Revised Deposit Plan - Wychavon District Council

POLICY COM4 RURAL EXCEPTION SITES
In rural areas, as an exception to normal development policy, proposals
will be permitted for affordable housing sites on the edges of village
development boundaries to meet the specific housing needs of the local
area where:
a) the need has been proven and no other suitable or appropriate sites
exist within the development boundary of the settlement;
b) the site has reasonable access to public transport and local
services/facilities; and
c) secure arrangements exist to ensure the housing will remain
affordable and available to meet the needs of local people in
perpetuity.; and
d)proposals comply with Policy GD2 (General Development Control).
5.2.22. The Council would normally expect housing for local needs to be provided
within the development boundary or on allocated sites. However, Circ.6/98
and Annex B of PPG3 recognises that it is often difficult to secure adequate
land for affordable housing in rural areas particularly in villages where new
housing allocations have not been made, and enables the deficiency to be met
via a rural exception Policy. This Policy facilitates affordable housing
developments to be permitted on suitable sites within or on the edge of rural
settlements where development would not normally be permitted, provided
that it will meet a genuine local need and that there is no cross-subsidisation
with high value or general market housing. The size of the application site and
the number of units proposed should be commensurate to the existing
settlement to avoid over-development.
5.2.23. The Council will need to be satisfied that priority is given to those in housing
need with a local connection for the initial and subsequent allocations – this
would normally be achieved via a S106 Agreement. Local connection is
defined in the reasoned justification to Policy COM3 (General Affordable
Housing). The local area is normally defined as the parish and immediately
adjoining rural parishes within Wychavon.
5.2.24. For reasons of sustainability, the Council considers it is generally inappropriate
to locate new affordable housing on sites that do not have ready access to
public transport and local services and facilities, because it is more likely that
provision of affordable housing in locations with poor accessibility will lead to
increased problems of social and economic isolation and a greater
dependency on the car.
5.2.25. It is expected that the developments should achieve a good standard of
quality, design and appropriate materials and satisfy the general housing
amenity and design Policies in this Plan as amplified by the Council’s
Affordable Housing SPG.
5.2.26. The need for a rural exception site should be clearly demonstrated with
reference to the Housing Needs Survey, Common Housing Register and
where relevant, parish plans and/or surveys.
Wychavon District Local Plan Revised Deposit (July 2003) Page 97
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