Commenting on the rural policies in the Core Strategy

If you have found the recent advice in the Coalpit Heath and Frampton Cotterell Focus unclear or live in one of the other parts of the Ladden-Frome area, we hope the following will help you to comment on the draft South Glos Core Strategy.

Why comment?

The Core Strategy is the planning blueprint for South Glos for the next 15 years. As well as allocating land for new development, such as the land to the north of Yate, it also contains policies for dealing with potential development on other land in the rural areas. In the spring, a planning inspector will consider the draft Core Strategy at an Examination in Public. Developers will no doubt be challenging the approach South Glos have taken.You have until 17th February to show the inspector your support for the policies for the rural areas.

Viewing the Core Strategy

On the South Glos website, there is a page introducing the latest draft of the Core Strategy. Under "How to view the documents" click on the first link, "December 2011 Core Strategy incorporating Post-Submission Changes". This will open up the Core Strategy.  Alternatively you can click here to go straight to it.

Finding the relevant sections

Most software for viewing PDFs will allow you to go quickly to a particular page rather than having to scroll through the whole document. Unfortunately the pages of the PDF don't match the numbers printed on the pages. In the following instructions, we first give the number as printed on the page and then in brackets the number to enter into the page finder in your PDF reader to go to that page.
 
If you are concerned about potential developments in the rural areas, such as at Engine Common or Woodlands Farm, the most relevant paragraphs are:

• "Paragraph 4.1", which describes the vision for the future of South Gloucestershire, is actually several paragraphs in a box that goes on for three pages. It starts on the page numbered 21. (If you want to find it quickly using the page finder in your PDF reader, it is page 26 of the PDF). To find the part relevant to the rural areas, scroll down to the final point, on the page numbered 23, which starts "The rural areas will continue to be...". 
• Paragraph 4.27 and 4.28 are on the page numbered 33 (if using the page finder go to page 38). They set out the vision for rural areas such as Frampton Cotterell & Coalpit Heath. 
• The commitment to empowering local communities to shape the future of their communities through Neighbourhood Planning is in paragraph 16.3a on the page numbered 192 (use the page finder to go to page 197). 
• The vision for the rural areas is set out in the next paragraph, 16.3 and the policy for the Rural Areas, CS34, follows in paragraph 16.4. 
• Paragraph 16.8 on the page numbered 195 talks about how housing development will be handled in the rural areas in the first 5 years of the Core Strategy. 

It is important that you confirm your support for all these paragraphs if you agree with them and say why.

How to make comments

You can make comments online, by email to planningLDF@southglos.gov.uk or by writing to Strategic Planning Policy and Specialist Advice Team, South Glos Council, PO Box 2081, South Glos BS35 9BP.