Policy 2 Sustainable Communities

Page 64

Modification

Amend Policy 2 to read:

POLICY 2 - SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES (underlined in original)

Development must be high quality, contributing to delivering inclusive growth in mixed, resilient and sustainable communities, to enhancing the environment, and to mitigating and adapting to climate change, assisting in meeting national greenhouse gas emissions targets⁷⁶. To achieve this, development proposals are required, as appropriate, to To contribute to the achievement of sustainable communities, development proposals should, where relevant, address the following matters:

1. 1. Ensure safe, and convenient and sustainable access for all, including by non-car modes, to on-site and local services and facilities including such as schools, health care, shops, recreation/ leisure/community/faith facilities and libraries; encourage walking, cycling and public transport through the layout of development; and integrate parking to avoid it dominating the streetscape or being a hazard.
    
2. 2. Make provision for delivery of new and changing technologies (including accommodating technology-based services such as broadband, fibre optic networks, telecommunications, construction methods and electric vehicles); charging.
    
3. 3. Contribute Create and contribute to multi-functional green infrastructure links, whether provided on-site or off-site, including through landscaping, street trees and other tree planting, to make best use of site characteristics and integrate into the surroundings, having regard to relevant taking account of local green infrastructure strategies and delivery plans;.
    
4. 4. Make efficient use of land with densities dependent on site characteristics, with higher densities and car free housing in the most sustainably accessible locations in Norwich. Indicative minimum net densities are 25 dwellings per hectare across the plan area and 40 in Norwich⁷⁷, with development densities taking account of accessibility and local character consideration. For residential development, it is expected that there will be minimum net densities of 40 dwellings per hectare in Norwich and 25 dwellings per hectare elsewhere in the Plan area. Higher densities are encouraged in and close to defined district and town centres, and in particular in the city centre. In the most accessible locations in Norwich, regard should be given to providing low or car-free housing in accordance with Policy DM32 of the Norwich Development Management Policies Local Plan.
    
5. 5. Respect, protect and enhance local character and aesthetic quality (including landscape, townscape, and the historic environment), taking account of landscape or historic character assessments, design guides and codes, and maintain strategic gaps and landscape settings, including river valleys, undeveloped approaches and the character and setting of the Broads;
    
6. 6. Provide safe and suitable access for all users, manage travel demand and promote public transport and active travel within a clearly legible public realm including public art where appropriate, with layouts that encourage walking and cycling, whilst also integrating parking in a manner that does not dominate the streetscape and providing a high standard of amenity through planting and the careful choice of materials;
    
7. 5. Create beautiful, well-designed places and buildings which respect the character of the local area and seek to enhance it through appropriate design, having regard to any local design guidance (including design codes).
    
8. 7. Create inclusive, resilient and safe communities in which people of all ages have good access to services and local job opportunities, can interact socially, be independent and have the opportunity for healthy and active lifestyles;
    
9. 6. Promote an inclusive, resilient and safe community through the provision of facilities and services commensurate with the scale and type of the development; and the design and layout of development reflecting best practice to deter crime.
    
10. 8. Be resource efficient, support sustainable waste management, reduce overheating, protect air quality, minimise pollution and take account of ground conditions;
     
11. 7. Avoid risks of unacceptable levels of soil, air, water and noise pollution and/or land instability.
     
12. 8. Avoid locating inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding by applying the sequential and exceptions tests and ensuring that flood risk is not increased elsewhere. Sustainable drainage systems should be incorporated unless there is clear evidence that this would be inappropriate.
     
13. 9. Support efficient water management. Flood risk should be minimised, including avoiding inappropriate development in areas at significant risk of flooding, reducing the causes and impacts of flooding, supporting a catchment approach to water management and using sustainable drainage. Development must protect water quality, both surface and groundwater, and be water efficient. To achieve the latter

    Ensure a high level of water efficiency. To achieve this: :

    1. a. (i) Housing development will meet the Building Regulations part G (amended 2016) water efficiency higher optional standard, or any equivalent successor;
    2. b. (ii) Non-housing development will meet the BREEAM "Very Good" water efficiency standard, or any equivalent successor;.

    If the potential to set more demanding standards locally is established by the Government, the highest potential standard will be applied in Greater Norwich.

     
14. 10. Minimise energy demand through the design and orientation of development and maximise the use of sustainable energy, local energy networks and battery storage to assist growth delivery. This will include:
    1. c. All new development will provide a 19% reduction against Part L of the 2013 Building Regulations (amended 2016);
    2. d. Appropriate non-housing development of 500 square metres or above will meet the BREEAM "Very Good" energy efficiency standard, or any equivalent successor;

       except where a lower provision is justified because the requirement would make the development unviable.

15. 10. Ensure a low level of energy consumption. To achieve this development proposals should:
    1. i. Take account of landform, layout, building orientation, massing and landscaping to minimise energy consumption and the risk of overheating;
    2. ii. Provide for the use of sustainable energy, local energy networks and battery storage where appropriate.
        

Proposals for free standing decentralised, renewable and/or low carbon energy networks, except for wind energy schemes, will be supported subject to the acceptability of wider impacts.

Wind energy schemes will be supported where the proposal is in a suitable area as identified in a neighbourhood plan or other local plan documents oran area identified as suitable for wind energy development in the Development Plan i.e. within a Neighbourhood Plan or Development Plan Document; or in a Supplementary Planning Document, and consultation has been undertaken to identify planning impacts, these have been addressed, and the scheme has been demonstrated to have the support of the local community.

To assist this broad-based approach:

1. Planning applications for major developments will be required to be accompanied by a Sustainability Statement (including Health Impact Assessments as appropriate)⁷⁸ showing how development will support the above requirements, with housing will address the above matters that are relevant to the proposal. Housing development taking should take account of the National Design Guide (and any subsequent related publications) and optionally making use of tools such as Building for a Healthy Life (or any successor). Other developments will meet the policy requirements as appropriate dependent on site characteristics and proposed uses. Flood risk assessments will be provided separately as required by Government guidance in accordance with the NPPF.
2. Master-planning using a recognised community engagement process, as agreed with the local planning authority, will be encouraged on larger sites and particularly for proposed developments of 200 dwellings or 20,000 square metres plus.
3. Delivery plans are required with planning applications for 100 dwellings plus to set out the expected timing of the delivery of developments. Where delivery cannot be demonstrated to be in accordance with agreed delivery plans for individual sites, the authorities may make use, where necessary, of their legal powers to bring about strategically significant development, including compulsory purchase. In considering the use of such powers regard will be had to any change of circumstances that might affect delivery, particularly economic factors, and the Delivery Plan will need to be updated accordingly.
   
   iv. Potential applicants for planning permission for major developments are advised to contact Anglian Water Services in the early stages of producing a development scheme in order to ensure that there is adequate capacity, or capacity can be made available, in the wastewater network. The provision of capacity could affect the timing of development. In locations where there are known to be capacity issues the local authority will expect this engagement to have taken place and for it to be demonstrated that adequate capacity will be available to serve the development (see Appendix 1 Infrastructure Requirements for currently known locations with capacity issues).
    

Consequential change:

Under the section 'To assist this broad-based approach delete section (iv). and move to become a new paragraph of supporting text to follow current paragraph 200 and renumber as appropriate.

Reasons

To ensure the plan is effective, justified and consistent with national policy.