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The community involvement procedures are set out in the Statement of Community Involvement, which all planning authorities are required to produce in accordance with the Town and Country Planning (Local Development) (England) Regulations 2004). Achieving high levels of community involvement throughout the production of the Local Development Framework documents is paramount to producing a robust plan for the District that is supported by its residents, workforce and visitors. Involvement, particularly at early stages in the process, enables local communities, stakeholders and other organisations to contribute to shaping their environment and addressing key challenges that affect them.
The Development Plan Documents (DPDs) are the documents within the Local Development Framework that will contain the policies steering development in Babergh. They are subject to rigorous procedures of community involvement, consultation and independent examination. The DPDs to be produced include the Core Strategy, Site Specific Allocations (and the Proposals Map) and a Development Control Policies DPD. The full list of documents to be produced, along with timetables for their production, is shown in the Local Development Scheme.
The Core Strategy
Babergh has already started production of the first DPDs-The Core Strategy. The Core Strategy will set out the general spatial vision and objectives for delivery through the Local Development Framework. It relates mainly to the development and use of land and will outline the strategy for delivering strategic development needs in housing, employment, leisure, transport, retail and other important areas in Babergh. It must also address critical matters on how essential infrastructure will be delivered.
Babergh has completed consultation during April/May 2009, on the broad spatial planning issues to be addressed in the Core Strategy and a range of possible options to address these issues (The Core Strategy)
The next stage is the preferred options, work has already begun on this and the public consultation for this is expected in mid 2010 (If a consultation draft document is approved in June 2010)
Key point to note: The Core Strategy looks at the bigger picture for the District, not just in terms of land use planning but from social, economic and environmental perspectives as well. The Core Strategy will not consider the specific, fine details of any issue or individual development but will instead look strategically at these matters.
How to respond to open consultations
Consultations Currently Open: None
Babergh District Council has recently invested in a new online consultation package (online consultation login form) which will make the consultation process quicker, more efficient and more sustainable. All consultation documents, including adopted DPDs, can be viewed through the online consultation pages, and representations can be made on any documents that are open for public consultation at that time. Downloadable online consultation guidance notes (PDF, 85Kb) have been produced to assist new users in making representations. Once representations have been made, they can be viewed online by all visitors to the consultation pages within two working days. The system also enables agents to make representations on behalf of a number of clients separately.
Throughout the process, the website will contain the most up to date information on what documents are available for consultation and what stage we are at in the production of each of the documents.
In circumstances where the online consultation system is not available to anyone wishing to make a representation, written representations on all current consultation documents will also be accepted.
They should be sent to:
Planning Policy
Babergh District Council
Corks Lane
Hadleigh
IPSWICH
IP7 6SJ
ldf@babergh.gov.uk
Please note: no representations can be treated as confidential. All submissions will be publicly available to view by anyone with an interest in the preparation of planning documents that relate to Babergh District.
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