Statutory Context
The Town & Country Planning Act 1990, as amended by the Planning & Compensation Act 1991 and the Local Government Wales Act 1994, requires the County Council to prepare a Unitary Development Plan (UDP) for its area. However, Monmouthshire County Council is not the local planning authority for the whole of its area. The Brecon Beacons National Park Local Planning Authority exercise development plan preparation and development control functions in the northwest part of the County; namely the settlements of Cwmyoy, Govilon, Llanvihangel Crucorney, Llanthony, Gilwern, Llanelly Hill and part of Pandy, see the Proposals Map for details.
Section 54A of the Town & Country Planning Act 1990 as amended by the Planning & Compensation Act 1991 enshrines the primacy of statutory development plans and states:
“Where, in making any determination under the Planning Acts, regard is to be had to the development plan, the determination shall be made in accordance with the plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise”
In formulating the policies of the UDP the Council has to have regard to relevant guidance issued by the Welsh Assembly Government, current European, national and regional policies, the resources likely to be available, social, economic and environmental considerations and the land use / spatial elements of other Monmouthshire County Council Plans, e.g. the Local Transport Plan. Assembly advice is given in ‘Unitary Development Plans Wales’, February 2001, ‘Planning Policy Wales’, March 2002 and ‘Minerals Planning Policy Wales’, December 2000. This Guidance is supplemented by a variety of Assembly Technical Advice Notes (TANs) and Circulars. In addition the Assembly has published the ‘Wales Spatial Plan – People, Places, Futures’, (2004).
When adopted the Monmouthshire Unitary Development Plan will replace the current adopted development plan which consists of the Gwent Structure Plan 1991 - 2006 and the Monmouth Borough Local Plan 1991 - 2006.
Plan Period and Format
The UDP covers the 15-year period January 1st 1996 to January 1st 2011. The UDP is effectively a five year roll forward of the current Gwent Structure Plan and Monmouth Borough Local Plan, many of the policies of which and the greater majority of the development site allocations have been integrated into this UDP. However, as part of this process, all polices and proposals of these Plans were evaluated and reviewed in the light of recent guidance and local social, economic & environmental objectives, whilst being subjected to a sustainability appraisal before being included in the UDP.
Part I of the UDP provides a written statement of the Council’s strategic policies (shown in bold text) for the development and other use of land in the Plan area and provides a context and framework for the more detailed policies and proposals of Part II. It indicates the overall provision to be made for housing, employment and other major land uses in the Plan area as a whole, identifies broad locations for development, and areas where policies for restraint are appropriate.
Part II of the UDP consists of a written statement which provides a reasoned justification of the general policies in Part I, policies and proposals (shown in bold text) for the development of land within the Plan area, together with a reasoned justification for them, supporting information, and a Proposals Map, with many larger scale settlement insets, showing these policies and proposals on a geographical Ordnance Survey base. If there is a contradiction between the Written Statement and Proposals Map, then the provision of the former will prevail. Technical terms are defined in the Glossary, which also forms part of the UDP. Chapters in Part II of the Plan cover the following land use topics: - Sustainability Appraisal; The Environment; Design; Housing; Industry; Rural Economy; Tourism; Shopping; Movement; Conservation of the Historic Environment; Countryside; Nature Conservation; Recreation & Leisure; Community Facilities; Minerals; Waste Planning Management; and Implementation & Monitoring.
The Plan is divided into a series of chapters on an individual topic basis. However, the Plan should be read as a whole in the determination of planning applications, with many chapters providing planning policy guidance that cuts across individual topic areas.
Supplementary Planning Guidance & Background Papers
The following Supplementary Planning Guidance (SPG) and Background Papers were prepared in draft for consultation with the Deposit UDP:
Supplementary Planning Guidance
Accessibility for All
Affordable Housing
Conservation Areas
Conversion of Agricultural Buildings
Cycling
Environmental Appraisal
General Design Guidelines
LANDMAP
Listed Buildings
Recreation and Open Space
Trees
Background Papers
Population Background Paper
Retail Background Paper
The SPG is based upon policies in the UDP and/or the Adopted Gwent Structure & Monmouth Borough Local Plans and either adds more detailed development control policy on how the Council would like to see development occur or provides good practice on how the aims and objectives of these plan policies and proposals can be met. The Council will consider all comments received on the Draft SPG and make any necessary amendments before resolving to adopt it as SPG. The Draft SPGs on Affordable Housing and Recreation and Open Space are expected to be adopted at a similar time as the UDP. It is planned to reconsult on the Conservation Areas, Conversion of Agricultural Buildings and Listed Buildings SPG’s and update Background Papers when necessary. Further Draft SPG will be issued for consultation in due course on Advertisements, Archaeology, Conservation Area Appraisals, Selection and Designation of Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation, Shopfront Design and Traffic Reduction. The Local Biodiversity Action Plan was adopted in July 2005. The Council is to consider adopting the Wye Valley AONB Management Plan and Severn Estuary Strategy as SPG. Where appropriate draft development briefs will be prepared for adoption as SPG for the new housing and employment allocations made in the plan. In addition, the existing briefs for those sites that are being carried forward from the adopted Local Plan will be reviewed to ensure that they are in line with current guidance.
Function
The UDP has the following four main functions:
(a) to make proposals for the development or use of land and to allocate land for specific purposes, including land for about 5,000 dwellings and 90 hectares of land for industry (details of these figures are given in the Housing and Industry chapters);
(b) to set out the Council's strategy, aims, objectives and policies in the determination planning applications;
(c) to provide a detailed basis for the co-ordination and direction of public and private sector investment in infrastructure and development proposals; and
(d) to facilitate informed public debate about where and how development should be accommodated by giving the community the opportunity to participate in planning choices.
