Consultation.

The results of the consultation on St George’s Barracks development have now been published by Rutland County Council and can be found at:
https://www.stgeorgesrutland.co.uk/consultation-feedback/
I am delighted to see that North Luffenham heads the list of number of responses received, indeed almost a third of all households in the village responded, making up 21.4% of all responses. In addition, the Parish Council supported by the St George’s Barracks Working Group submitted a very detailed response that has already been published but is attached for ease of reference.

Advisory Group.

Following the meeting held with our MP Sir Alan Duncan MP, on 22nd June, an Advisory Group has been formed whose purpose is to “be the voice of the community during the planning and development stage of the Project. To bring together MOD, Rutland County Council, the Developer and interested parties from the wider community of Rutland to identify issues and concerns during the Planning and Development process and to identify the appropriate and cost effective solutions.” The first meeting of the Group was held earlier this week and I was encouraged by the willingness of the County Council to engage with us as key stakeholders. I attach a copy of the Action Points arising from this first meeting. It is intended that the Advisory Group will meet every 4 weeks and may form working groups to report on individual key issues such as the environment. It has been agreed that the scale of the development and its phasing, together with infrastructure and style are the burning issues of the moment.

Officers Mess Development

A further group has been formed to consider the Officers’ Mess development, which we are determined should not be considered as a stand-alone development. This group will meet for the first time in the near future.

Co-operation with Edith Weston Parish Council

We have formed a strong working relationship with EWPC and the Chairs of the respective PCs meet regularly. We are now extending this link to include Manton, Ketton, Empingham, and South Luffenham Parish Councils. This continual liaison ensures that we are in a position to understand local concerns and to speak with one voice.

Th excellent cooperation with Visit to Whitehill and Bordon

On 17th July, at the invitation of the Leader of Whitehill and Bordon Town Council, Norman Milne (Chair Edith Weston Parish Council) and I visited Bordon to establish how that development had progressed and some of the lesson learnt along the way. Bordon is important because it is a similar sized development on a similar sized former Army Camp. Important too is the fact that the Consultants engaged by the County Council to prepare the St George’s Masterplan are the same organization responsible for the Masterplanning of the Bordon Development. I attach a copy of the report that I wrote following that visit. The points raised in the Executive Summary of that report are:

• The scope of the 2 x projects is remarkably similar, though Bordon can draw upon significantly more infrastructure and heritage buildings than may be available in St George’s Barracks (SGB).

• The scale of the Bordon site has reduced significantly over time; the MoD threat to do their own thing was deployed by the District Council but never materialized. MoD did not significantly influence the final number of properties to be built. Final house numbers were driven in part by a report written by Natural England.

• Effective and meaningful engagement between District Council and Town Council was considered essential. To achieve that a pro-active stance needed to be taken by the Town Council in making alternative positive proposals. Localism was an important influencing tool, which required continual and detailed engagement with the existing community.

• Continuity and strong leadership within the Parish Councils were considered essential. The Councils should put additional effort and resources into understanding the requirements for Transport, Health, Jobs, Education, Leisure and Training.

• Localism is considered an essential tool with input from all key groups. The Advisory Board might propose setting up oversight boards to consider the delivery of the promise in all key areas.

• The Council should not underestimate the resources and time needed to manage a project of this size and to ensure accountability from the county Council. Once underway the project will proceed very quickly with little opportunity for review. It is essential therefore that the Masterplan is correct and has the support of all players.

• Once appointed the Parish Councils need to develop close links and oversight of the work being undertaken by developers and be able to identify problems and community reaction quickly.

• Developer’s Insight. This paragraph is worth reading in detail. Many of the issues/concerns raised to date with our development have materialized in Bordon. The availability of appropriately trained house-building staff may drive the overall rate of development. The majority of new buyers had to commute further to work – house sales were driven by house costs in more affluent towns/cities.

