Botley SPD – my submission

I thought I’d publish the response I submitted yesterday to the Botley SPD consultation. Maybe someone will find it helpful for ideas. (I’m sorry I didn’t have time to write a shorter response; this is a page by page trawl.)

This opens the pdf in Dropbox. https://www.dropbox.com/s/bb7szbptbz27yad/Botley%20SPD%20Comments.pdf?dl=0

My main points have to do with:

  1. The way this consultation is being conducted
  2. Details of the content of the SPD not being evidence based and simply supporting the items in Doric’s failed application
  3. Tone of the policies being waffly (lots of coulds and shoulds, few (any?) musts and wills. NPPF says, in para 57: Local planning authorities should consider using design codes where they could help deliver high quality outcomes. However, design policies should avoid unnecessary prescription or detail and should concentrate on guiding the overall scale, density, massing, height, landscape, layout, materials and access of new development in relation to neighbouring buildings and the local area more generally.

The Botley SPD comes to Vale’s Scrutiny Committee on 22 October 2015, at 7:30pm in the Milton offices. The meeting is open to the public. You can ask a question or make a statement or present a petition. Contact democratic.services@southandvale.gov.uk to get your name on the speakers list.