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Representation ID: 29815

Received: 23/03/2021

Respondent: Addingham Parish Council

The Council also notes the Plan’s recognition that Addingham is heavily constrained by Green Belt with limited deliverable brownfield and non-Green Belt growth options available or identified (para.5.15.23). The draft Plan suggests that in these circumstances, housing growth should be delivered through a mix of committed sites that are either under construction or which have planning permission but have not yet started, as well as sites to be allocated in the Local Plan. The draft Plan is only able to identify 2 small sites which have been previously developed, one of which is of high environmental value for biodiversity, and one greenfield site within the settlement.
This leaves by far the major proportion of the targeted housing allocation proposed for sites which could only be made available as a result of Green Belt releases.

Not only is this not consistent with our adopted Neighbourhood Plan, it is clearly inconsistent with the draft Plan’s strategic policy as well. To accord with the government’s planning guidance in NPPF, Green Belt should only be released if this is justified by exceptional circumstances. As the draft Plan stands, policies SP5 and SP8 do not adequately explain or quantify any exceptional circumstances, other than by subjective narrative statement, to justify these releases in this location, especially given the comments made above (Q.116) in relation to the distribution strategy.
Where evidence is provided, it would seem that the development of Green Belt sites in this settlement area is not consistent with local housing need analysis, as this seems to suggest requirements for affordable housing and housing suitable for an older demographic; the release of relatively large new-build greenfield sites will favour the provision of commercial family-sized units.

Addingham’s adopted Neighbourhood Plan reflects the views of the local electorate, with fully 94% voting in its favour in the referendum held in 2019. In terms of new housing development, the Neighbourhood Plan policies clearly recognise the importance of the village’s protected status as a Conservation Area, in which its setting, encircled by and containing its Green Belt and open spaces, contributes substantially to the quality of the local area’s landscape and views. Throughout the period of the Neighbourhood Plan’s development, residents overwhelmingly favoured the use of brownfield sites and small infill sites as opposed to the use of larger sites, especially those involving release of Green Belt.