Core Strategy first (2006) submission

The Council submitted its first Core Strategy to the Government in October 2006. On 2 July 2007, the Council received a formal direction from the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to withdraw. The Council is currently consulting on the Publication Document for its new Core Strategy.

This page contains information relating to this first submission document.

In February 2005, the Council undertook consultation on the Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report. The purpose of SA is to ensure that the Council's policy approach is as sustainable as possible, balancing social, environmental and economic needs.

Issues and Options consultation

Consultation on the issues and options raised by the first Core Strategy ended in July 2005. The issues and options were summarised in the leaflet, "Fast Forward Ten Years", which was accompanied by a questionnaire. A public workshop was also held allowing open discussions on the options.

In producing the Core Strategy Issues and Options Report, a number of different research reports were considered. An Initial Sustainability Appraisal of the Core Strategy Issues and Options was also produced to identify the likely significant sustainability impacts of the four options identified in the Core Strategy Issues and Options paper.

The results of this consultation were made available in the form of a Report on Consultation and Schedule of Representations.

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Preferred Option

Following consultation on the Issues and Options, and the Sustainability Appraisal, the Council prepared a Preferred Option, together with a set of proposed planning policies.

The statutory consultation period ran from 27 January until 10 March 2006. The results of this consultation were made available as part of the Core Strategy Pre-Submission Consultation Statement under Regulation 26 on the Preferred Option.

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First Submission

Following consultation on the Preferred Option, the Council submitted its Core Strategy to the Government Office for the South East on 31 October 2006. Consultation on this submission document and its Sustainability Appraisal ran from 31 October to 12 December 2006.

Around 300 individual representations were made on the submission document. These were examined by an independent Planning Inspector. Copies of all the representations are available below.

First Submission documents

• Core Strategy
• Final Sustainability Appraisal Report
• Pre-Submission Consultation Statement
• Proposals Map
• Proposals Map - Insets
• Proposals Map - Deletions
• Proposals Map - Additions
• Statutory Notice
• Soundness Self Assessment

A number of research reports were also published by the Council in support of the Core Strategy First Submission.

Representations

Following the submission of the Core Strategy a statutory six week consultation was held to give people the opportunity to comment on the final document.

Exploratory Meeting

The Inspector appointed to carry out the Examination of the Core Strategy called for an exploratory meeting in order to air a number of concerns to the Council and particular parties, and to obtain clarification and comment on the document.

The meeting was held in the Council Chamber, on 15 March 2007. The Inspector invited the Local Planning Authority, GOSE, SEERA, Surrey County Council, the Environment Agency and Natural England to attend as those whose representations and interests relate most particularly to the areas he wishes to explore.

The main areas of concern related to the structure, form and content of the submitted Core Strategy and its supporting evidence base. The Inspector confirmed that the meeting would not take any formal evidence in respect of the strategy itself nor consider in detail the policies put forward by the Council, which would all be matters which should properly be the subject of discussion at hearing sessions.

Minutes of Exploratory Meeting held 15 March 2007.

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Core Strategy withdrawal

Following the exploratory meeting, the Inspector wrote to the Council and set out his concerns in relation to the Core Strategy. Although the Inspector did not state that he considered the Core Strategy to be unsound, he identified that it was likely to require significant amendments to make it sound. The Inspector warned that it may not be possible to make such amendments through the examination process.

Therefore, the Council had the option of either proceeding with the examination of the Core Strategy or seeking to withdraw it. At the meeting of the Executive on 7 June 2007, it was decided that the best course of action would be to seek approval from the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to withdraw the document. A formal request was made to the Government Office for the South East.

On 2 July 2007, the Council recieved a formal direction from the Secretary of State, through the Government Office, to withdraw the Core Strategy from the examination process.

Further information is available from the Planning Policy team.