Taylor Wimpey are supportive of the delivery of open space and recreational land through development, with Land north of Cambridge Road, Linton having the ability to deliver a very significant amount of such space for both new and existing residents to enjoy.
The proposed policy wording states however that ‘open space and recreation provision will be required to be provided by new development, appropriate to the scale and location of the development.’ It is suggested that further clarification should be provided within the wording of this policy as to what scale and location of development will be required to provide open space, and indeed what type and amount of open space contribution will need to be on and off site. This will avoid any ambiguity. The wording adds that ‘the type of provision sought will be guided by the needs and opportunities of the local area.’ Again this requires further clarification. It will be important for these requirements to inform site capacities for the proposed allocations and assessments of viability of the Plan as a whole.
It is understood that the Council are looking to review their current open space standards, which is supported as this will provide important clarification for development sites. It is also agreed that the standards should continue to differ between Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire to reflect the differences between these areas.
It is also suggested that the wording should be amended to state that ‘open space and recreation provision will be required to be provided by new development where justified’. This is so as to reflect the requirements of national policy, which requires that planning obligations meet the following tests; that they are necessary to make the development acceptable in planning terms, directly related to the development, and fairly and reasonably related in scale and kind to the development, as set out in the policy tests in paragraph 57 of the NPPF.