Woking Borough Council
Civic OfficesGloucester SquareWokingSurreyGU21 6YL
Telephone: 01483 755855
Outlook, Amenity, Privacy and Daylight SPD
The Council adopted the Outlook, Amenity, Privacy and Daylight Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) on 10 July 2008. The new guidance aims to help to create better quality developments through design.
The SPD explains how to achieve suitable outlook, amenity, privacy and daylight in new residential developments and house extensions, whilst safeguarding those attributes of adjoining residential areas. It supplements Woking Borough Local Plan Policy HSG21, Outlook, Amenity, Privacy and Daylight, which will remain in use until it is superseded by a new policy in the Local Development Framework.
The SPD replaces the old Supplementary Planning Guidance (SPG), which was introduced in July 2000, by bringing guidance in line with current national planning legislation.
One aim of the new SPD is to achieve better quality new housing developments and extensions and to rely less on simple dimensional criteria which is not always appropriate or helpful. There is also a change in the distinction between family and non-family housing and the required provision of gardens and other private amenity space. Another new point addressed in the SPD is that in the most urban locations of the town centre and some village centres, developers may be able to offer funding towards improvements in the landscape quality of the public area, instead of providing amenities on-site, where it may be difficult or impractical to achieve.
The SPD sets out detailed information on each topic it covers and has been shaped by comments made at different stages in its preparation. The Council asked for views on its draft Outlook, Amenity, Privacy and Daylight SPD in a public consultation which ran from Friday 22 February to Friday 4 April 2008. A number of suggestions were made during the public consultation, which have helped to improve the document.
Paper copies of the SPD are available to view in Reception at the Civic Offices and at public libraries throughout the Borough.
Also available to view are the accompanying: