Issues and Options

6 Living Places

Housing Supply

6.1 To meet its objective of providing new dwellings with a variety of sites, size, types, tenure, the Living Places chapter of the Local Plan sets out policy requirements relating to the delivery of new housing.

6.2 In light of the new Government's ambitious target to deliver 1.5 million new homes over the next five years, and the mandatory housebuilding target for Tendring published in December 2024, the need for new housing over the extended period of the Local Plan to 2041 is likely to be in the region of 7,000 – 8,000 additional homes on top of the nearly 10,000 that are either already planned for through the current Local Plan or are already under construction or with planning permission. Policy LP1 in the Local Plan and its supporting text will need to be updated as part of the Local Plan review to reflect the most up-to-date position with regards to the housing requirement along with the location and supply of land required to meet that requirement.

Housing Choice

6.3 As well as planning to meet the future housing needs within the District and identifying enough land to meet the total number of homes required, the National Planning Policy Framework requires councils to plan for a mix of new housing within those numbers based on current and future demographic trends, market trends and different groups within the community. The Council's current Local Plan seeks to achieve this through Policy LP2 which requires larger residential developments to include a mix of dwelling sizes, types and tenures.

6.4 The Council's policy currently gives particular support for the development of bungalows, retirement complexes, extra care housing, independent living, starter homes and self-build housing – to ensure the future needs of older and disabled residents can be met and to enable people to design and build their own homes in appropriate locations.

6.5 An initial review of this policy suggests that its format and wording can be carried forward into the updated Local Plan broadly unchanged – but there may be scope to strengthen the wording, and to ensure that it is consistent with up-to-date evidence produced as part of the Local Plan review.

Housing Layout and Density

6.6 It is important that the density of housing development promotes a good quality of life for its residents, taking into account the context of the area and the needs of different people who might live there. Policy LP3 sets out the factors that must be considered when determining the density of new residential and mixed-use developments, as well as the requirements for adaptable and accessible dwellings to mee the needs of disabled people. These factors include:

• Accessibility to local services;
• The Government's latest technical housing standards;
• The required housing mix;
• The context and character of development in the immediate area;
• The need for appropriate transition between build development and the open countryside; and
• On-site infrastructure requirements.

6.7 Across our district there is a pattern of low-density development, and many new developments in recent years have sought to reflect this characteristic. However, there are several advantages associated with well-designed higher-density development that can lead to high quality places to live. By focussing a larger number of dwellings towards one location it is possible to provide better access to services and facilities, and create vibrant, walkable neighbourhoods that provide a high quality of life to future residents. It is often possible to secure more significant improvements to infrastructure and community facilities from developers building a higher number of homes, as the number of people living in these communities justify the creation of new services such as schools. Additionally, higher densities could enable the Council to plan for the number of homes required over the coming years using less agricultural land and having a smaller impact on the countryside.

6.8 An important consideration when determining a Planning application for new residential development is the layout of the proposal. The Local Plan's approach to the layout of new housing development is set out in Policy LP4. The policy contains a number of criteria for new residential and mix-use developments, covering issues such as open space and green infrastructure; drainage; crime and anti-social behaviour; highways impact; and the needs of future occupants.

6.9 It may be necessary to update this policy as part of the Local Plan review, to ensure that it is consistent with the latest guidance provided nationally and in the Essex Design Guide. In particular, there are requirements in this policy that relate to biodiversity (such as maximising green infrastructure, and sustainable water management strategies), and this will need to be consistent with the legal requirements around biodiversity net-gain and any additional requirements the Local Plan might introduce in the Protected Places chapter (discussed later in this document).

6.10 The policy also requires a percentage of dwellings on large developments of 10 or more dwellings to meet specific standards of adaptability and accessibility, and a further percentage to meet wheelchair-user standards – to ensure new development meets the needs of disabled people. These standards are set out in building regulations.

6.11 It has been suggested that the scope of the policy could be broadened to include other standards that new housing must meet, such as carbon emissions and climate resilience, as well as aspirations around designing for healthy, inclusive and active lifestyles (referencing guidance from Sport England, the Essex Design Guide, and Homes England.) Alternatively, these requirements and those around accessible dwellings could be included elsewhere within the Plan, and this policy could be narrowed to refer specifically to housing density.

Affordable Housing

6.12 Affordable housing is often raised as one of the most important issues among residents when considering new housing developments within the District. The requirement set out in Policy LP5 to seek 30% affordable housing on new developments was supported by a viability assessment undertaken when the Local Plan was first prepared. It is understood that there is still an acute need for affordable housing within the District, and as part of the Local Plan review the Council will review the wording of this policy with the aim of maximising the delivery of affordable housing in order to meet the needs of lower-income households.

6.13 In addition to seeking affordable housing as part of the housing mix on large developments, the Local Plan also includes a policy to support the delivery of affordable housing in more rural locations, close to existing settlements. Proposals for predominantly affordable housing can be permitted if they are supported by evidence of need within the Parish, have the backing of the parish or town council, and satisfy additional criteria within the Policy.

Self-Build and Custom-Built Homes

6.14 Self-build and custom housebuilding covers a wide spectrum, from projects where individuals are involved in building or managing the construction of their home from beginning to end, to projects where individuals commission their home, making key design and layout decisions, but the home is built ready for occupation. Supporting the delivery of self-build and custom housebuilding is a priority for the Government, and this type of development can make an important contribution to meeting the District's housing requirement. The existing self-build policy in the Local Plan, LP7, allows for these small-scale developments to take place outside Settlement Development Boundaries (where new housing would not normally be supported) if certain criteria are met. These proposals are allowed within 600m of the edge of areas defined as urban settlements, and within 400m of areas defined as rural service centres. In order to facilitate a greater number of self-build opportunities to come forward, this policy could be amended to allow this kind of development near smaller rural settlements as well, particularly in light of the fact that self-build proposals are usually for small scale and high-quality developments.

6.15 The Council may also consider amending the policy to require a specific percentage of homes on larger residential developments to be made available as self-build or custom-built housing, in a similar way that a percentage of affordable housing is required through Policy LP5.

Gypsy and Traveller Sites

6.16 The national Planning Policy for Traveller Sites 2015 remains broadly unchanged since the adoption of the Local Plan, except for a modification to the definition of 'gypsies and travellers' in Annex 1 of the document. The Local Plan contains a policy relating to Gypsy and Traveller Sites which establishes a set of criteria against which proposals for new sites will be assessed. These requirements have been used successfully when determining Planning Applications, and the Council does not expect them to require updating.

6.17 The updated Local Plan will be informed by an updated Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment. This piece of evidence will look at the existing provision of gypsy and traveller pitches in the District, and the projected need for new pitches in the period up to 2041. If this piece of evidence identifies a need for additional pitches, the Local Plan might need to allocate land for this purpose – in which case the policy will need to be updated.

Care and Assisted Living, HMOs and Bedsits

6.18 The adopted Local Plan contains policies about special kinds of accommodation, such as care homes and independent assisted living, and HMOs and bedsits. These policies are broadly up to date, but focussed changes might be necessary, specifically:

• To make it clear that extensions to care homes are generally supported by the Local Plan, where suitable accessibility and access to services is demonstrated and subject to the requirements of other policies in the Local Plan;
• To reflect current best practice and latest practices in the care sector and with those responsible for specialist housing and supported accommodation; and
• To ensure that the parking requirements for HMOs and bedsits are consistent with the most up to date Essex Parking Standards (produced by the Essex Planning Officers Association and endorsed by TDC).