Local Plan 2040 Draft Plan - Strategy options and draft policies consultation

Catesby Estates object to the proposed plan period for the Local Plan Review.

2045 is the appropriate end period for the Local Plan Review. A plan period to 2040 would only represent an additional 10 years beyond the current adopted Local Plan period to 2030. This would be well below the minimum 15-year period required by the NPPF.
The Local Plan 2030 Inspectors Report identified the need for the Local Plan Review to respond appropriately to longer term requirements, in particular Arc growth ambitions. With the publication of the Government’s July 2021 consultation on the Spatial Framework for the Oxford-Cambridge Arc these ambitions are now starting to be established.

A plan period to 2045 is therefore considered fully justified. Planning for any less than this period will fail to represent positive planning.

While the Government’s July 2021 consultation on the Spatial Framework for the Oxford-Cambridge Arc does not grapple directly with the issue of overall housing need, the National Infrastructure Commission has previously recommended building one million homes in the Arc by 2050 and said: “A chronic undersupply of homes could jeopardise growth, limit access to labour and put prosperity [of the Arc] at risk.”

The deferment of housing requirements to LPAs via the standard method risks resulting in the Arc failing to fulfil its clear potential to accommodate housing in a strong economic region that benefits from new and improved infrastructure. Catesby Estates therefore object to the intention to establish a level of housing need for the Local Plan Review linked to the standard method, with no uplift.

Considering the Government ambitions for the Arc it is essential that Bedford establishes a bold housing requirement higher than the standard method. Planning solely for the standard method requirement will fail to represent positive planning and will lead to negative consequences in terms of lower economic growth, increased commuting, and worsening affordability.

Catesby Estates object to the emerging preferred spatial options (2a-d) which all fail to identify any growth in the sustainable rural service centres.

It is essential that the chosen spatial strategy directs additional growth to the rural service centres to meet the requirements of the NPPF (in particular Paragraph 79) which states that “planning policies should identify opportunities for villages to grow and thrive, especially where this will support local services”. It is therefore essential that the spatial strategy established for the Local Plan Review realises the full growth potential of the rural villages. The benefit of such a growth strategy will be that facilities and services (such as local bus services, retail and schools) and the overall sustainability of these settlements will be maintained and enhanced.

New settlement proposals will have infrastructure, delivery and viability challenges meaning they are unlikely to deliver new housing particularly quickly. In contrast, the Borough benefits from existing sustainable rural service centres with services and facilities which can accommodate appropriate levels of new housing much faster.

A proportion of future housing growth should therefore be directed to the rural service centres. The Local Plan 2030 identified a requirement of 25-50 additional homes for each of the rural service centres. Neighbourhood Plans for some of the rural service centres have only accommodated the lowest end of this requirement i.e. 25 homes. The identified growth potential of the rural service centres is therefore still to be fully achieved.

To help support local services the chosen spatial strategy for the Local Plan Review should incorporate the development of a minimum of 50 dwellings in each of the rural service centres. This would provide clear guidance for future reviews of the Neighbourhood Plans currently in place.