In order to 'fix' our 5 year housing land supply the District Council
prepared an initial APS at the end of last year, but without engaging
with PINS as set out in the PPG. We are contemplating going doing the
formal route but am concerned that PINS are not geared up for it. I
have sought a view from PINS about whether they have the resources to
undertake this work but have yet to have a reply - is or has any other
local planning authority contemplated this route and got anywhere with
PINS ?
On a related matter it has been suggested that the following Para
from the NPPG and in particular the line I have highlighted in bold
suggests that you can only prepare one if you've got a five year
supply agreed at an EIP and then one prepared annually thereafter - in
our case our EIP was in May 2017, and we adopted in Dec 2017. I would
welcome views on whether, because we had not prepared an APS in
accordance with the guidance in April 2018 (pre-NPPG advice) we are
excluded from preparing one for 2019 because of the advice below. To
me it seems a bit perverse that we can't !
How can local authorities demonstrate that they have a
confirmed 5 year land supply as part of the plan examination?
The National Planning Policy Framework gives local planning
authorities the opportunity to demonstrate a confirmed 5 year supply
of specific deliverable housing sites.
This needs to be done initially through the plan examination
process, and may then be refreshed annually following adoption
(provided the plan
remains up to date), through the preparation of an Annual
Position Statement.
In both these circumstances, it will only be possible to
establish a confirmed 5 year supply if an appropriate buffer has been
applied and the authority’s assessment of its supply has been tested
sufficiently through the examination or Annual Position Statement processes.
