Greater Cambridge Local Plan Issues & Options 2020

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the first stage of the new Greater Cambridge Local Plan for Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire. This is a jointly agreed officer response on behalf of East Hertfordshire, North Hertfordshire, Stevenage and Welwyn Hatfield councils (NE Herts). It is to be read alongside any individual responses submitted by these authorities. The NE Herts authorities have recently been planning to the early 2030s. These Plans are either recently adopted (East Herts and Stevenage) or at an advanced stage of examination (North Herts and Welwyn Hatfield). Under current Government requirements, Plans in this area will need to be reviewed by the mid-2020s to roll forward their current time horizons. The NE Herts authorities secured funding from MHCLG in 2018 to begin progressing joint working on planning. We are also considering, with other authorities in Hertfordshire and beyond, how best to respond to the challenges of future growth and plan-making. This includes exploring the potential for joint plans in response to the increased emphasis on strategic planning matters in the revised National Planning Policy Framework. Your consultation document clearly sets out the options for the area in the coming years. We note that it is envisaged that the Greater Cambridge Local Plan will plan for development up to 2041. At this stage, the NE Herts authorities do not wish to make any detailed, collective comments about the options that have been put forward in the current consultation document. However, the NE Herts authorities have not yet started planning for development in the period up to 2041 and it may be that cross boundary issues will emerge in planning for development post-2031 for the NE Herts authorities (or any other joint Hertfordshire geography) and Greater Cambridge areas. The current round of plans in north-east Hertfordshire have required challenging decisions about the expansion of the area’s towns and villages. At least some of our authorities are likely to be constrained in their ability to meet future development needs beyond the early 2030s. The NE Herts authorities would therefore welcome further discussions about potential, longer- term cross boundary issues as the Greater Cambridge Local Plan progresses and there is greater clarity on any emerging arrangements for future planning in our own area(s). If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this letter in more detail, please contact me using the details provided below.

No uploaded files for public display