On Thursday 4 July, along with the General Election, residents of Sutton will have the opportunity to vote on the new (replacement) Sutton Neighbourhood Plan. This new and updated plan is intended to replace the existing plan which was approved in a referendum held on Thursday 2 May 2019. It develops upon the previous Neighbourhood Plan, adding new and updated policies, a Design Code and Housing Needs Assessment.

Work on the first Sutton Neighbourhood Plan started in 2014 and this post A Neighbourhood Plan for Sutton provided a introduction to what a Neighbourhood Plan is and why the Parish Council agreed to create one for Sutton. A Neighbourhood Plan is an important planning document enabling villagers to determine how their village develops, determining where and what kind of development should be allowed, the infrastructure to support it and protecting valuable historic and natural assets. Of course there are plenty of planning rules and regulations that must also be followed.

The existing Neighbourhood Plan has meant that when Vistry (Linden Homes) applied for planning permission for the second phase of their development to the north of the village they needed to take the plan polices into account. The plan enabled them to apply build an additional 178 homes to take the total development to 250 homes, rather than the 400 that had originally been discussed, retaining significant open space. They also agreed to provide more community facilities including additional playing fields and a new burial ground along with funds to redevelop the existing MUGA (multi-use games area) and financial contributions to expand primary and secondary schools. The plan policies also placed restrictions on the Abbey Homes development at Garden Close where there was existing planning permission for 53 homes. The plan meant that the developer had to ensure more than half of new homes were single storey in keeping with neighbouring homes, and lower density (an application for 41 homes was approved by the district council).

Planning policies and local circumstances change over time, and planning documents need to be updated to remain relevant. The Parish Council agreed it was important to update the Sutton Neighourhood Plan; it is now more than five years since the original plan was approved. Changes in legislation mean that it is now possible to add a Design Code, a document that will inform the design of future planning applications and residential developments in the Neighbourhood Plan area. The new Design Code for Sutton is available here Sutton-Design-Code-Final-lowres-Oct-7-2021. The Parish Council was also able to commission a Housing Needs Assessment (HNA) which identifies the type of homes that area needed in Sutton, the Sutton HNA is available here Sutton-Cambs-HNA-Report-Final-Sept-2021. It identifies that the parish is well provided for when it comes to larger homes but needs more 2 and 3 bedroom properties.

The policies of from the existing Sutton Neighbourhood Plan have been reviewed and a summary is included on page 5 of the new plan;

The replacement plan then adds a number of new policies that cover;

1. Affordable housing;
2. Conserving and enhancing internationally designated sites;
3. Biodiversity net gain;
4. Employment sites;
5. Public rights of way;
6. Hot food takeaway premises;
7. Design considerations (taken from the new Design Code);
8. Dark skies;
9. Flooding and sustainable drainage;
10. Sustainable building practices;
11. Renewable energy

As can be seen from the above list, in addition to the Design Code and housing needs, the replacement plan has a significant number of policies addressing Climate Change.

The plan needs to adhere to an array of complex planning legislation and to ensure it is acceptable it needs to be reviewed by an independent examiner who is a planning expert. This step has recently been completed and the examiner’s report is available here Examiner’s Report. The examiner concluded that the replacement Sutton Neighbourhood Plan meets all the necessary legal requirements subject to a small number of modifications. The plan considered by the Examiner is here Sutton Neighbourhood Plan (submission draft) with the final version to be published very shortly.

The District Council issued its official Decision Statement last week to confirm that the plan can submitted to a referendum and that is scheduled to happen on Thursday 4 July, the same day as the General Election. If it is supported by a majority in that vote it will become a statutory planning document protecting Sutton as it develops and grows.

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