion no Councillor had submitted notice of a question pursuant to Council Procedure Rule 38.

29.

Public Speaking pdf icon PDF 228 KB

The Council’s Public Speaking Scheme for the Planning Policy & Local Plan Committee gives the opportunity for members of the public and other interested parties/stakeholders to speak to the Council’s elected members on the that Committee on any specific agenda item to be considered at that public meeting.

Minutes:

Pursuant to the provisions of the Council’s public speaking scheme for the Planning Policy & Local Plan Committee, one member of the public had registered to ask at this meeting a question or to make a statement regarding the items contained in the report of the Acting Director (Planning) or the Reference from Council.

 

Ms Carol Bannister made a statement in relation to item A.1 of the report of the Acting Director (Planning) in which she raised concerns about Local Map B.28 (Weeley). She felt that Weeley Caravan Park was incorrectly labelled and that Oakleigh Caravan Park was not labelled at all. She also stated that Oakleigh Caravan Park Phase 4 did not show an internal road or the traveller site with an additional five pitches.

 

Later on in the meeting under Minute 30 below the Acting Director (Planning) stated that Officers would look at the matters raised by Ms Bannister and that there was scope to amend the map if that should prove necessary.

 

The Chairman responded to Ms Bannister as follows:-

 

“Ms Bannister, thank you as always for your contribution and comments. Always to the point, you keep us on our toes and together with other critical friends, in particular Mr Bill Marshall, we have produced a solid forward looking plan. Thank you again.”

30.

Report of Acting Director (Planning) - A.1 - Section 2 Local Plan: Planning Inspectors' Final Report and Process for Adoption pdf icon PDF 255 KB

a)     To report the Local Plan Inspectors’ final conclusions on the legal compliance and ‘soundness’ of Section 2 of the Council’s new Local Plan following consultation on their recommended ‘Main Modifications’ and the subsequent receipt of their final report on 24th November 2021; 

 

b)     To report that, by incorporating the Inspectors’ recommended Main Modifications, the Section 2 Local Plan meets the tests for legal compliance and soundness - as required for a plan to proceed to formal adoption; and

 

c)      To seek the Planning Policy and Local Plan Committee’s agreement that the modified Section 2 Local Plan be recommended to Full Council for formal adoption. 

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee gave consideration to a comprehensive report of the Acting Director (Planning) (A.1) which:-

 

a)     reported the Local Plan Inspectors’ final conclusions on the legal compliance and ‘soundness’ of Section 2 of the Council’s new Local Plan following consultation on their recommended ‘Main Modifications’ and the subsequent receipt of their final report on 24th November 2021; 

 

b)     reported that, by incorporating the Inspectors’ recommended Main Modifications, the Section 2 Local Plan met the tests for legal compliance and soundness - as required for a plan to proceed to formal adoption; and

 

c)      sought the Committee’s agreement that the modified Section 2 Local Plan be now recommended to Full Council for formal adoption.

 

Key Points

 

Members were informed that Planning Inspectors Anne Jordan and Jameson Bridgewater had issued their final report on the soundness and legal compliance of Section 2 of the new Tendring Local Plan, following examination hearings in February and March 2021 and having considered the consultation responses on their recommended ‘Main Modifications’.

 

Officers were delighted to report that, with the incorporation of the Inspectors’ final list of slightly adjusted Main Modifications, the Section 2 Local Plan was sound, legally compliant and could now be formally adopted by the Council. 

 

The Committee was advised that the final list of modifications had contained no surprises and no significant changes from those considered by the Committee in June 2021 and subsequently published for consultation in July and August 2021. Indeed, the majority of those modifications had been put forward by the Council itself to improve the soundness of the Plan, address previous objections and ensure that the Plan was kept up to date and reflected the latest evidence. The modifications had not been particularly contentious when published for consultation and there had been more representations of support than of objection.

 

Members were made aware that the receipt of the Inspectors’ final report already enabled the Council to give almost full weight to the policies in the new Local Plan in determining planning applications and in contesting appeals.

 

The Committee was reminded that formal adoption of the modified Section 2 Local Plan would require a decision of Full Council and the Committee was invited to recommend this to Full Council at its scheduled meeting on 25th January 2022.  

 

Members recognised that the adoption of the Section 2 Local Plan would represent a major milestone for Tendring District Council as the new plan would supersede, in full, the previous outdated Local Plan of 2007 and would ensure the Council had a fully up-to-date Local Plan in place to guide development up to 2033.

 

Councillors G V Guglielmi, Chapman, I J Henderson, Bush and Scott asked questions on the report which were responded to by the Acting Director (Planning). In response to specific comments on the extent to which certain areas were depicted in detail on the local maps accompanying the Local Plan, the Acting Director (Planning) explained that the scale of the maps could be adjusted as appropriate in finalising the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 30.

31.

Reference from Council - A.2 - Motion to Council pursuant to Council Procedure Rule 12 - Application of Article 4 Directions in the District of Tendring pdf icon PDF 195 KB

To report to the Planning Policy & Local Plan Committee a motion submitted at the meeting of the Council held on 30 November 2022.

Minutes:

Members were aware that, at the meeting of the Council held on 30 November 2021 (Minute 90 referred), the following motion had been moved by Councillor Coley, seconded by Councillor G V Guglielmi and, in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.4, had stood referred to the Planning Policy & Local Plan Committee for further consideration:

 

“In order to preserve Tendring’s uniqueness, heritage, amenity areas and the established areas of industrial and commercial activity:-

 

This Council requests its Cabinet to explore the option of applying for an Article 4 Direction in respect of appropriate Conservation Areas, Industrial Estates and Commercial and Retail Centres in the District of Tendring.”

 

On further discussions by Officers with Councillor Coley, it had been determined that the key areas of his concern revolved around the following issues:-

 

·      “Inappropriate permitted changes of use of property to residential dwellings which can result in an incompatible mix of uses – particularly in predominantly commercial areas and above shops;

·      Permitted changes of use to residential dwellings that provide substandard levels of private amenity space;

·      The inability to secure financial contributions from permitted developments for infrastructure such as children’s play areas;

·      Permitted changes in Conservation Areas that can impact on the character and setting of listed buildings; and

·      Conversion and redevelopment of agricultural buildings to residential dwellings which have a negative impact on the countryside.”

 

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.6 (Referred Motions – Right of Mover to Attend Meeting), Councillor Coley had been notified to attend the meeting to answer any questions and/or points of clarification, if requested.

 

It was reported that an ‘Article 4 Direction’ was a Direction under Article 4 of the General Permitted Development Order which enabled the Secretary of State or the local planning authority to withdraw specified permitted development rights across a defined area. An Article 4 Direction could not be used to restrict changes between uses in the same use class of the Use Classes Order, but it could restrict and require planning permission to be sought for certain types of development that would otherwise be permitted.


The National Planning Policy Framework advised that all Article 4 Directions should be applied in a measured and targeted way. They should be based on robust evidence, and applied to the smallest geographical area possible.

 

Provided that there was clear justification for both its purpose and extent, an Article 4 Direction could:-

 

·      remove specified permitted development rights related to operational development or change of use; or

·      remove permitted development rights with temporary or permanent effect.

 

Where an Article 4 Direction related to a change from non-residential use to residential use, it had to be limited to situations where an Article 4 Direction was necessary to avoid wholly unacceptable adverse impacts. In other cases, Article 4 Directions should be limited to situations where it was necessary to protect local amenity or the well-being of the area.

 

The potential harm that the Article 4 Direction was intended to address would need to be clearly identified and demonstrated, and there  ...  view the full minutes text for item 31.