Issue - meetings

Cabinet, at its meeting on 7 April 2016, will consider a report on the Berinsfield improvement programme.

The report of the strategic director, which Cabinet will consider on 7 April 2016, is attached.

The recommendation of Cabinet will be circulated to councillors on Monday 11 April 2016.

Council considered Cabinet’s recommendation, made at its meeting on 7 April,to vire £1,500,000 from the Regeneration and Housing Initiatives in Science Vale and Didcot scheme in the provisional capital programme to the revenue budget for the purposes of preparing a comprehensive regeneration strategy and delivery plan for Berinsfield by December 2017.

In moving the recommendation Mr Cotton, as Leader and Cabinet member for strategic policy (including the local plan),referred to the challenges in Berinsfield - the main health, education and community buildings being in poor condition, lack of employment opportunities and lower than average household incomes. Substantial investment was required to produce a regeneration strategy for a comprehensive, co-ordinated programme of improvements to create better, more sustainable Berinsfield for current and future generations.

Councillors welcomed the report and the identified funding.   

RESOLVED: to vire £1,500,000 from the Regeneration and Housing Initiatives in Science Vale and Didcot scheme in the provisional capital programme to the revenue budget for the purposes of preparing a comprehensive regeneration strategy and delivery plan for Berinsfield by December 2017.

To consider the strategic director’s report.

Cabinet considered the strategic director’s report, which suggested the council should produce a regeneration strategy for Berinsfield and a delivery plan to improve the village environment.  Officers had identified several issues including: some poor quality open spaces, the main health, education and community buildings being in poor condition, a number of properties being in need of investment, the lower than average household incomes being insufficient to support home ownership or private rented accommodation, the need for more suitable social housing accommodation for elderly residents, and limited access to employment opportunities.  The parish council’s draft Neighbourhood Plan had identified the same issues. 

Substantial investment was required to address these.  The report proposed the council should produce a regeneration strategy for a comprehensive, co-ordinated programme of improvements to create and better, more sustainable Berinsfield for current and future generations. 

Policy CSEN2 of the South Oxfordshire Core Strategy provided that a review of the Green Belt could take place at Berinsfield.  The policy set out exceptional circumstances justifying a review.  This provided the planning context within which the council intended to produce a regeneration strategy.  The main principle was that land would only be released from the Green Belt if development funded the entire cost of an approved regeneration programme for the village.  Appended to the report was a planning statement of intent explaining that only development proposals that met the exceptional circumstances test would be considered. 

Cabinet considered the options identified in the report and concluded that:

• doing nothing would not tackle the issues identified, and would disadvantage the community from benefitting from the economic growth and wellbeing in South Oxfordshire
• there was no public sector funding available to produce a regeneration strategy and delivery plan
• council leadership and front-funding of the regeneration strategy was the only way to proceed

The Cabinet member responsible for strategic policy proposed an extensive programme of work over the period to December 2017 to evaluate options, and consider promoting a proportionate release of the Green Belt, should the delivery plan prove viable.  The cost of this programme of work was estimated at £1.5 million.  This would allow for:

• the preparation of a sustainable social infrastructure plan including leisure, education and health provision 
• community involvement in developing the plans, aligning plans with those of SOHA and other providers, leading to a long term governance model 
• the production of masterplan, including planning strategy, a Green Belt review, design code for new housing, and technical studies; and 
• the development of the financial model, land assembly strategy, procurement and delivery mechanism and public private sector funding agreements 

Cabinet supported the proposal. 

RECOMMENDED to Council to:

(a)          vire £1,500,000 from the Regeneration and Housing Initiatives in Science Vale and Didcot scheme in the provisional capital programme to the revenue budget for the purposes of preparing a comprehensive regeneration strategy and delivery plan for Berinsfield by December 2017;

RESOLVED (subject to Council approving (a) above)to:

(b)          authorise the strategic director, in consultation with the cabinet members for strategic policy (including the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 56