Warwickshire Minerals Plan Publication Consultation 2018

Overview

Warwickshire County Council is consulting on the latest version of the Minerals Plan. This stage is known as the Regulation 19 consultation and is the final public consultation before the Minerals Plan is submitted to the Planning Inspectorate for examination. At this stage the plan is referred to as the Minerals Plan Publication.

The Plan was presented to the County Council’s Cabinet on 24th July 2018 and Full Council on 26th July 2018. It was resolved that the Council approve the submission of the proposed Minerals Plan to the Secretary of State for independent examination following consultation.

What is the Minerals Plan?

Warwickshire County Council is the Mineral Planning Authority for Warwickshire and has a statutory duty to produce the county’s Minerals Plan. The Minerals Plan sets out the spatial strategy, allocated sites, vision, objectives and policies guiding minerals development up to 2032. It also provides the framework for minerals development management including implementation and monitoring.

Government guidance requires that Mineral Planning Authorities should plan for a steady and adequate supply of minerals including the provision of aggregates (sand and gravel and crushed rock). The Minerals Plan is the vehicle which enables this to be implemented through the allocation of minerals sites. This provides certainty to communities as to where mineral development should take place in the county. However, adopting the Plan does not grant planning permission for minerals development per se. Only an approved planning application will grant permission. Any planning application will need to cover the detailed design, layout, operation of development and mitigation measures based on detailed assessment. Local communities will be consulted on the planning application prior to determination. 

Where are we in the plan-making process?

The Minerals Plan has been developed through an iterative process, subject to previous consultations.  Background information and previous updates on the progression of the Minerals Plan can be found on the Minerals Development Framework Webpage.  

The table below outlines the previous stages subject to consultation:

Previous consultation representations were registered, reviewed and a summary of consultations compiled.  The Warwickshire County Council Minerals Plan – Summary of Consultation Report outlines these representations and can be found on the Consultation Portal link below.

Through the iterative process of these consultations the Minerals Plan has been refined, taking account of representations where they have been considered appropriate.  All consultations have been approved by Warwickshire County Council’s cabinet. 

Links to the previous consultations can be found at the Minerals Development Framework Webpage.

Why your views matter

A previous Regulation 19 consultation was carried out between December 2016 and February 2017. Since then, the plan requirements have significantly changed due to a fall in the most recent 10 year sales average from the Local Aggregates Assessment (LAA) 2017. The total plan requirement of sand and gravel in the plan period has fallen from 8.48 million tonnes to 6.525 million tonnes, which would have been an over provision of 1.955 million tonnes. Consequently, a further consultation on the plan based on the lower plan requirement for sand and gravel is required.

At this consultation stage the focus is primarily on the technical aspects of the plan making process. This includes legal compliance, the Duty to Cooperate and the test of soundness. Please read the Guidance Document available on the Consultation Portal link for an overview of the process, further information and how best to respond.

What can you comment on?

The purpose of this consultation is to allow further representations to be made on the Minerals Plan 2018 before submission to the Secretary of State and subsequent consideration at an examination in public.

For this consultation, you can respond to the following broad questions:

• Is the Minerals Plan legally compliant?
• Is the Minerals Plan sound?
• Does it fulfil the duty to co-operate?

Please read the Guidance Document for more information on what these mean and what you may wish to consider before making a representation.

Where can you access the consultation documents?

The Minerals Plan 2018 and supporting documents are available on the Consultation Portal.  Copies of the consultation documents are also available for public inspection at:

Warwickshire Direct, Shire Hall, Warwick, CV34 4SX 

Opening hours: Monday - Thursday 8.00am 5.30pm, Friday 8.00am - 5.00pm, Saturday 9.00am - 1.00pm. 

The planning reception desks at: 

• North Warwickshire Borough Council, Council House, South Street, Atherstone CV9 1DE 
• Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council, Town Hall, Coton Road, Nuneaton CV11 5AA 
• Rugby Borough Council, Town Hall, Evreux Way, Rugby CV21 2RR 
• Stratford-on-Avon District Council, Elizabeth House, Church Street, Stratford-upon-Avon CV37 6HX 
• Warwick District Council, Riverside House, Milverton Hill, Leamington Spa, CV32 5HZ

Opening hours at the District and Borough Council offices are listed on their websites, which can be accessed via the following link: https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/partnerships

All Warwickshire Libraries during opening hours.

Opening hours and locations are listed on this website link.

How can you make a representation?

The most efficient way to make a representation is by completing the form online using the Consultation Portal website.  You can access this using the link below.

Comments can also be made by downloading and completing a form from the Consultation Portal and sending it to:

• by email to planningstrategy@warwickshire.gov.uk or
• by post to Planning Policy, Planning Development & Flood Risk Management, Transport and Economy, Communities, Planning Strategy, PO Box 43, Shire Hall, Warwick, CV34 4SX

A copy of the form can also be requested from Planning Policy on 01926 412391 or planningstrategy@warwickshire.gov.uk.

We must receive all responses by 5pm on Wednesday 12th December 2018 to enable us to give them proper consideration.  Comments submitted after that time are unable to be considered.

What is the process following consultation?

The Minerals Plan 2018 document is intended to be the final version of the plan before examination in public. If required, only changes (known as “main modifications”) are made between the end of Publication Consultation and submission to the Secretary of State. If there are further changes to the plan required, they will be forwarded with the submitted plan for the Inspector at the Public Examination.

Once this consultation has been completed, a delegated decision will be made by Council Officers on whether any changes are required to the Plan to make it legally compliant and sound prior to submission to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State will then appoint an Inspector to determine by way of independent Examination whether or not the Minerals Plan (and any submitted changes to it) is sound and legally compliant. This Examination is provisionally planned for summer 2019. 

The Examination will consider the plan, representations made during this consultation and the proposed changes. At the end of the examination process the Inspectors will present their final conclusions in their Reports into the examination of each Local Plan. If the plans are found ‘sound’, with any necessary modifications, they would be able to be adopted by the Council.

What happens next

This consultation has now closed. Representations wil now be considered and a delegated decision will be made by Council Officers on whether any changes are required to the Plan to make it legally compliant and sound prior to submission to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State will then appoint an Inspector to determine by way of independent Examination whether or not the Minerals Plan (and any submitted changes to it) is sound and legally compliant. This Examination is provisionally planned for the end of 2019.