Delivery

Delivery of inclusive growth and sustainable development are key priorities for the Greater Norwich Local Plan. Delivery of housing, jobs and infrastructure are interlinked and mutually supportive.

Growth offers the opportunity to strengthen Greater Norwich’s role as a key part of the national economy, with the Cambridge Norwich Tech Corridor becoming an increasingly important axis linking to two other nationally significant growth corridors, between London, Stansted and Cambridge and along the Cambridge - Milton Keynes - Oxford Arc.

The authorities will continue to work:

• through the Greater Norwich Growth Board (or any successor) to facilitate and coordinate delivery across the plan area;
• With the private sector to promote the area and to overcome constraints on housing and employment sites.

 Each of the authorities have development companies directly delivering homes and jobs. The Greater Norwich Growth Board will continue to review options for joint Special Purpose Vehicles.

Housing

The plan promotes a pro-active approach to delivery through only allocating housing sites where a reasonable prospect of delivery, taking account of policy requirements in this plan, can be evidenced.

In addition, delivery plans are required to be submitted with planning applications to guide ongoing contact with developers. Where delivery cannot be demonstrated to be in accordance with agreed delivery plans for individual sites, the authorities will, as appropriate, make use of their legal powers to bring about strategically significant development, including compulsory purchase.

This plan also provides choice and flexibility by ensuring there are enough committed sites to accommodate 22% more homes than “need”, along with a “contingency” location for growth, should they be required to offset any non-delivery.  Additional opportunities will be provided, particularly for small scale growth at villages and on small brownfield sites across Greater Norwich, through additional windfall development.

Taken together, these measures will ensure that housing needs to 2038 will be fully met.

Economic development

To promote delivery of jobs, this plan provides choice and flexibility by providing for a wide range of type and size of employment sites. These include strategic sites capable of accommodating large scale development and high growth knowledge-intensive sectors. Most key strategic sites are extensions of already successful developments. Norwich City Centre is the largest concentration of employment in Greater Norwich with potential to grow further and will be a focus of employment growth to support the delivery of housing and other development across the wider plan area.

Smaller scale and rural employment sites are less likely to be constrained by infrastructure requirements and will be supported in accessible and sustainable locations. Together, these varied sites provide for growth of both a broad based and a high value knowledge economy.

Economic development is also supported by policies that promote housing delivery, infrastructure and a high-quality environment. Other activities of the partners promote inclusive economic development, inward investment and skills.

Infrastructure

Infrastructure priorities benefit existing communities, support growth, improve connectivity and access to economic and social opportunities, and deliver sustainable and active travel choices to promote modal shift.

The Greater Norwich partners will continue to work to coordinate delivery with other providers including Highways England, Anglian Water, other transport and utilities companies, town and parish councils and local health care providers. Infrastructure will be delivered through:

• On-site and off-site provision required of development through conditions or legal agreements;
• Pooled use of the Community Infrastructure Levy⁴⁷, or any successor source of infrastructure payment;
• Maximising opportunities to access Government and other sources of funding;
• Capital investment of public bodies and utilities companies; and
• Locally led delivery vehicles.