Agenda item

Purpose of paper

·       To update the Health and Wellbeing Board on the Local Plan update in Kirklees, its purpose and importance

·       To ensure members are able to ask further questions about the Local Plan update

·       To ensure members are able to feedback on Local Plan update

Contact:  Lucy Wearmouth, Head of Improving Population Health and Hannah Morrison, Team Leader, Planning Policy and Strategy

Lucy Wearmouth and Hannah Morrison, provided the Board with an update on the Kirklees Local Plan, advising that in terms of the Local Plan, it is currently in the early engagement phase and there is still plenty of time to feedback through the process. The aim of the discussion at the Board is to enable members to find out more about the Local Plan, particularly if there has been no prior involvement and also to update Board members on how to can get involved.

In summary, The Board was reminded of the vision, priorities and ambition within the Kirklees Health and Wellbeing Strategy (KHWS) and that Healthy Places, which is one of the priorities in the KHWS, is an important theme within the Local Plan.  The vision for the Healthy Places priority is: “The physical and social infrastructure and environment supports people of all ages who live, work or study in Kirklees to maximise their health opportunities and to make the healthy choice the easy choice”.

The Board was informed that there are strong connections between Planning, Public Health and Health, and referring to the presentation slide entitled how the planning system can support health outcomes, the Board was advised that a great deal of work has already been undertaken with colleagues from Planning.

The planning system can contribute towards improving the health and wellbeing of the Kirklees population in several ways, for example:

•       The Local Plan through a spatial strategy which supports sustainable development and through planning policies which seek to support healthy placemaking, by promoting healthy and safe communities.

•       Supplementary Planning Guidance (SPG) – this is guidance produced to support Local Plan policies and of specific reference to health includes: Hot Food Takeaway SPD and Open Space SPD.

•       Health Impact Assessments as part of the determination of planning applications.

In reference to Hot Food Takeaways, the Board was informed that Public Health provide Planning with a tool which brings together a number of health indicators, which helps to understand health within a particular local area.  For example, if an application for a new hot food takeaway is received, a postcode of where the takeaway intends to be located, allows information to show what is happening in the area, in terms of levels of obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes, things that have an impact on health and wellbeing, which are related to obesity.  If an area hits a range of different indicators, the advice would be to carefully consider that application.

The other aspect to bring to the Board’s attention is health impact assessments, which is already taking place.  When a new application for a major planning development within Kirklees is received, colleagues in the Public Health Team will assess the application, according to health.  For example, does the planning application consider access to green spaces, is it considering the community around it, questions are also asked regarding air quality, a broad audit of the application is undertaken, and advice is given to the developers in order to improve health outcomes.

The Board was informed that in terms of the Kirklees Local Plan update, the current Local Plan was adopted in Feb 2019, with an update started in Nov 2023 following approval of Full Council. The reasons for the update are:

-      is to ensure that the Local Plan aligns with revised national planning policy guidance.

-     To align the Local Plan with new council priorities/strategies.

-     To be more ambitious in the use of planning policy to support climate change ambitions.

-     To update housing/employment requirements to meet the needs of Kirklees.

The Board was informed that one of the key roles of the Planning Policy Team is the production of up-to-date planning guidance, in the form of a Local Plan.  The plan has several purposes including a vision for Kirklees, allocating land for development needs, in addition to identifying designation land to be protected for example, urban green space sites, local green spaces and core walking and cycling routes.  The plan also provides a framework to guide decisions and planning applications. There are many elements that feed into the review of the Local Plan.

Guidance is provided by the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), that is what policies in the Local Plan are based on.  The guidance in the NPPF, is that the Local Plan should enable and support healthy lifestyles, through the provision of safe and accessible green infrastructure, sports facilities, local shops, access to healthier food, allotments and layouts that encourage walking and cycling.

During the summer, the government consulted on an updated version of the NPPF.  The chapter on promoting healthy and safe communities, there was no significant changes proposed to that chapter of the NPPF.  The consultation has now closed, and the government is assessing the responses.  The consultation asked the following question:

‘How could national planning policy better support local authorities in (a) promoting healthy communities and (b) tackling childhood obesity?’  The Council provided a response to the government on that question.

Early engagement has been opened on the Local Plan and through that engagement, views are being sought on whether health can form a golden thread throughout the plan, and in all policy considerations.  It is important to ensure that the Local Plan aligns with the council’s top tier strategies and the Local Plan will consider the Kirklees Health and Wellbeing Strategy when policies are being formulated.

There are a number of health-related policies in the Local Plan, and as part of the update there is an opportunity to review the existing policies to include further or additional policies or guidance.  As part of the update there is a requirement to gather an extensive evidence base. The Board was provided with information which outlined the Local Plan timetable, with a submission date to the Secretary of State in March 2027.

In response to the information presented, the Board asked questions and made comment, including some of the following:

-         It is important to understand the impact on partners for example primary care in having a big new housing development and what that would mean in terms of practice population, and how the planning of that could be looked at going forward.  This is an area that the Board might want to consider both in terms of public health prevention and the potential changes to services that might result from some of the proposals in the Plan.  The Board would want a further conversation on understanding what that might do to the local landscape.

-         A key focus should be ensuring there are preventative health and wellbeing measures in terms of housing development and how housing areas can be made as healthy as possible, by ensuring meaningful provision.

-         Where would information be found to help understand how much of the Local Plan in 2019 had been actioned against what had been set out at that point?

-         With regard to the hot food takeaways and health impact assessments against planning applications, is there any information to show if it actually makes any difference, and are there numbers of how many planning applications may have been turned down as a result of those impact assessments?

RESOLVED:

That Lucy Wearmouth and Hannah Morrison be thanked for proving an update on the Kirklees Local Plan, and that a further update be provided at a future Board meeting.