Agenda item

Mr N Whitsun-Jones, as Chairman of the South Somerset Council for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) asked the following question:-

In its 'Five Year Housing Land Supply Paper (September 2015)' the Council said as follows:

1.3. The Council recognises that the five-year housing land supply position should be updated annually; but is also mindful that the information in these reports only ever represents a ‘snap-shot’ in time. The five-year housing land supply position is volatile and constantly subject to change. Every house built, each planning permission granted, and every major change to the delivery timetable for a housing site affects the five-year housing land supply position. As such, the five-year housing land supply position will be regularly monitored and updated to ensure that significant changes in circumstances are captured and publicised.

Does the Council now have a 5 year supply of deliverable housing sites for the purposes of paragraph 49 of the National Planning Policy Framework?  If the answer is still 'No', then:

1. What, please, is the current evidence to demonstrate this lack of a 5 year housing land supply?
2. What steps has the Council taken, is taking, and will be taking to address this issue and within what definitive timescale?
3. Further, and in accordance with the Council Resolution of 17 September 2015 on the 'SSDC Five Year Land Supply', what investigations has the Project Management Board carried out to accelerate the Local Plan review process, and with what result?
4. Can the Council please post all this information on its website in an easily accessible format so that the public can be kept informed of the up to date position, with updates being made as necessary?"

Councillor Angie Singleton, as Portfolio Holder for Strategic Planning (Place Making) responded:

1.    As per the September 2015 report, it is the Council’s position that it does not have a five-year housing land supply of deliverable sites. Only four months has passed since that report was published and there is no evidence to indicate that the Council can demonstrate a five-year housing land supply.

2.    The Council continues to work with landowners, developers, agents and the community to ensure that development which is shown to be acceptable is approved without delay. This will help boost the future supply of homes in South Somerset. In addition, the Council is working with developers to agree and sign Section 106 Agreements, and other necessary approvals, so that development which has planning consent can commence and proceed as soon as possible. This is an ongoing and daily activity within the Council as it responds to the Government mandate to “significantly boost the supply of housing”. The evidence to update the five-year housing land supply position will be available after the end of the financial year (i.e. after the 31^st March 2016). A report will be presented to District Executive soon after this date, once the range of data and statistics have been analysed.

3.    In August 2015, the Council approved the latest Local Development Scheme (2015 – 2018). This sets out the agreed workload and programme of technical evidence base documents which need to be prepared in order to carry out the Early Review of the Local Plan. The timetable for this, in accordance with the instructions provided by the Local Plan Inspector in his report, are to complete the Early Review of the Local Plan by 2018.

4.    All evidence base and project management information is available within the Spatial Policy section of the Council’s website. All evidence and documentation relating to the five-year housing land supply is, on satisfactory resolution of the District Executive, also published on the Council’s website.

Mr Bud Budzynski asked if it was possible to place one or two benches to the south of the groundsmans house at the Yeovil Recreation Ground to allow those walking around the recreation ground to take a rest.

Councillor Sylvia Seal, as Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Culture said she would forward the request to the Community Health and Leisure Manager to progress.