Regulation 18 Draft Local Plan
(2)Chapter 8 – Protecting Existing Community Facilities and Providing New Facilities
8.1 The on-going provision of local services and facilities is of critical importance to the sustainability of the District's towns and villages. Proposals that would result in the loss of existing community facilities will be resisted, unless it can be demonstrated that the facility is no longer viable, there are alternative facilities to meet the local need at an equally accessible location, or an alternative local service/facility is proposed.
8.2 The settlement hierarchy ranks settlements based on various factors, such as the availability of local services and access to sustainable transport options. The settlement hierarchy aids decision making as it identifies those settlements most suitable for accommodating new homes, new jobs and investment in services, facilities and infrastructure.
8.3 Grantham and the three market towns provide a wide range of local services and facilities which serve a much wider population. Whilst the majority of these facilities are located within the town centres, communities are also served by more localised facilities such as corner shops, public houses, schools and GPs. Maintaining the role of town centres and smaller local centres within the towns plays an important role in promoting and supporting sustainable lifestyles.
8.4 The Larger Villages are the most sustainable villages in the District and as such they will be the focus for development outside of Grantham, Stamford, Bourne and The Deepings. The assessment of the larger villages took the following into consideration: Primary schools, food shops, public transport, village halls, post offices, public houses, open space, play space, doctors, police / fire, secondary schools and other businesses. The sustainability of these settlements could be undermined if services are lost or facilities significantly reduced.
8.5 Whilst not acting as service centres, the small villages and rural areas also have services and facilities that also need to be protected therefore Policy SP6 will also apply in these locations.
8.6 Community facilities are not defined in the Local Plan, although they could include: community/village halls, village shops, post offices, schools, health services, care homes, public houses, playing fields and allotments. It is not intended that this list is exhaustive, and any facility or service which enjoys wide support could be regarded as belonging to the "community". A vital community role is provided by public houses, village shops, post offices, community halls and garages.
Policy Type: Minor Changes to Policy
(7)SP6: Protecting Community Services and Facilities
Applications for the change of use of all community facilities which would result in the loss of community use will be resisted unless it is clearly demonstrated that:
- there are alternative facilities available and active in the same area which would fulfil the role of the existing use/building; and
- the existing use is no longer viable (supported by documentary evidence), and there is no realistic prospect of the premises being re-used for alternative business or community facility use.
The proposal must also demonstrate that consideration has been given to:
- the re-use of the premises for an alternative community business or facility and that effort has been made to try to secure such a re-use; and
- the potential impact closure may have on the area and its community, with regard to public use and support for both the existing and proposed use.
Policy Type: New Policy
(8)NEW POLICY 3: New Community Services and Facilities
Proposals for new community facilities will be supported, and should wherever feasible:
- Be well located to serve the intended community;
- Prioritise and promote access by walking, cycling and public transport;
Community facilities may have a local or wider catchment area, and their accessibility should be considered proportionately relative to their purpose, scale and catchment area and:
- Be physically accessible to all members of society;
- Be designed so that they are adaptable and can be easily altered to respond to future demands if necessary; and
- Where applicable be operated without detriment to local residents.
Summary of Proposed Changes
Policy SP6 has been broken down into two separate policies to provide clarity between existing community services and facilities and new community services and facilities.
A new criterion has been added to the proposed new community and facilities policy to state that proposals should be well located to serve the intended community.