Promoting sustainable development...
...should be at the very heart of planning, ensuring that development delivers economic, social and environmental benefits for society. Local Plans are the main vehicle for setting out planning policy locally. Much effort is devoted by Gloucestershire Branch to influencing Local Plans. The Branch has developed a policy statement on key issues to guide its efforts and to encourage others to follow its lead.
The policy statement is based on a set of principles which CPRE wishes to see reflected in Local Plans. It will use these principles in commenting on the various stages of Local Plan preparation and in reviews of Local Plans. The principles focus on housing and economic aspects and cover spatial considerations and implementation.
The spatial principles cover the following issues:
- Containment
- Priority to development of urban brownfield sites
- Focussing growth around Gloucester and Cheltenham
- The Gloucester and Cheltenham Green Belt
- AONBs
Under implementation there are principles on:
- Affordable housing
- Housing mix
- Housing density and design
- Local character and distinctiveness
- Sustainable construction
- Green Infrastructure
- Re-use of redundant buildings in the countryside
