Issue - meetings

Report of the Chief Planning Officer

The Cabinet considered the report of the Chief Planning Officer that sought approval for an update to Sefton Council’s Statement of Community Involvement and for the adoption of an Information Note which explains and enables recreational pressure (as a consequence of new housing developments) to be adequately addressed in the consideration of planning applications.

DECISION MADE: That:

(1)            the updated Statement of Community Involvement be adopted; and

(2)            the Information Note on ‘Housing Developments and Recreation Pressure’ as policy be approved.

Reasons for the Decisions:

To ensure that developers have access to the most up-to-date information about the Council’s consultation requirements both for new developments which are the subject of planning applications and during the preparation of planning policy documents.

The Habitats Regulations Assessment of the Sefton Local Plan identified that the cumulative impact of recreational pressure from all the residential development proposed in the Local Plan would be likely to have a significant effect on the designated Natura 2000 sites. The Council adopted the Sefton Coast Plan on 21^st September 2017 (Minute 46), which recommended the preparation of the Visitor Management Strategy as part of its delivery plan. Consultants have been engaged by the Combined Authority to undertake this work. This Information Note seeks to address this requirement on an interim basis until such time as the Visitor Management Strategy for the Liverpool City Region is prepared.

Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:

If the Statement of Community Involvement had not been updated, there would be a danger of not complying with Regulations and best practice when notifying the local community on planning applications and policy documents. The Council would also be continuing to use old consultation strategies which no longer meet current requirements and are wasteful of resources.

Likewise, if the Council had not produced the Information Note to establish a threshold, this would have meant that the Council would have failed to take account of cumulative visitor pressure, given the Visitor Management Strategy is not yet in place. This could put the Council at risk of not meeting its legal Habitats Regulations Assessment obligations and increase the risk of legal challenge to planning decisions.