COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL
GOVERNMENT News Release (170) issued by The Government News Network
on 10 July 2008
New tough planning
rules will help councils better protect small shops through the
current economic difficulties and create more vibrant town
centres, Communities Secretary Hazel Blears announced today.
The new proposals strengthen Planning Policy Statement 6:
Planning for town centres (PPS6) - the Government's
'town centres first' policy - and give councils more
scope to refuse out of town development proposals that threaten
the survival of high streets and small shops, are published today
for consultation.
The policy has already helped revive town centres. There is more
retail development in and around town centres than at any time
during the last decade. But the Government wants to do more now to
protect local shops at the heart of communities - particularly
when we know that many are currently experiencing tough times on
the high street.
These revised planning rules keep the important 'sequential
test' that requires the most central town centre sites to be
developed first.
A tougher 'impact test' is being introduced which will
give councils a better tool to prevent big developments that put
small shops and town centres at risk. Using this test, Councils
will now examine more factors including retail diversity, consumer
spending, loss of trade, impact on town centre investment, scope
for regeneration and job creation to ensure the vibrancy of town
centres and high streets is protected against harmful development.
The revised policy will also remove the blunt and simplistic
'need test', which has unintentionally stifled diversity
and consumer choice, by only assessing whether there was enough
consumer expenditure capacity to support new retail floorspace
such as an out of town supermarket. This has led to some new
retail schemes on the fringes of the town centre - which could
benefit the centre - being ruled out because out of town
developments already fulfil that function.
The Competition Commission investigation into the supply of
groceries in the UK market published its final report in April
2008. A key recommendation of the report was that Government
should introduce a 'competition test' into the planning
system requiring local authorities to assess planning applications
for new grocery floorspace over 1,000 square metres for their
impacts on competition, in consultation with the Office of Fair
Trading. The Government will formally respond to the
Commission's recommendations, including the competition test
proposal shortly, but today's consultation on PPS6 is a clear
signal of intent that will reassure town centre managers and
independent retailers up and down the country.
Launching the consultation in a keynote speech at the Royal Town
Planning Institute Annual Convention, Communities Secretary Hazel
Blears said:
"Town centres are the hearts of our communities. I want to
see our town centres and independent shops busy and thriving and
I'm absolutely committed to help defend their future.
"That is why we need to ensure that our policies maintain
their effectiveness and they are responsive to future challenges.
We need a policy which provides the right degree of protection for
smaller retailers who are facing very challenging trading
conditions and increased levels of competition."
"I'm keen to see this stronger PPS6 working for town
centres... it is imperative that we support them during the
challenging times they are facing. I believe that the strengthened
rules will guide future town centre development by giving Councils
the tools to attract investment and protect and promote their high streets."
Specifically the revised PPS6 consultation:
* Reinforces our policy of "town centres first".
*
Ensures that the planning system promotes the vitality, viability
and the unique character of town centres.
* Requires local
authorities to proactively plan their town centres; to plan for
sustainable economic growth through policies which are responsive
to economic change.
* Promotes consumer choice and retail
diversity and recognises that the planning system can help to
support small shops and the identity of town centres.
* Keeps
the important 'sequential test' that requires developers
to seek the most central sites first.
* Remove the
dysfunctional 'needs test' which can unintentionally
stifle diversity and consumer choice in town. In some cases new
shops were ruled out because out of town developments, such as big
supermarkets, already provided that function.
* Creates a new
tougher 'impact test' that assesses economic, social and
environmental criteria so councils can better assess the impacts
on the town centre. It tests whether impact is positive or
negative on town centre consumer choice and retail diversity;
investment and town centre trade and gives councils powers to cap
the size of big retail developments where this is justified.
*
Tests the design quality of development.
* Considers the wider
benefits to communities, but ensures that the size of development
is not out of scale with a town centre.
* Ensures development
is accessible by a range of transport modes.
* Encourages
cleaner safer, greener town centre environments and introduces
sustainable development as an impact issue.
* Encourages
investment in disadvantaged areas creating new employment
opportunities.
* Makes clear that where negative impacts on
the town centre are significant this will normally justify a
refusal of planning permission.
Notes to Editors
1. The consultation document Proposed Changes to Planning Policy
Statement 6: Planning for Town Centres can be found online at http://www.communities.gov.uk/pps6consultation.
This sets out limited revisions to Planning Policy Statement 6:
Planning for Town Centres (ODPM, 2005) and takes forward the
proposals to improve the effectiveness of town centre policy which
were set out in the Planning White Paper Planning for a
Sustainable Future (HM Government, May 2007). The consultation
document includes a Partial Impact Assessment which sets out the
impacts of and the evidence base for introducing the proposed
policy changes.
2. The consultation will run for twelve weeks and end on 3
October 2008. A final revised planning policy statement is
expected to be published in early 2009, together with supporting
practice guidance.
3. The Government's response to the Competition
Commission's final report on the supply of groceries in the
UK market investigation is expected to be published by BERR
shortly. This will include a response to the Commission's
recommendation for Government to introduce a "competition
test" for large grocery stores into the planning system.
4. A key recommendation of the Competition Commission report was
that Government should introduce a "competition test"
into the planning system requiring local authorities to assess
planning applications for new grocery floorspace over 1,000 square
metres for their impacts on competition, in consultation with the
Office of Fair Trading.
News Releases: http://www.communities.gsi.gov.uk