To receive from Members any declarations of interest.

Councillor Jones declared a personal interest in Agenda item 6 ‘Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan’ as sites 26 and 55 were close to a personal friend.  Cllr Jones was present during this item.

The Chairman explained the procedure that would be followed during the meeting.

No petitions were received.

See minute no. E/13/115 for full details.

The report sets out the findings of the Gypsy, Traveller Accommodation Assessment 2014 (GTAA) and proposes changes to the draft Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan following the Pre-Submission Public Consultation.

RESOLVED

1.      That the Gypsy, Traveller and Showperson Accommodation Assessment 2014 conducted by ORS be endorsed.

2.      The use of a compound growth rate of 2% for future Gypsy and Traveller provision and 1.5% for Travelling Showperson provision and the consequential requirement for 131 Gypsy and Traveller pitches and 20 Travelling Showperson plots to be provided in Central Bedfordshire up to 2031, as recommended by the Sustainable Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee be approved.

3       That the allocation of Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showperson sites, as set out in Table 3 in the supplementary report, be approved for inclusion in the draft Plan, along with the recommended changes to the draft Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan attached at Appendix D to the report.

RECOMMEND to Council

1.         That the Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan be approved for the purposes of publication and submission to the Secretary of State.

2.      To delegate authority to the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Executive Member for Sustainable Communities – Strategic Planning and Economic Development, to make any minor amendments to the Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan:

          (i)      prior to Publication

          (ii)     after Publication but before Submission; and

          (iii)    during the Examination process.

The Chairman reminded Members who were also Members of the Development Management Committee of the importance of not prejudicing any planning decision that they may take part in at a later date.  Any planning application would be determined on relevant planning considerations, on its own merits.

The Executive considered a report and a supplementary report from the Executive Member for Sustainable Communities – Strategic Planning and Economic Development that set out the findings of the Gypsy, Traveller Accommodation Assessment 2014 (GTAA) and the proposed changes to the draft Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan (GTLP), following the Pre-Submission Draft Plan.  The Executive Member outlined the background to the GTLP, including the legal obligation to develop a GTLP that, when adopted, would form part of the statutory development plan for Central Bedfordshire

The Sustainable Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee had considered the draft GTLP at their meeting on 14 January 2014 and had recommended that a growth rate of 2% be used for future Gypsy and Traveller pitch provision and 1.5% for Travelling Showperson provision.  The total Gypsy and Traveller requirement recommended was 131 pitches and 20 Travelling Showperson plots in Central Bedfordshire in the period up to 2031.  The sites proposed was as follows:

Table 3

In accordance with the Council’s Scheme of Public Participation, the Chairman invited 6 speakers to address the Executive.  Members of the public raised comments and concerns, which in summary included the following:-

·           site 58 should be removed from the GTLP, but the existing Potton site should not be considered for expansion outside of the plan making process; 

·           there was concern that if the Potton site was expanded this might lead to unrest due to the possibility of having different groups of gypsies and travellers living on the same site;

·           local residents had recommended an alternative site to site 26.  The alternative site was near Bibby, this was more accessible and complied with relevant planning considerations, such as improved screening, access to facilities and less environmental impact;

·           site 16 was inappropriate due to it being located in the Green Belt; it was also close of the Barton bypass, giving cause for concern about air and noise pollution.  The residents of site 16 would also need to cross the bypass to access local facilities such as schools, public transport and shops;

·           it was felt that the representations and petition submitted by residents in Barton had not been taken into account;

·           residents living in Faldo Road would be dominated by  ...  view the full minutes text for item 115.