• The provision of on site town sized facilities to meet the needs of the new town is a great attraction to buyers. The development needs to include a wide range of national brand shops and a range of catering outlets. A pub, an ‘Express’ store and a Pizza Hut will not meet the aspiration of buyers. A wide range of sports facilities, leisure facilities, and environmental/recreational opportunities are vital.

• The on-going running costs for many of the proposed facilities, including grass cutting and leisure area management are likely to be devolved. This will result in a substantial overhead for Parish Councils.

Working Group

The Parish Council’s Working Group on the development of St George’s Barracks continues to meet regularly to advise the Parish Council and provide specialist insight and research. The Group is currently made up of:

Cllr Paul Cummings – Chair
Tim Collins – Environmental issues
Jason Allen – Business / Tourism
Mike Wyatt – Publicity / Press
Hugo & Jo Spiegl – Business, Education and Local Insight
Trevor Gibson – Local Authority Governance
Tony Smith – Communications
Cllr Pete Burrows – IT
Cllr Tim Smith – Planning

We lack expertise in planning law and planning process, if you know of anyone that would wish to join the group do please give me a call. The Group is not a protest group and seeks to influence the County Council to ensure that the proposed development is appropriate, well planned and executed and above all is “Right for Rutland’.

Local Plan

A revised local planning document will shortly be launched by RCC. This will attempt to justify the requirement for a significant build on the airfield – please watch this space for further details.

PBG CUMMINGS
Chair NLPC
pbgcummings@gmail.com

SGB – Visit to Bordon – Jul 18

Minutes – 23 July 2018

From RCC:

Consultation around the first high-level plan for the St George’s Barracks site in Rutland is now live, with full details available to view on a new, dedicated website: www.stgeorgesrutland.co.uk

During the consultation period local communities, the wider Rutland public and key stakeholder groups are all invited to share their views on the proposals being put forward for discussion.

The following public events are taking place from today as part of the consultation:

All of the materials available at these events, together with information that has already been published in relation to St George’s, can be viewed online at: www.stgeorgesrutland.co.uk

Feedback on the high-level St George’s plan can be submitted at any point during the consultation, which runs until the end of May. Feedback forms will be available at each of the events listed above, while it is also possible to submit comments direct via the new website.

If you have any questions about the consultation or any of the information outlined above, please contact us by emailing: stgeorges@rutland.gov.uk

I occasionally hear some interesting views about the application of “The Crichel Down Rules” which relate to the sale of land that was compulsorily purchased by the Government post 1935. On occasion it is clear that some  views do not reflect the legal reality of the situation. For ease of reference I attach an extract of the DCLG Document in which the rules are enshrined. Inevitably the document can be interpreted in different ways, however the  document does explain the background and principles that need to considered.

PBG Cummings

Chair NLPC – email: pbgcummings@gmail.com

The Crichel Down Rules

RCC have published their responses to the joint Concerns paper from North Luffenham / Edith Weston on the proposed St Georges Barracks development

It can be found on the RCC ST Georges Web page here:

https://www.rutland.gov.uk/my-council/st-georges/

RCC have confirmed that consultation around the first high-level plan for St George’s will take from 11th to 27th May 2018.

During this time local communities, the wider Rutland public and key stakeholder groups will be asked to share their views on the ideas and suggestions being put forward for discussion.

If you have any questions about the consultation or any of the information outlined above, please contact RCC via email: stgeorges@rutland.gov.uk

The following public events will take place as part of the consultation:

The Annual Parish Meeting will be held at 7.30pm on Monday 16th April 2018 in the School Hall. The Chairman’s Annual Report is attached for your information and will be circulated to all homes in the village this weekend.

Following the meeting the Leader and Chief Executive of the County Council will be present to answer your questions about the proposed development at St George’s Barracks of up to 3,000 new homes and a 100 Hectare quarry. If you wish to express your concerns do please attend the meeting –  if you have not read it I have also attached the Joint Working Group’s Concerns papers below . This will be the last time to express your views before the County Council publish the Master Plan for the development. The development will have a huge impact on the village and at present the proposals are rolling forward with little resistance.

