Adoption of the revised Mineral and Waste Local Development Scheme which sets out the work programme and timescale for the Council’s statutory local plan making responsibilities as planning authority for minerals and waste management development.
Reason for the decision
Section 15 of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 requires the County Council, as the minerals and waste planning authority for Kent, to maintain a scheme, known as the Local Development Scheme. This Scheme sets out the timetable for preparing and revising the Council’s development plan documents. The development plan documents are more commonly referred to as Local Plans and set new policy that affects more than one electoral division.
Background
The County Council’s current Local Development Scheme, which was adopted in February 2019 includes a timetable for preparing the Kent Mineral Sites Plan and completing an Early Partial Review of the Kent Minerals and Waste Local Plan 2013-30. Work on the Mineral Sites Plan and Early Partial Review has now been completed.
The Kent Minerals and Waste Local Plan 2013-30 (KMWLP) was adopted in July 2016 and the Council is statutorily required to review adopted planning policy at least every five years. The elements of the plan recently updated by the Early Partial Review will not require review until 2025.
An updated Local Development Scheme, to be known as the Kent Minerals and Waste Development Scheme 2021, is therefore required to set out the timetable for the review of the Kent Minerals and Waste Local Plan 2013-30.
It is proposed that the scheme also be updated to include details of the timetable for completing the following:
§ Updates to the Kent Minerals and Waste Safeguarding Supplementary
Planning Document (SPD); and,
§ review and update of the Council’s Statement of Community Involvement (SCI).
How the proposed decision meets the objectives of ‘Increasing Opportunities,
Improving Outcomes: Kent County Council’s Strategic Statement (2015-2020)’
The KMWLP and associated policy documents support the County Council’s corporate policies contained within the Council’s Strategic Statement ‘Increasing Opportunities, Improving Outcomes – Kent County Council’s Strategic Statement 2015-2020 and national planning policy requirements.
Kent’s mineral and waste planning policies support and facilitate sustainable growth in Kent’s economy and support the creation of a high-quality built environment, with accessible local services that reflect the community’s needs and support its health, social and cultural well-being.
Decision type: Key
Reason Key: Affects more than two Electoral Divisions;
Decision status: Recommendations Approved
Division affected: (All Division);
Notice of proposed decision first published: 04/01/2021
Decision due: Not before 2nd Feb 2021 by Cabinet Member for Environment
Reason: To enable the proposed decision to be published on the FED for 28 days
Lead member: Cabinet Member for Environment
Lead director: Stephanie Holt-Castle
Department: Growth, Environment & Transport
Contact: Sharon Thompson, Head of Planning Applications Group 03000 413468 Email: sharon.thompson@kent.gov.uk Tel: 01622 696131.
Consultees
Plan documents identified in the Local
Development Scheme will be subject to public consultation in line
with statutory requirements and the Council’s Statement of
Community Involvement.
All Members will be consulted at each stage of the preparation of
the Plan documents.
Report to Environment and Transport Cabinet Committee January
2018
Financial implications: The costs of reviewing the KMWLP and updating the Safeguarding SPD and the SCI are met from the Environment, Planning and Enforcement Division’s budget.
Legal implications: The County Council has a legal obligation under the Town and Country Planning Acts to prepare and maintain a statutory Development Plan for planning purposes and to set out the timescale for this work in a Local Development Scheme. The County Council is also required by national planning policy to ensure that local plans promote sustainable minerals and waste development. The review of the KMWLP will play an important role in ensuring that minerals and waste development in Kent remains in line with national planning policy. There is an expectation by the Minister for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) that all planning authorities have an up to date local plan and Statement of Community Involvement in place. Without an up to date adopted plan, there is a risk that MHCLG will step in as the plan making authority, reducing local accountability
Equalities implications: Equalities implications As the Kent Minerals and Waste Development Scheme is essentially a programme for updating planning policy (and associated documentation) it is considered that an Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) is not required. Separate EQIA has, and will be, undertaken which considers the equalities implications of updated planning policy and guidance of documents prepared in accordance with the Scheme Data Protection implications - A Data Protection Impact Assessment is not required.