SUMMARY/PURPOSE
1.
To update members on the South East Plan and its
relationship with the Island Plan
BACKGROUND
2.
The Government is
committed to developing strong, vibrant and sustainable communities and to
promoting community cohesion in both rural urban and rural areas. The Delivery of the Sustainable community’s
agenda is through the new Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 200431.
3.
Planning Policy
Statement 11: Regional Spatial Strategies32 sets out the
Government’s national policies on the role and importance of regional planning. The 2004 Act makes the Regional Spatial
Strategy (the South East Plan) statutory and our Island Plan documents will
need to be in conformity with it.
4.
The initial consultation
draft33 of the South East Plan (www.southeast-ra.gov.uk/southeastplan)
was produced earlier this year, and consultation finished in April 2005.
5.
The Assembly have submitted
their first part of the South East Plan to Government. The remaining elements
of the Plan will be submitted to Government in March 2006, by which time
outstanding work on district housing numbers, sub-regions and other issues will
have been completed.
6.
The Part 1 submission consists of the Core
Document, excluding the sub-regional sections. The Final Sustainability
Appraisal Report, the Implementation Plan and Monitoring Report, and the
Statement of Public Participation will all form part of the later submission,
together with the sub-regional sections.
7.
The IW secured Special Policy Area status, as part of
the sub-regional discussions, which enabled specific policies for the Island to
be included within the SE Plan. The
policies proposed will allow the IW to progress the new Local Development
Framework (Island Plan) to deliver the aims and objectives of
both the Community Strategy and the Council’s Corporate Plan, as well as new
LAA priorities and 2020 Vision. The Island
Plan will also need to take into account other regional and local
strategies, with particular emphasis on the areas of economic development, infrastructure
provision and housing.
8.
The IW special area policies provide a framework to
allow for economic led regeneration, and education, training, skills,
employment, and tourism development to provide an aspirational business sector
and workforce, with associated development in housing to provide for an
adequate supply of homes for people on the Island.
9.
The Island Plan will be the
route through which regeneration will be delivered at the local level. The programme of work for the Island Plan
for the next three years has been agreed with GOSE and is in the Local
Development Scheme34 (LDS) (www.iwight.com/islandplan/local_development_scheme).
10.
If the Island Plan is to be a successful
strategy, it is clear than any future development will be predicated on the
provision of infrastructure prior to developments coming forward. This is particularly relevant on the Island
as the condition of the road network is in a very poor state of repair. The planned improvements through the
Highways PFI have yet to receive government funding and as a result, the
release of housing allocations will need to be phased to match the pace of this
important investment. This will subsequently
be supported by a potential bid for an integrated transport system with
partners operating on the Island and leading to and from it.
11.
The Council is also currently investigation the
possibility of establishing an Isle of Wight Investment Company, with regional
partners, to ensure that the appropriate land and premises are available to
meet and develop these higher regeneration standards and aspirations.
12.
The Council will need to work closely with the Housing
Associations to maximise the potential for investment from the Housing
Corporation to address the need for additional homes. The scale of this problem is growing and is due in part to the Island’s
low waged economy, coupled with house price inflation. Work on creating a better understanding of the
relationship between housing supply and housing market, together with the
difference between staircased housing and rented social housing will be
progressed through the Pan Steering Group.