PBG CUMMINGS

Tel: 01780 720124   :  pbgcummings@gmail.com

CHAIRMAN’S REPORT FY2017 – 18 V1.2

CONCERNS PAPER V1.1

On Friday 23rd March the Chairs of North Luffenham and Edith Weston Parish Councils met our MP, Sir Alan Duncan to discuss the Barrack Development programme and our recently published  ‘Concerns’ paper. We had a wide-ranging discussion and in particular raised the following issues:

Scale – Proposal to build up to 3,00 homes – compared to the housing requirement noted in the local plan.
Representation – Refusal to allow Parish Councils to be part of the decision making process
Governance – Perception that the project is being ‘driven’ by RCC Executive and MoD rather than elected representatives
Consultation – Perception that the public’s concerns are not being addressed properly by the County Council. RCC.
Buffer Zones – The Need for effective buffer zones between existing villages and the development and the new development and the proposed quarry
Officers’ Mess site – a lost opportunity to build a Hotel and leisure centre to attract inward investment and tourism to the County
Style of affordable homes – Proposal to build 3 storey ‘blocks’ to provide ‘affordable’ homes.
Is RCC, as a public body, the appropriate organisation to manage a huge commercial development such as this. Is it resourced for this type of complex ‘business’?.

Sir Alan was very receptive to our concerns and assured us that he would discuss these with the County Council.

If you have not yet read the Concerns Paper,  it is attached:

CONCERNS PAPER V1.1

PBG CUMMINGS

Tel: 01780 720124 / pbgcummings@gmail.com

The development of St George’s Barracks is continuing apace and we now await the publication of a draft Master Plan which will identify  what the outline proposals are. Local consultation seems a low priority for RCC and therefore the Parish Council are keen to keep Villagers up to speed with developments. I will be holding the Annual Parish Meeting on 16th April and will ensure that you get a chance to raise your concerns at that meeting. I am meeting Sir Alan Duncan MP tomorrow to discuss the ‘Concerns Paper’ that we published earlier in the week. Meanwhile the following notes help to show the pace of progress.

Yesterday I attended RCC to listen to the Cabinet discussion on the development of the Officers’ Mess site. The relevant discussion paper is attached. It was agreed by Cabinet at that meeting to allocate a sum of £850,000 to enter into negotiations to acquire the site (4 Hectares) by the County Council with an intent to build 70+ homes on that site. The proposal is that the Council will acquire the site and take forward the development outside of the main St George’s project. It was confirmed that at least 30% of these homes would be ‘affordable homes’ which included starter homes.  The funding will be required to “develop proposals at The Officers’ Mess up to the point prior to the issue of tenders for the contractor that will deliver the works element of the project.”

Barracks Paper – 5 Mar 18

Today I received the following note from CE RCC:

I am pleased to say that a bid for national funding for investment in infrastructure to support the redevelopment of the St George’s barracks has progressed to the next stage. The bid is primarily designed to ensure that development on the site happens in a sustainable way with the appropriate investment in infrastructure such as roads, transport. schools and healthcare.  Speaking after the announcement was made, Rutland County Council Leader Oliver Hemsley said: “The HIF is a new source of funding set up specifically to support local authorities who are planning for sustainable housing growth in their areas.

“We’re clear that any future development on the St George’s site must have the necessary infrastructure needed to support both new and existing communities.”Stage two of the HIF bidding process involves the development of a business case to support the proposal for funding before a final decision on the allocation of funding is made in summer 2018.

Rutland County Council and the Ministry of Defence have been working and will continue to work with local communities as part of the planning for St George’s. Focus group meetings held in January were attended by more than 150 people and local communities will soon be asked share their views about the first draft of a high level master plan for the site.

PBG CUMMINGS  Chair NLPC

Tel: 01780 720124

This evening I forwarded the following note to Oliver Hemsley, Leader RCC and Helen Briggs – CEO RCC:

“We write as the Chairs of North Luffenham and Edith Weston Parish Councils.

