Version 1 January 2015 – Draft
Review Monthly
Government Changes to the Practice Guide. Development
Management – Planning Obligations
The practice Guidance can be found at :
http://planningguidance.planningportal.gov.uk/blog/guidance/planningobligations/planning-obligations-guidance/
1. For small scale proposals of 10 dwellings or less and where the
floorspace does not exceed 1,000 sqm, affordable housing (on or
off site) and other tariff style financial contributions (eg education
and open space), i.e. contributions to pooled funding ‘pots’
intended to fund the provision of general infrastructure in the wider
area cannot be sought. The exceptions to this are:

“Rural exceptions sites”, where the thresholds do not apply at all

In rural areas where the LPA can elect to apply a lower site
threshold of more than 5 and less than 11 where sites are within
the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) or in areas
designated by the Secretary of State) as rural (designated rural
areas – DRAs). In these areas, the Council intends to apply the
lowest permitted threshold of six.
2 The map attached shows the Designated Rural Areas and Areas of
Outstanding Natural Beauty.
The Housing Order
1981 - Designated rural areas.pdf
N.B. Although the Order was made under the Housing Act 1980, it
continues to take effect under the Housing Act 1985 by reason of s2
of the Housing (Consequential Provisions) Act 1985.
3 In AONBs and designated rural areas we are only permitted to seek
cash payments in lieu of affordable housing and tariff style
contributions for general infrastructure on unit numbers 6 to 10 and
not provision on-site. The target level of affordable housing as set
out in the emerging Cornwall Local Plan shall continue to apply (ie
40% or 50%) as a basis of negotiation, subject to specific targets
as set out in the ‘saved policies’ of the adopted development plans
if consistent with the NPPF , and in the former Carrick district area ,
the targets set out in the Balancing Housing Markets DPD (February
2008). If applicants wish to provide affordable housing on site
please discuss the matter with the case officer.
N.B. The affordable housing and tariff-style contributions are
commuted until after completion of the units and cannot be sought
Version 1 January 2015 – Draft
Review Monthly
from developments consisting only of construction of a residential
annex or extension to an existing home.
4 The off-site contribution should be £57,000 per qualifying dwelling
subject to viability. Where the affordable housing requirement is
less than a whole dwelling, the contribution is rounded to the
decimal as in the table below.
WORKED EXAMPLE: Proposal for 7 dwellings
net number of dwellings above the threshold of 5 = 2
if the affordable housing target of 50% results in 1 dwelling (2 x
50%)
1 x £57,000
if the affordable housing target is 40% results in 0.8 of a dwelling
(2 x 40%)
0.8 x £57,000 = £45,600
5 Where the gross floorspace exceeds 1,000 square metres and the
unit number is under 10 it is recommended to seek further advice
from the case officer. It is likely that this will result in a negotiated
sum, based upon viability.
6 The number of dwellings can be controlled by condition for outline
schemes where the number of units is not known.
7 The discount given to re-use or remove existing buildings is dealt
with through the viability exercise in accordance with policy. There
is no need to double count.
8 Applications to lift or modify planning obligations will be considered
on the merits of the case. A completed or substantially completed
scheme will be treated differently to a scheme that has yet to
commence. As a matter of process we would seek the submission
of a planning application to consider the matter afresh rather than
agree to a deed of modification by letter.
9 The LPA do not intend to apply the thresholds in the Practice Guide
when considering applications to lift holiday use conditions on
dwellings. These are dwellings which are already built so there is no
argument that the imposition of obligations has prevented delivery.
10 On sites where a threshold applies (6 or 11 units) contributions can
still be sought for site specific infrastructure where this is
appropriate to make a site acceptable in planning terms and
contributions to fund measures with the purpose of facilitating
Version 1 January 2015 – Draft
Review Monthly
development that would otherwise be unable to proceed because of
regulatory or EU directive requirements
11 When affordable housing is offered on site and where there is no
policy or evidence based planning justification to require that
affordable housing to be provided and retained on site then it
should not be controlled by a planning obligation. At the most basic
level if a Registered Provider proposes to build a total of 10
dwellings as affordable housing within a settlement where the
threshold is 10 there would be no current policy requirement to
limit any of those homes to be retained as affordable housing.
12 Relationship with the thresholds in the Cornwall Local Plan
The recommendation to Full Council was to submit the Plan as set
out and to produce a statement for the Examination on the
Council’s position having received greater clarity on the weight that
can be given to the Guidance for the purposes of plan making.
13 Retrospective Applications
The Council will apply the changes from the date of the PPG
amendment, i.e 28 November 2014. All applications where a
decision has been issued with a signed section 106 obligation which
pre-dates this announcement will remain in place.
Notes:
The Government has stated that the 5 or less-unit threshold will
not, unlike the 10 or less-unit threshold, be combined with a
maximum floorspace limit as this would inhibit the development of
very small sites.
In all areas contributions will not be requested if they cannot be
justified and evidenced
N.B. Contributions have to meet the tests set out in Regulation 122
of the Community Infrastructure Levy Regulations 2010 (as
amended), i.e. necessary to make the development acceptable in
planning terms, directly related to the development, and fairly and
reasonably related in scale and kind.
The floor space is the gross amount (all storeys, including
basements and garaging) to be created by the development shown
in the application. This is an external measurement, including the
thickness of any external and internal walls. This is the definition
used in the Practice Guide to establish planning fees