Re: SHLAA & Exception Sites - Public forum - Planning Advisory Service (PAS)

Not really answering your question, but asking one related to the whole problem of marginalising social housing. Isn't it about time we looked at how to make exception sites deliver a better mix of housing to avoid the emerging trend of pushing 'the poor people' to the outskirts of our towns and villages? I've seen at least one applicant suggest that we don't require the percentage of affordable housing within his open market development, but allow him to deliver it on another site along with a few extra for good luck! If we allow quantity to override quality, then we are in danger of creating smaller versions of the sink estates of the past (and probably already have in some areas). With the density straightjacket gone, that saw tight packed social housing sites bolted on to well spaced rural hamlets, we now have a chance to see our villages gain the modest growth everybody tells us they need, whilst at the same time delivering good quality mixed development on what would in previous times been not just a rural exceptions, but also a social exceptions site.

We have decided not to include sites "adjoining or closely related " to rural settlements in the SHLAA as potential Rural Exceptions sites. Whilst some sites may appear to have some merit, we feel that inclusion would send the wrong message to landowners who may be given more hope than is justified as sometimes people do not fully understand the purpose of a SHLAA. In some villages a number of sites may appear suitable, but it is unlikley that all could be developed as SHLAA sites given the requirement to establish local need and given potential funding issues. Ideally RE sites should be community led, involving the Parish Council and I believe looking at a number of potential sites through a sequential approach is helpful in finding the best site. However thorough a SHLAA is, it is likley the only sites that will be considered are those proposed by landowners, it may well miss others that are better suited that local knowledge would help find.

At Hambleton we included approximately 800 sites within our initial SHLAA. These sites were essentially generated in our 'call for sites' at the start of our Allocations process - a combination of submitted sites and a general trawl of potential sites by officers informed by previous knowledge and reviews. Our intention with the SHLAA was to assess each site for allocation potential set against assessment criteria such as access, physical contraints, location within our established spatial strategy (settlement hierarchy) etc. In considering the sites for allocation, we set thresholds of an area of 0.3ha or capacity of 10 or more dwellings - thus eliminating many sites which could have the potential as rural exception sites. Sites were then assessed as being a. developable, b. deliverable and c. achieveable which informed our phasing strategy for the Allocations DPD. In terms of rural exception sites and the SHLAA, the SHLAA has certainly helped to identify potential sites which don't make the grade as far as allocations go. Our Rural Housing Enabler now uses it, amongst other things, to identify potential sites in areas of identified need and works with land owners and local parishes to bring forward suitable sites which are in line with our other adopted LDF policies (eg. Policy CP9A - Core Strategy). We haven't actually allocated any ruralexception sites in our Allocations DPD. This approach was considered at our examination into the Allocations DPD and has been accepted as reasonable by the Inspectors involved.

Some useful case studies here. I agree that it is not the role of the SHLAA to allocate exception sites, which by definition bought forward by the local community themselves. However, as with Hambleton the SHLAA has been useful in bringing to light sites that don't make the grade as a market allocation/SHLAA site but could potentially be exception sites if the community are so minded. Such sites have in the SHLAA been defined as 'red/not suitable' which I agree should increase their liklihood of progressing as exception sites by limiting hope value. As a large district that is predominantly AONB, we have identified more then half the SHLAA sites ourselves (about 300 out of 500), as in many cases they offered more sensitive and sustainable options then those that were submitted to us.