Please find attached a paper written by the Joint Edith Weston / North Luffenham St George’s Barracks Working Group. The paper is an initial draft of a document that will evolve over time. Its aim is to encompass the concerns of our respective Parishioners regarding the proposed development at St George’s Barracks. We would be grateful if this document could be shared with the team writing the First Draft Master Plan, to enable them to take into account some of the very real concerns and considerations of those that are likely to be most affected by the development. We will circulate the document widely including all County Councillors and all Parish Councils.

We will look forward to your proposed consultation to enable us to expand upon the themes contained within the initial draft paper.

Regards

Paul Cummings – Chair North Luffenham Parish Council
Norman Milne – Edith Weston Parish Council

Note to Parishioners:

Please scan the attached paper and let me have your ideas for further issues that should be included in the next draft of the document. Of course at present we have yet to have sight of the initial draft of the Master Plan document that will tell us much more of what is proposed. The Joint Parish Councils’ Working Group have met frequently and have been pressing RCC for further consultation before any Plans are published. This has now been agreed and we will be meeting in the near future.

How can you influence the process ?? Might I suggest that you write to Sir Alan Duncan your MP and to the local papers to express your concern – you might find some useful themes in the Concerns Paper. To start the ball rolling I have written to the Mercury this week expressing our concern about the scale of the project and highlighting the fact that according to RCC’s Local Plan these homes are not required in the period 2016 – 2036.

PBG CUMMINGS – Tel: 720124

CONCERNS PAPER V1.1

The Chairs of North Luffenham and Edith Weston Parish Councils have written to RCC on behalf of our respective communities to express our concern at the proposed scale of the development of St George’s Barracks (1,500 – 3,000 new homes). We commented that the proposal to build a new town, the size of Uppingham, in an area which has hitherto been predominantly rural in nature, had created near unanimous opposition to what is being proposed. We indicated that there is strong support in the local area for a development of no more than 500 houses phased over an extended period. The letter has been released to Local press and a number of radio interviews have been arranged. A copy of our letter is attached:

Development of St George’s Barracks – Mar 18

We have been advised that Rutland County Council’s Cabinet intend to consider a proposal to release £850,000 of funds to support the redevelopment of the Officers’ Mess Site at St George’s Barracks. The full details of the proposal are in the attached document.

Summary of Proposals: The Officers’ Mess site is a 4 Hectare (10 Acre) brownfield site, which is adjacent to, but entirely separate from the Barracks on the South side of Edith Weston Road. The proposal is to build about 70 homes on the site of which at least 30% will be affordable homes. The intent is that Council acquires the site and takes forward the development separately from, and in advance of the full Barracks Development. The Council have committed to consulting with Parish Councils and the Community to understand our ‘ambitions’ for the site and has committed to holding meetings with stakeholder groups to set out their proposals and to understand and mitigate our concerns, which where practicable will be incorporated into the design.

Action by the Community: This development of at least 70 new homes on a high value site overlooking the Chater Valley, is going to have a significant impact upon our village communities and Edith Weston in particular. Bearing in mind that this initiative is to be funded by local authority money, we need to ensure that we ‘hold the Council’s feet to the fire’ and that our concerns are heard. Silence will inevitably be considered as acceptance or at least acquiescence. The Parish Councils of both villages will continue to seek to influence the Council’s decisions and to represent your views.

Please do read the document.

Barracks Paper – 5 Mar 18

RCC have published redacted versions of the Memorandum of Understanding with the MoD regarding the St Georges Barracks development

MoU – Overarchjing Document

MoU – St Georges

These documents outline the structure and responsibilities of the organisation managing the St Georges Barracks redevelopment, the high level aims of the development and the main risks to the project

Letters have been sent out today by email to all those that have expressed a wish to attend the 2 x Focus Group Meetings scheduled to be held on 29th Jan 18. If you have yet to register and wish to attend please send an email to the project email address, confirming that you wish to attend. RCC will then arrange for an invitation to be sent back to you. The email address is: stgeorges@rutland.gov.uk.

I would urge as many as possible to attend to find out what is planned and the impact that it might have on our village.