Object

Representation ID: 6625

Received: 14/09/2021

Respondent: Taylor Wimpey

Agent: Taylor Wimpey

The Draft Strategy Options were prepared ahead of the publication of the revised NPPF in July 2021, which introduced the requirement at Paragraph 22 for Local Plans which include new settlements or significant extensions to towns/villages, to be set within a vision which looks at least 30 years ahead. As the current aim is to plan to 2040, this requirement will not currently be met.
This policy requirement will apply to the Bedford Borough Local Plan review, given the options presented and it is therefore likely that the Council will need to undertake additional work to establish a longer-term vision within which the policies for the Local Plan 2040 can be set.
As is discussed in response to other aspects of the plan, given the constraints to development around the immediate edge of Bedford, combined with the level of development that will need to be accommodated in the Borough, the Council are rightly giving due consideration to a new settlement as part of the development strategy. This is likely to be combined with significant growth in the A421 corridor and around the southern stations. Given the key role that this corridor to the south of Bedford up to the A1 in the east will play in the period to 2040 and beyond, it is suggested that further visioning work may need to be undertaken specifically for this area to meet the requirements of the NPPF.
The revised Denybrook Vision Document accompanying these representations sets out the vision for delivery of the Denybrook proposal both up to and beyond the current plan review period of 2040. The vision is then underpinned in highway and access terms by the accompanying technical representations which sets out the approach to delivery up to and beyond the currently proposed Local Plan Review period to 2040.