Issue - meetings

Report of the Head of Spatial Planning attached.

Katherine Greenwood, Principal Planning Officer, presented and summarised the report.

The key points:

-       The consultation received 930 responses, 694 through Citizenspace, 236 were received via email or handwritten letter. It was noted that digital responses were favoured due to the time requirement to decipher, appropriately categorise and analyse each written response.

-       42 Call For Sites submissions were received and to be assessed by the SHEELA process.

-       Drop in events were held, although attendance varied based on location, and what had been proposed.

o   18 in Chorley attended by 504 people

o   6 in Preston attended by 128 people

o   5 in South Ribble attended by 182 people

-       All statutory consultees were invited to engage in a formal Duty to Cooperate meeting.

-       The next step was to analyse the representations through clear methodology to inform the preparation of the Preferred Options Part One Consultation Outcomes Report and the continuation of the plan preparation.

-       The Planning Inspector required due diligence through the process and the representations could be reviewed to ensure the consultation was effective.

Members fed back and praised the team for the hard work conducted, and the need for written representations was highlighted and was understood to be a learning process. It was also noted that there had been numerous reports of residents and some Members that struggled to fill in the consultation, and raised the warning that it was likely that the age group that was most likely to have the time and will to complete the consultation would be the age group most likely to struggle completing it on the digital platform.

Resolved: That the report be noted.