Agenda and decisions

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on the 24 September 2019.

Chair of Audit and Accounts Committee

Lead Member for Planning and Sustainable Regeneration

Salford City Council - Record of Decision (CABINET)

I, Paula Boshell, Statutory Deputy City Mayor, in consultation with the Cabinet and in exercise of the powers contained within the City Council constitution do hereby adopt the Refreshed 2015 Planning Obligations Supplementary Planning Document.

The Reasons are:

Since the 2015 Planning Obligations Supplementary Planning Document was adopted there have been changes to national policy, guidance and legislation, and also evidence of a general improvement in the viability of new development in the City. Therefore a minor refresh of the 2015 Adopted SPD has been undertaken.

Options considered and rejected were:

The city council consulted on a draft Planning Obligations SPD between January and March 2019 which represented a comprehensive update to the approach in the 2015 version, including the introduction of new policies and also formulaic approaches to the calculation of obligations.

However, in September 2019 the government updated planning practice guidance on planning obligations to state that introducing new formulaic approaches should not be done through new SPDs; such requirements have to instead be set through local plans and independently examined as part of this process. As a result a minor refresh of the 2015 adopted SPD has instead been undertaken that does not involve changing existing formulas or introducing new ones, or changing the overall approach.

Assessment of Risk is low to medium given that the city council has not proceeded with a comprehensive review of the 2015 SPD, given this would be contrary to the government’s planning practice guidance. Notwithstanding this, the SPD could be challenged either by way of judicial review of the decision to adopt the SPD, or by way of an appeal against a refusal of planning permission on a failure to meet the requirements of the SPD.

The source of funding is existing revenue budget.

Legal Advice obtained from: Stephanie Hall, Principal Solicitor, Shared Legal Service, and reflected in the Cabinet report.

Finance Advice obtained from: Martin Anglesey, Finance Officer, and reflected in the Cabinet report.

Procurement Advice obtained: Not applicable

The following documents have been used to assist the decision process:

§  Report to Cabinet on 26 November 2019: Adoption of the Refreshed 2015 Planning Obligations SPD

§  Consultation statement

§  Community impact assessment document

Contact Officer: Matt Doherty        Tel No: 0161 793 2304

FOR DEMOCRATIC SERVICES USE ONLY

*           This decision was published on 26 November 2019.

*           This decision will come in force at 4.00 p.m. 3 December 2019                      unless it is called-in in accordance with the Decision Making Process Rules.

Lead Member for Planning and Sustainable Regeneration

Salford City Council - Record of Decision (CABINET)

I, Paula Boshell, Statutory Deputy City Mayor, in consultation with the Cabinet and in exercise of the powers contained within the City Council constitution do hereby note the Review of the Statement of Community Involvement (SCI), approve the intention to update the SCI at a later agreed date and also note that the city council’s website will be updated accordingly. 

The Reasons are:

Under current legislation the city council must review its SCI at least once every 5 years to ensure its content remains relevant.  There have been a number of changes since the SCI was adopted including legislative changes, revisions to regulations, updates to national policy and guidance and an increase in use of digital technology, and given these changes the SCI should be updated.  However given the current focus of resources on the Local Plan and the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework (GMSF) processes, the updating of the SCI should not commence until the Local Plan has progressed further. 

Options considered and rejected were:

That the SCI is updated following approval of the Review.  However if it was to be updated at the current time there is a risk that it could create some confusion as to how it relates to the existing Local Plan process.  It would also reduce resources available to focus on the Local Plan and the GMSF processes.

Assessment of Risk: is low as although there have been changes to national and regional policy the current SCI is not inconsistent with national policy and it is still possible to understand the city council’s approach to involving people in the planning process until such time as resources are available and the SCI is updated.

The source of funding: Not applicable.

Legal Advice supplied by the Shared Legal Service (SLS) and reflected in the Cabinet report.

Finance Advice obtained from: Martin Anglesey, Finance Officer, and reflected in the Cabinet report.

Procurement Advice obtained: Not applicable

The following documents have been used to assist the decision process: None.

Contact Officer: Amelia Lucas       Tel No: 0161 793 3287

FOR DEMOCRATIC SERVICES USE ONLY

*           This decision was published on 26 November 2019.

*           This decision will come in force at 4.00 p.m. on 3 December 2019 unless it is called-in in accordance with the Decision Making Process Rules.