SUPPORT - but recommended re-wording of the policy.


The Europa Way Consortium and Warwickshire County Council (Physical Assets-Resources) support the District Council's decision to concentrate growth within, and on the edge of, the existing urban areas. However, in order to avoid any unnecessary confusion surrounding the spatial strategy we believe Policy PO3 (Broad Location of Growth) would benefit from some re-wording. Re-wording is considered necessary for the Council's 'Preferred Option' cannot be to both "concentrate growth" in one area and, at the same time, "distribute growth across the District"; that is unless at least one of these two statements is qualified.
We recommend that Policy PO3 is re-worded and re-ordered to read:
It is the Council's Preferred Option to:
* concentrate growth within, and on the edge of, existing urban areas
* allow for some limited growth across the rural area of the District, based on a hierarchy to include:
- a higher level of growth within and/or on the edge of named Category 1 and 2 villages i.e. those villages with a broad range of services and public transport to the town; and
- a lower level of growth in on brownfield land within named Category 3 villages in order to meet local need and help support existing services
* avoid development in locations which could potentially lead to the coalescence of the urban area with nearby settlements.

In response to consultation on different spatial options during preparation of the Core Strategy (no equivalent undertaken as part of the new Local Plan) respondents favoured concentrating development within and/or on the edge of the main urban areas within the District. A spatial strategy based on urban concentration also performed best under the sustainable appraisal. For this reason we consider that references to a decision that the Local Plan should "distribute development across the District" (para 7.13) should be suitably qualified.