Pattern of development

Regeneration

The Building a Better Future Plan will highlight four spatial priority areas as the focus for regeneration in the borough. These are: Havant Town Centre, Waterlooville Town Centre, Hayling Island Seafront and Leigh Park.

Land and densities

There is a high need for housing but a limited number of sites in the borough. Future development sites will need to consider the best use of the land in providing new homes, but not at the cost of poor quality or design.

Retail and town centres

Town centres play a key role in local communities, and the Building a Better Future Plan will seek to take a positive approach to their growth, management and adaptation.

The Building a Better Future Plan will set out a hierarchy of centres:

• Town Centres: Havant and Waterlooville, supporting larger format retail and leisure, as well as small to mid-scale town centre uses and high-density residential development

• District Centres: Cowplain, Leigh Park, Mengham and Emsworth, supporting small to mid-scale retail, small scale financial and professional services, cafés, and restaurants

• Local Centres across the Borough: Small scale shops, professional services, cafés and restaurants to meet the day-to-day top-up needs of the surrounding population

It is proposed that the Plan will be flexible about the types of uses it supports in town centres, in acknowledgement of the fact that their role is no longer focussed on retail, but is as much about services, entertainment and places to live.

In addition, it is proposed that outside of designated town centres, for stores up to 280 square metres of sales area, the sequential test set out in the NPPF would not apply. This would allow shops and other Class E uses up to the floorspace limit of the Sunday trading laws. This provides for small-scale top up shops and smaller employment premises, expanding the availability of these facilities within the Borough’s communities.

Flood risk

The Building a Better Future Plan through its development strategy and development management policies will seek to manage flood risk from all sources. In doing so, it will consider both the present-day situation, as well as climate change scenarios.

The Council will take into account flood risk and coastal change now and in the future when deciding which sites to allocate for development through the Building a Better Future Plan, and will avoid inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding and coastal change.

The Plan will actively support investment in coastal defence, drainage and wastewater infrastructure. 

Gypsies, travellers and travelling show people

Government’s overarching aim is to ensure fair and equal treatment for travellers, in a way that facilitates their traditional and nomadic way of life while respecting the interests of the settled community.

It expects local planning authorities (LPAs) to make their own assessment of need for the purposes of planning and that LPAs work collaboratively to meet the needs of the travelling community.

Please note this does not refer to unauthorised encampments.