Agenda item

The Committee agreed to consider an urgent report that sought Member’s agreement that the Council no longer agreed that Chiltern and South Bucks Councils had complied with the Duty to Cooperate in the preparation of the Chiltern and South Bucks Local Plan 2036.

The Planning Policy Lead Officer introduced a report that set out the Council’s position, as agreed by the Committee on 3^rd July 2019 to object to the Chiltern and South Bucks Council’s plan on several grounds, however, at that time it was not considered that they had failed in their Duty to Cooperate on Slough’s proposal for a northern expansion, principally because they were participating in the joint Wider Area Growth Study which sought to resolve some of the outstanding issues.

The Committee was informed that there had since been a material change in circumstances including that Chiltern and South Bucks had made clear they had not and would not be taking the results of the Stage 1 of the Wider Area Growth Study into account in the consideration and examination of the current Local Plan, only the future Buckinghamshire wide unitary plan.  This would mean that any meetings that had taken place to discuss the Wider Area Growth Study could not count towards meeting the Duty to Cooperate on their current plan.  If these meetings were excluded than the last meeting between the two Councils was on 12^th September 2017.

It was therefore clear that Chiltern and South Bucks had not met the legal duty on local planning to engage constructively, actively and on an ongoing basis to maximise the effectiveness of local plan and preparation in the context of this strategic cross boundary matter.

It was recommended that as a result of the clarification of the status of the Wider Area Growth Study, Slough Borough Council should make it clear that it no longer agreed that Chiltern and South Bucks Councils had met the Duty to Cooperate and appropriate representations should be made at the forthcoming Examination which opened on 17th March.

Members asked a number of questions including about the timescales and potential impact of local government reorganisation in Buckinghamshire.  After due consideration, the Committee agreed the recommendations.

Resolved –

(a)  That, notwithstanding  this Council’s previous representations to the Chiltern and Chiltern and South Bucks Local Plan 2036, it was no longer considered that the Councils had met the Duty to Cooperate in the preparation of the Local Plan.

(b)  That representations be made to the Local Plan Examination explaining the Council’s position with regards to the Duty to Cooperate.