The Preferred Option Draft of the Core Strategy
was written taking into account the comments made during previous consultation exercises.
The following Consultation Statement summarises the main points made during the Issues and Options consultation and shows how these have been incorporated into the Preferred Option document. The Companion Document lists each individual comment made during the Issues and Options Consultation period, with the Council Officers response to those comments.
The Core Strategy Preferred Option document sets out how the Council would like the final Core Strategy to look, and contains a number of 'Draft Policies' based around the following themes:
- The Spatial Vision and Sustainable Spatial Objectives for Craven
- Sustainable Infrastructure to Support Sustainable Communities
- The Settlement Strategy for the District
- Housing and Affordable Housing
- The Economy
- Environment and Design
The full length Core Strategy Preferred Option draft is available to download from this page via the links above and down the right hand side of the page. A summary leaflet is also available. Hard copies are available on request.
To view the advert which was placed in the Craven Herald and Lancaster Guardian on the 12th October to advertise the public consultation period please click here.
Sustainability Appraisal:
The Core Strategy Preferred Option draft was subjected to a joint Sustainability Appraisal and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SA/SEA), to ensure that sustainability issues, including the promotion of a better quality of life for everyone, are given full consideration in the preparation of plans.
The SA/SEA for the Core Strategy Preferred Option was carried out by Land Use Consultants on behalf of Craven District Council. It includes amendments to SA/SEA Volume 1, produced as a Scoping Report for the Core Strategy, and Volume 2, which accompanied the Core Strategy Issues and Options Documents. The SA/SEA documents are available to view via the links below:
Full details of the SA/SEA process and the SA/SEA's which have been produced for other LDF documents can be viewed on the Sustainability Appraisal page.
Evidence Base:
A number of studies were undertaken to support the content of the Core Strategy Preferred Option. These documents are available to view via the links below:
1. Environmental Capacity Study. This looks at the environmental constraints surrounding the main towns and villages in the District to find potential directions for growth. An Alternative Option B is also presented for Glusburn/Crosshills and Sutton.
2. Draft Methodology for a Strategic Housing Market Assessment. This will look at local housing market characteristics and identify what factors influence those housing markets. This study is still in its early stages, and the document presented here is a proposed methodology for carrying out the final study.
3. Draft Methodology for a Strategic Housing and Employment Land Availability Assessment. This study will identify all possible development sites and state what their potential for developments is in the immediate, medium and long term future. This study is also in its early stages, and the document presented here is a proposed methodology for carrying out the final study.
Background Studies:
An Appropriate Assessment Screening Report has been undertaken and is presented as background to the Preferred Option. This study assesses the potential impact of the Core Strategy Preferred Option on habitats and sites of European importance (Natura 2000 sites).
Details of all the background and evidence base studies which have been produced to support the Local Development Framework have been summarised. To view the Summary of Evidence Base Document please follow the link.
Full details of the studies in the Summary of Evidence Base can be found at the Background Studies page.
Next Steps:
The comments received in response to the Core Strategy Preferred Option consultation will be typed up by Planning Policy staff and made available to view on this page of the website. Planning Officers will then prepare a response to these comments.
The Core Strategy will then be modified into a final draft which will be submitted to the Secretary of State for approval in July 2008. This final draft will also undergo a Statutory six week public consultation period in July and August 2008, but comments will be submitted to the Secretary of State rather than the Council.
The Secretary of State will appoint a Planning Inspector to carry out an Examination in Public of the Core Strategy Submission Draft, to assess the 'soundness' of the document. Following this Examination the Inspector will issue a report that is binding on the Council.
It is hoped that the Inspectors Report will find the document to be sound, and that the final Core Strategy can be adopted for use by the Council in October 2009.