Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber - Sandwell Council House, Oldbury. View directions

Contact: Democratic Services 

Items
No. Item

1/23

Apologies for Absence

To receive any apologies for absence.

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Simms (Chair) and Abrahams.

 

2/23

Declarations of Interest

Members to declare any interests and party whips in relation to matters to be discussed at the meeting.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest made at the meeting.

 

3/23

Minutes pdf icon PDF 114 KB

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 16 November 2022.

Minutes:

Resolved that the minutes of the meeting held on 16 November 2022 are confirmed as a correct record.

 

4/23

Additional Items of Business

To determine whether there are any additional items of business to be considered as a  matter of urgency.

Minutes:

There were no urgent additional items of business to consider. 

 

5/23

Friar Park Urban Village

Minutes:

The Board received a report in relation to the Masterplan proposals for a Friar Park Urban Village.

 

                  The proposals outlined the largest development in Sandwell, with up to 630 new homes with approximately 10 hectares of public open space (which represented a net increase).

 

                  The Service Manager - Spatial Planning and Growth provided the Board with an overview of the consultation activity that had taken place on the proposals, which included:-

 

·                A dedicated website for the consultation with an online form for residents to complete to share their views;

·                Two drop-in sessions, held on a Friday and a Saturday at the Millennium Centre which was adjacent to the development site;

·                Promotion of the consultation campaign via Council social media posts and a letter drop to every household in Friar Park as well as a neighbouring estate;

·                A joint press release with the West Midlands Combined Authority.

 

The Board was advised that 57 responses were received to the consultation.  It was acknowledged that whilst this number was low, the site had been allocated for residential redevelopment since 2004.

 

In general respondents to the consultation were supportive of the proposals, but not entirely, with a number of concerns highlighted including:-

 

·               The existing community centre that serves the local area, the Millennium Centre, was not large enough to serve an additional 630 homes.

·               School and GP provision were felt by respondents to currently be inadequate, even without the development moving forward.

 

The Board noted that the draft Masterplan had been amended taking into account the feedback that had been received during the consultation.  This included allocation of space to potentially expand the Millennium Centre as well as changes to the layout to address concerns around specific elements such as preventing access by trail bikes which was an issue for residents in the Friar Park ward.

 

Members stated that they had been contacted by a local campaign group which had set out its concerns including around the contamination of the site and the environmental impact.

 

                  From the comments and questions by members of the Board, the following responses were made, and issues highlighted:-

 

-        In addition to officers from the Regeneration and Growth directorate, officers from Highways were also in attendance at the drop-in sessions.

 

-        Members sought clarity around how it had been determined that no additional schools would be required for a development of 630 houses.

 

-        A GP practice had been identified in Friar Park where there could be capacity for expansion if it was determined by the NHS to be required.

 

-        The Council’s Library Service had requested, in the event that the Millennium Centre was expanded, for a permanent library space to build on the current arrangements for a small temporary library in the Centre.

 

-        Due to the nature of the proposals, including a detailed plan, it wasn’t possible to carry out consultation by telephone.

 

-        Some site investigations have taken place which confirmed the site was contaminated.  The ground condition would remain in a contaminated state if  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5/23

6/23

Sandwell Development Plan pdf icon PDF 363 KB

To consider and comment upon reports relating to the Sandwell Development Plan and responds to questions set out at Appendix D.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Board received a presentation on the Sandwell Development Plan, which formed part of the hierarchy of plans that directed and informed what was built and where. 

 

                  Every local authority had a Development Plan, which usually covered a 15-year period although it was possible to address emerging issues through partial reviews of the Plan.

 

                  The Board noted that there were two tiers of plan; the Black Country Core Strategy which set out broad locations (not identify specific sites) and the Site Allocations and Area Action Plans that did identify sites for specific purposes.  Underneath these documents were a range of supplementary planning documents that provided guidance on issues.

 

                  It was reported that Sandwell had an identified need for 27,873 new homes, however the Urban Capacity Study had indicated only 9,158 could be delivered.  Originally it had been proposed to address this through the Black Country Plan under the Localism Act 2011 Duty to Co-operate.  The Black Country Plan had identified infrastructure requirements, addressed climate matters and supported a range of sub-regional and regional strategic aims.  However due to the insurmountable need to build some of the houses required for the Black Country on Green Belt land Dudley MBC had withdrawn for political reasons.

 

As a sub-regional plan was no longer possible, it was now urgent for Sandwell to review its own local plan.  Consultation had commenced during the week of this meeting and would run until 20 March 2023.  Following this a draft plan would be prepared which would again be subject to further consultation.  After this a final plan would be developed, with consultation anticipated to take place in the second half of 2024.  After this the plan would be submitted to the Secretary of State who would arrange for the ‘Examination in Public’.  Timescales for that element of the process would depend on availability of the Planning Inspectorate.  It was estimated that adoption of the Sandwell Local Plan would be in late 2025/early 2026.

 

                  At this early stage of the process the Council was seeking views of local people, businesses and stakeholders on what the key land issues were for Sandwell.  Officers highlighted the importance of this and asked members to speak to residents and encourage them to submit their views.

 

                  There was a Call for Sites exercise taking place, to allow anyone to identify sites that could be potentially redeveloped.  These would then be assessed.  Although there was a size threshold for inclusion in the plan (no housing sites less than 10 units, no employment land smaller than 4.5 hectares), the Council still welcomed all suggestions as they could all contribute to the authority’s targets for housing and employment land provision.

 

                  The Board also noted an overview of the programme of planning reform being undertaken by the Government.  It had been stressed that although there would be change, local authorities should not delay reviewing local plans and should continue to carry out reviews under existing arrangements.  Sandwell had made the decision to continue with the review, although  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6/23

7/23

Work Programme and Cabinet Forward Plan pdf icon PDF 295 KB

To note and review the Boards Work programme 2022/ 23 and the Cabinet forward Plan.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Board noted its Work Programme for the remainder of 2022/2023 and received the Cabinet Forward Plan.