Issue - meetings

Cabinet, at its meeting on 18 December 2018, will consider a report on the South Oxfordshire Local Plan. 

The report of the head of planning and appendix two (the log of changes to the Local Plan document since publication of the Scrutiny Committee version of the plan), which Cabinet will consider on 18 December 2018, are attached. The main Local Plan document and the other appendices are available on the council’s website.

The Scrutiny Committee will meet on Thursday 13 December 2018 and make any recommendations to Cabinet for consideration at its meeting on 18 December 2018.

Cabinet’s recommendations will be circulated to all councillors on 19 December 2018.

During the course of debate on this item, Council agreed, prior to the expiry of two and a half hours, in accordance with council procedure rule 82, to suspend council procedure rule 12, which restricts the duration of a meeting to three hours, to allow Council to complete the business.

Councillor Felix Bloomfield, Cabinet member for planning, moved and Councillor Jane Murphy, Leader of the council, seconded Cabinet’s recommendations as set out below:

1.    to approve the publication version of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan and associated documents, for publication under Regulation 19 of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 as the version of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan proposed to be submitted to the Secretary of State for independent examination, subject to:

a.             the updates provided by officers to the report to Cabinet on 18 December 2018, as appended to the minutes of the Cabinet meeting held on 18 December 2018;

b.             the changes to the Local Plan text on land at Chalgrove Airfield, as appended to the minutes of the Cabinet meeting held on 18 December 2018; and

2.    to delegate authority to the head of planning, in consultation with the Cabinet member for planning, to make any necessary minor amendments and corrections to the Local Plan and its associated documents including the identification of any saved plan policies as considered appropriate prior to:

a.     publication of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan; and

b.     submission of the South Oxfordshire Local Plan to the Secretary of State for independent examination and leading up to and during the examination.

In moving Cabinet’s recommendations Councillor Bloomfield, Cabinet member for planning, reported that, since the Council’s decision on 15 May 2018, there had been a thorough assessment of all possible housing site allocations.  By undertaking this assessment, it became very clear that such large sites each have their own delivery obstacles. In response to concerns about the delivery of enough housing to be able to demonstrate a five year supply of deliverable sites, the draft plan now includes new strategic allocations around the edge of Oxford. Although these are sites that are within the Green Belt, this approach to allocations provides a more robust plan.  He stated that the updated plan accords with the changes set out in the revised National Planning Policy Framework and provided a strengthened approach to the duty to co-operate with neighbouring councils.  The plan is not just about housing but also employment, retail, the environment and supporting infrastructure and, in his view, was more likely to be compliant with the duty to cooperate than the previous publication version of the plan.

He referred to the Scrutiny Committee recommendations agreed at its meeting on 13 December for Cabinet consideration.  He emphasised that if significant amendments to the plan as proposed would delay the consultation scheduled for to commence on 7 January and impact upon the Oxfordshire Housing and Growth Deal and the milestones contained therein if the submission of the local plan  ...  view the full minutes text for item 43

To consider the head of planning’s report. 

Cabinet considered the head of planning’s report on the South Oxfordshire Local Plan Publication Version (2034). 

The report proposed Cabinet recommend to Council to approve the plan and its associated documents for publication, under Regulation 19 of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012, and for submission to the Secretary of State for independent examination.  Subject to Council’s approval, the plan would be subject to Regulation 19 consultation from 7 January 2019 for six weeks. 

The Cabinet member for planning reported that, since the Council’s decision on 15 May 2018, there had been a thorough assessment of all possible housing site allocations.  Three new housing sites had been added to the draft plan.  The sites selection background paper had been made available to councillors prior to the meeting and would be published in January.  The plan was prepared in accordance with the revised National Planning Policy Framework and provided a strengthened approach to the duty to co-operate with neighbouring councils.  It planned for housing, employment, retail and infrastructure.  Any significant amendments to the plan as proposed would impact upon the Oxfordshire Housing and Growth Deal and the milestones contained therein. 

Officers provided Cabinet with the following updates to the report:

·         The housing trajectory would be updated

·         Policy EMP1 - additional text would be added to refer to the 'distribution proposed within the strategic allocation at Grenoble Road for approximately 10 hectares to extend the Oxford Science Park’ 

·         STRAT13: Land North of Bayswater Brook - additional wording to be added to refer to either providing for all necessary highways infrastructure as set out in the infrastructure delivery plan, which was likely to include a new road access between the site and the A40/B4150/Marsh Lane junction, and either a new road link between the site and the A40 between the Thornhill Park and Ride junction and the Church Hill junction for Forest Hill, or significant upgrades to the existing A40 Northern Oxford Bypass road including at the A40/ A4142 Headington Roundabout 

·         there needed to be an update to table 5F in the local plan.  The completions and commitment figure for Crowmarsh Gifford required updating to state 570 rather than 494 homes.  As Crowmarsh had met its growth target already, this did not affect the number of homes left to plan for 

·         the Scrutiny Committee had met on 13 December and recommended that the Oxford Brookes University site at Wheatley Campus should remain in the Green Belt and should be for ‘300 homes’, not ‘at least 300 homes’ 

·         the Scrutiny Committee had also recommended the text in Chapter 5 of the draft plan being amended to more accurately reflect the existing activities at Chalgrove Airfield and the tenant’s (Martin Baker) unwillingness to negotiate with Homes England.  Suggested amended text was tabled at the Cabinet meeting 

·         in Table 7.10 to the report’s Appendix 3, the reasons for selecting Lower Elsfield/Wick Farm as a combined housing allocation site (now referred to as Bayswater Brook) were shown in the row for the Thornhill  ...  view the full minutes text for item 52