Support

Representation ID: 8081

Received: 22/11/2024

Respondent: Natural England

Natural England welcomes this policy for the comprehensive guidance it includes in both the policy wording and the accompanying text.

Object

Representation ID: 8163

Received: 29/11/2024

Respondent: Vistry Group

Agent: Pegasus group

Legally compliant? Yes

Sound? No

Duty to co-operate? No

Policy EN3 is not necessary a single ecology policy should be prepared and this should cross reference to the national mandatory requirement for 10% net gain.

Object

Representation ID: 8226

Received: 29/11/2024

Respondent: McCarthy Stone (MS) and Churchill Living (CL)

Agent: The Planning Bureau Limited

Legally compliant? No

Sound? No

Duty to co-operate? Yes

We are concerned that large elements of the proposed policy either repeat national policy or are incompatible with the framework / guidance and therefore the council should reconsider the whole policy.

Object

Representation ID: 8283

Received: 02/12/2024

Respondent: Mr Tim Collins

Legally compliant? Not specified

Sound? Not specified

Duty to co-operate? Not specified

My representation makes the case that this policy and its associated guidance is unsound as it does not specifically reference Swift Bricks as these are suitable for many bird species whilst ‘bird boxes’ potentially exclude swifts.

Object

Representation ID: 8339

Received: 02/12/2024

Respondent: Persimmon Homes East Midlands

Legally compliant? Yes

Sound? No

Duty to co-operate? Yes

Persimmon Homes supports the reduction in biodiversity gain from 15% to 10% and the inclusion of criteria f)
of the policy which allows for the purchase of credits as a last resort.

It would appear the last sentence of this policy is unfinished (‘Policy Guidance on the requirements and
processes for planning applications’).

Object

Representation ID: 8358

Received: 02/12/2024

Respondent: Mr Michael Priaulx

Legally compliant? Not specified

Sound? Not specified

Duty to co-operate? Not specified

Policy EN3 "bird bat boxes" welcome not sound not effective nor consistent with policy, lacks detail.

"bird and bat boxes" no guidance for suitable numbers, locations, especially small developments ecologist advice impractical.

Add EN3 match national policy and guidance: "swift bricks are a universal nest brick for small bird species and should be installed in all new developments including extensions in accordance with best-practice guidance such as BS 42021 or CIEEM."

Detail: swift bricks only bird box mentioned valuable national planning guidance (Natural Environment 023).

Swift universal brick small bird species swifts, sparrows, starlings (NHBC Foundation: Biodiversity New Housing 8.1.

Object

Representation ID: 8364

Received: 02/12/2024

Respondent: Bowbridge Land Ltd

Agent: Pegasus group

Legally compliant? Yes

Sound? No

Duty to co-operate? Yes

The Environment Act 2021 requires all development schemes in England, from January 2024, to delivery mandatory 10% biodiversity net gain to be maintained for a period of at least 30 years. It is therefore unnecessary for the local plan to set out a policy on this matter, requirements relating to matters such as Biodiversity Gain Plans and use of the DEFRA metric will all be covered by the Planning Practice Guidance.

This policy is not necessary, a single ecology policy should be prepared which should cross reference to the national mandatory requirement for 10% net gain.

Support

Representation ID: 8395

Received: 02/12/2024

Respondent: Hanbury Farms Partnership

Agent: Savills

The Partnership SUPPORTS this approach to Biodiversity Net Gain, whereby there is evidence to justify the higher percentage of BNG requested above the 10% required by the Environment Act 2021. It is however recognised that a site by site approach may be more appropriate than a blanket percentage figure where seeking in excess of the mandatory 10%.

Furthermore, the Partnership COMMENTS that there should be a consideration of reference to whether there is the ability for some sites and parts of the District to accommodate additional levels of BNG, in order to be used to offset other schemes.

Support

Representation ID: 8414

Received: 02/12/2024

Respondent: Environment Agency

Policy EN3 Biodiversity Net Gain
We note the Biodiversity Net Gain contribution has been reduced from 15% to the legal
requirement of 10%, this will still have a positive impact on the biodiversity within
Rutland.

Object

Representation ID: 8454

Received: 02/12/2024

Respondent: House Builders Federation

Legally compliant? Not specified

Sound? No

Duty to co-operate? Not specified

Policy EN3 is not considered to be sound as it is not justified, not effective and not consistent with national policy.

The policy mandates a minimum of 10% BNG for qualifying developments, reflecting new legislation effective in 2024. The HBF urges the Council to clarify terms like ‘qualifying developments’ and ensure the policy aligns with national guidance without unnecessary repetition. Guidance specifies that the 10% BNG must be delivered at the end of large, phased developments, not necessarily at each phase. BNG costs should be explicitly included in the viability assessment, as they may impact housing delivery and site density. The policy should be adaptable to the forthcoming LNRS, which is still under development.

Support

Representation ID: 8499

Received: 02/12/2024

Respondent: Allison Homes

Allison Homes supports the refinement of EN3 to reflect the Environment Act (2021) mandatory requirement for new developments to provide 10% biodiversity net gain.

Object

Representation ID: 8536

Received: 02/12/2024

Respondent: The Society of Merchant Venturers

Agent: Savills

Legally compliant? Not specified

Sound? No

Duty to co-operate? Not specified

The overall approach to seek a 10% biodiversity net gain is in line with the provisions of the Environment
Act 2021 and the accompanying secondary legislation. However, notably paragraph 16 of the NPPF (2023)
states that plans should be ‘avoiding unnecessary duplication of policies’.

Object

Representation ID: 8651

Received: 01/12/2024

Respondent: CPRE Rutland

Legally compliant? Not specified

Sound? Not specified

Duty to co-operate? Not specified

To comply with subparagraph (d) of the policy will require the LNRS to be specified, but it has yet to be published

Object

Representation ID: 8687

Received: 30/11/2024

Respondent: Clipsham Parish Meeting

Legally compliant? Not specified

Sound? Not specified

Duty to co-operate? Not specified

There is clearly a conflict between these two paragraphs. The use of the words “major development” in the first paragraph is clearly incorrect and misleading
because BNG requires virtually all new development to contribute towards the delivery of measurable net gains