Agenda item

This report is to update Members on the Housing Delivery Test that was published in January 2021, and for Members to approve the revised Action Plan.

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) requires Councils to prepare an action plan where housing delivery has fallen below the housing requirement.

The Action Plan analyses the reasons for the under-delivery of new homes and sets out actions to improve housing delivery within the District.

This report was to update Members on the Housing Delivery Test that was published in January 2021, and for Members to approve the revised Action Plan.

The Senior Planning Officer advised that the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) required Councils to prepare an action plan where housing delivery had fallen below the housing requirement.

The Action Plan analyses the reasons for the under-delivery of new homes and sets out actions to improve housing delivery within the District.

The 2020 Housing Delivery Test Result was published by the Secretary of State in January 2021. Three Rivers scored 54% which was an improvement on the previous year of 42%. The improvement was due to larger sites being approved such as the Fairways Farm site, the Gas Works site in Rickmansworth and further dwellings delivered in South Oxhey.  As the Council were still below the 75% mark it is required to continue to:

1.         Produce a Housing Delivery Test Action Plan;

2.         Apply a 20% buffer to its 5 year housing land supply calculation; and

3.         Apply the ‘presumption in favour of sustainable development’ set out in paragraph 11 of the NPPF.

In practice nothing would be changing as the Council were already applying these measures due to the previous year’s HDT score being under 75%.  The action plan had been revised in line with the new figures with the main action to increase delivery through the Local Plan.

A Member wondered how the 54% compared to other Authorities and how we ranked nationally. The Senior Planning Officer advised that in South West Herts Dacorum had scored 89%, Hertsmere 102%, St Albans 63% and Watford 48%.  If there was a league table of scores details would be sent to the Committee.

A Member asked about the Local Housing Needs Assessment (LNHA) (2020) and who undertook this and was it part of national guidance that the categories be 1-3 bedroom dwellings/4 plus or was that something Three Rivers had commissioned.  The action plan at Paragraph 3.1.8 talked about new homes 1-3 bedroom and new homes 4 bedrooms plus but in Table 3 it did not show this historically.  The Senior Planning Officer advised it was an evidence base study undertaken by consultants as part of the Local Plan preparation and was an independent assessment.  The housing need assessment categories were taken from national guidance.

A Member asked if it was possible to do an analysis on how many homes we were providing in each category.  The Chair advised that this information was already available and from which the table information had been provided.  With regard to the houses that the Council had delivered in the past this information was also available and the Committee would be pointed to where it can be found.

POST MEETING NOTE:

At 54%, TRDC had the ninth lowest HDT measurement for 2020 nationally (joint with two other authorities). Overall, 20 authorities are at/below 54% due to several authorities having the same percentage measurement.

In respect of monitoring past delivery of 1, 2, 3 and 4+ beds, this is shown at Table 4.8 of Annual Monitoring Reports. The most recent Annual Monitoring Report (for the 2019/20 period) is downloadable at: https://www.threerivers.gov.uk/download?id=48769 .  All other Annual Monitoring Reports are published here: https://www.threerivers.gov.uk/egcl-page/annual-monitoring-report .

A Member asked if reference could made that we are compliant with the Neighbourhood Plans which had been approved in Three Rivers.  The action plan mentioned that we go down the planning in principle route for part 2 of the register and wondered if Officers could expand on that.

The Senior Planning Officer said the action plan included the action of considering considered whether it was appropriate to split the register into two parts.  Officers would consider this action later in the year and the associated risks and if it was considered appropriate to split the Brownfield Register into two parts, then this would be reported back to the Committee.

A Member asked what the process was to split the registers.  The Senior Planning Officer advised that details were set out in national guidance.  Officers would need to look at whether the amount of sites that may come forward for permission in principle would be worthwhile in terms of splitting the Brownfield Register into two parts.  In Three Rivers there was such a short supply of available brownfield land, whether or not introducing two parts was worthwhile would need to be considered.  Any report on introducing Part 2 of the Brownfield Register/permission in principle sites would need to go to the IHED Committee or if there was a policy change to P&R Committee.

A Member referred to Page 8, Table 3 of the action plan and the information provided that there was a 40% requirement for 1 bedroom Social/ Affordable Rented Housing and asked where that statistic came from.  The Senior Planning Officer said the figure had come from the Local Plan and the evidence base study which was available on the Council’s website.   The link to the study would be sent to Committee Members.

POST MEETING NOTE:

The Local Housing Needs Assessment (2020) is available to download from the following link: https://www.threerivers.gov.uk/download?id=49966 . The study is published on the New Local Plan Evidence Base webpage here: https://www.threerivers.gov.uk/egcl-page/new-local-plan-evidence-base . The Housing Mix section which assesses the needs for 1, 2, 3 and 4+ bedroom dwellings is at Chapter 6 (from page 116).

A Member referred to Paragraph 3.28 and the Implementation of Planning Permissions and Development Management Performance and highlighted a growing problem that in order to implement the permission developers were closing footways and roads, taking out parking bays and closing bus stops for a considerable period of time.  This was due to the developer designing a scheme which went up to the highways boundary.  Developers should be sensitive to residents needs when implementing planning permission and the conditions included particularly relating to the construction management plan. 

A Member said with the need for higher density on sites we could remove Permitted Development.

On being put to the Committee the recommendations as set out in the officer report were declared CARRIED by the Chair the voting being unanimous.

RESOLVED:

•           Noted the Housing Delivery Test Result for 2021;

•           Agreed the Action Plan and the series of actions that the Council will seek to implement;

•           Agreed to the publication of the Action Plan on the Council’s Housing Delivery test webpage.