Previous Publicity and Public Participation
The Council published the Draft UDP in January 1999 for a twelve-week public participation period. During this time manned public exhibitions were held in every Town and Community Council area in the UDP area; and a total of 2,517 people attended. Meetings / Seminars were also held to explain the UDP proposals to the majority of the Town and Community Councils and economic, social, environmental and disabled people’s interest groups. A total of 441 organisations and individuals made representations on the Draft UDP resulting in a total of 1,268 comments, which were considered by the Planning, Economic Development and Tourism Committee on 29th July 2000 before agreeing the Deposit UDP.
The UDP proposals were placed ‘on deposit’ for a 12 week period, from Monday 17th September until Friday 5th December 2001. During this time 308 organisations and individuals submitted ‘duly made’ representations resulting in over 1,800 formal written objections and supporting representations. Full Council considered these representations on Thursday 6th November 2003 before agreeing the associated pre-inquiry proposed changes to the Deposit UDP.
The Proposed Pre-Inquiry Changes were placed on deposit for an 8 week period between Monday 1st December 2003 and Friday 23rd January 2004. During this time 116 organisations and individuals submitted further ‘duly made’ representations resulting in over 650 formal written objections and supporting representations. Full Council considered these representations on Thursday 27th May 2004.
Following this period, the Council asked the Welsh Assembly Government to appoint an independent Inspector to hold a public inquiry on the Council’s behalf to consider ‘duly made’ objections to both the Deposit UDP and the Pre-Inquiry Changes. A public inquiry was held between 14th September 2004 and the 16th March 2005.
The Council considered the Inspector’s Report and decided whether to accept its recommendations. The Council gave formal notice of its decisions and published its proposed modifications to the Deposit UDP, allowing a six-week period for objection to them between Monday 6th February 2006 and Friday 17th March 2006. During this time 37 organisations and individuals submitted further ‘duly made’ representations resulting in some 200 formal written objections and supporting representations. Full Council considered these representations on Thursday 6th April 2006 and resolved to issue its Notice of Intention to adopt the Plan. Finally, on Thursday 25th May 2006 Full Council resolved to issue its Notice of Adoption of the Plan.
Procedural advice on UDP preparation is given in the Town & Country Planning (Development Plan) Regulations 1991 (as amended). The National Assembly have produced a document entitled “Unitary Development Plans - A Guide to Procedures” - February 2001, which aims to help people follows UDP preparation procedures, especially the public local inquiry. Copies of the Guide are available for reference at all County Council Offices and Libraries during normal opening times or it can be viewed / downloaded from the National Assembly Website:
http://www.wales.gov.uk/subiplanning/content/devplans/udpguide-e.pdf
Monmouthshire’s Vision and Policy Aims
As part of Monmouthshire’s Community Plan preparation process the following vision and policy aims have been developed:
“Our vision for Monmouthshire is to provide an improved quality of life for all to enjoy in the future.”
The vision is based around our six policy aims. The policy aims have been prepared under three themes of ‘People’, ‘Communities’ and ‘Environment’. We will need to make progress in each of these areas.
A place where PEOPLE are healthy, feel well and find fulfilment through life long learning opportunities.
Health and Well-being - Our aim is to promote the health and well-being of the people of Monmouthshire. We will work to ensure that people have good quality and safe places in which to live, work and relax and that everyone has a decent standard of living. We will strive for better standards of health for everyone and to ensure freedom from all forms of abuse and exploitation. We will celebrate Monmouthshire’s heritage and encourage participation in leisure and recreational activities.
Lifelong Learning - Our aim is to develop educational and cultural opportunities so that everybody, whatever their age, can reach their full potential. We will work to give every child and young person the best start in education and provide formal and informal learning opportunities for all adults. We will promote public use of information and communication technology and provide specialist, learning support to those who need it.
A place where COMMUNITIES have a strong voice, are engaged in shaping their futures, and have local services and facilities.
Community Confidence - Our aim is to lead and assist our communities to become more confident and self-supporting and to develop ways of meeting the diverse range of individual needs within Monmouthshire. We will build relationships through effective communication and consultation with individuals, communities and groups. We will improve the flow of information and listen to people’s needs so that good decisions can be reached for the benefit of our communities. We will work in partnership to plan and deliver successful results to meet local needs. We will work to address differing needs within communities, and to enable people to participate in their communities, and enjoy the full rights and responsibilities of citizenship. We will lead by example, ensuring integrity, accountability and openness in the way we conduct our business and the delivery of services.
Local Access - Our aim is to stimulate the development of high quality and accessible facilities and services. We will work with other organisations to make Monmouthshire’s towns and villages, places where people want to live, work and visit. We will strive to improve access to public services, and publish and work to clear standards.
A place where the ENVIRONMENT is safeguarded and improved and the local economy is sensitively developed.
Local Economic Development - Our aim is to encourage prosperity and activity for all our residents. We will always seek to balance the need for development with the needs of the environment and communities. We will make sure that any development is sustainable - that it safeguards the interests of our own generation as well as those of future generations. We will work to create a range of employment, education and training opportunities in the areas, and identify long-term social and economic opportunities for the people of Monmouthshire.
A Better Environment - Our aim is to ensure that people and communities enjoy a good quality of life, now and in the future by protecting, maintaining and using responsibly the natural assets and resources of the area. We will work to help individuals, communities and organisations to understand how what we do affects our surroundings, and to take responsibility for looking after our environment. We will work with others to help create a clean, green and sustainable environment in Monmouthshire.