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You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> England and Wales High Court (Administrative Court) Decisions >> Gallagher Estates Ltd & Anor v Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council [2014] EWHC 1283 (Admin) (30 April 2014) URL: http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2014/1283.html Cite as: [2014] EWHC 1283 (Admin) |
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QUEEN'S BENCH DIVISION
PLANNING COURT IN BIRMINGHAM
Priory Courts, 33 Bull Street, Birmingham |
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B e f o r e :
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GALLAGHER ESTATES LIMITED LIONCOURT HOMES LIMITED |
Claimants |
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- and - |
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SOLIHULL METROPOLITAN BOROUGH COUNCIL |
Defendant |
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Pinsent Masons LLP) for the Claimants
Ian Dove QC and Nadia Sharif (instructed by Solihull Metropolitan District Council )
for the Defendant
Hearing dates: 14-15 April 2014
____________________
Crown Copyright ©
Mr Justice Hickinbottom:
Introduction
Ground 1: The Council adopted a plan that was not supported by a figure for objectively assessed housing need, contrary to the requirements to (i) have regard to national policies issued by the Secretary of State (section 19(2)(a) of the 2004 Act), and (ii) adopt a sound plan (sections 20 and 23 of the 2004 Act).
Ground 2: The Council adopted a plan without cooperating with other local planning authorities, contrary to the duty to cooperate (section 33A of the 2004 Act).
Ground 3: The Council adopted a plan without regard to the proper test for revising Green Belt boundaries set out in the national policy, again contrary to the requirements to have regard to national policies and adopt a sound plan.
The Sites
The Statutory Framework
"(1) The local planning authority must submit every development plan document to the Secretary of State for independent examination.
(2) But the authority must not submit such a document unless—
(a) they have complied with any relevant requirements contained in regulations under this Part, and
(b) they think the document is ready for independent examination.
(3) …
(4) The examination must be carried out by a person appointed by the Secretary of State.
(5) The purpose of an independent examination is to determine in respect of the development plan document—
(a) whether it satisfies the requirements of sections 19 and 24(1), regulations under section 17(7) and any regulations under section 36 relating to the preparation of development plan documents;
(b) whether it is sound; and
(c) whether the local planning authority complied with any duty imposed on the authority by section 33A in relation to its preparation.
(6) Any person who makes representations seeking to change a development plan document must (if he so requests) be given the opportunity to appear before and be heard by the person carrying out the examination.
(7) Where the person appointed to carry out the examination—
(a) has carried it out, and
(b) considers that, in all the circumstances, it would be reasonable to conclude—
(i) that the document satisfies the requirements mentioned in subsection (5)(a) and is sound, and
(ii) that the local planning authority complied with any duty imposed on the authority by section 33A in relation to the document's preparation,
the person must recommend that the document is adopted and give reasons for the recommendation.
(7A) Where the person appointed to carry out the examination—
(a) has carried it out, and
(b) is not required by subsection (7) to recommend that the document is adopted,
the person must recommend non-adoption of the document and give reasons for the recommendation.
(7B) Subsection (7C) applies where the person appointed to carry out the examination—
(a) does not consider that, in all the circumstances, it would be reasonable to conclude that the document satisfies the requirements mentioned in subsection (5)(a) and is sound, but
(b) does consider that, in all the circumstances, it would be reasonable to conclude that the local planning authority complied with any duty imposed on the authority by section 33A in relation to the document's preparation.
(7C) If asked to do so by the local planning authority, the person appointed to carry out the examination must recommend modifications of the document that would make it one that—
(a) satisfies the requirements mentioned in subsection (5)(a), and
(b) is sound …".
"(1) Each person who is—
(a) a local planning authority,
(b) a county council in England that is not a local planning authority, or
(c) a body, or other person, that is prescribed or of a prescribed description,
must co-operate with every other person who is within paragraph (a), (b) or (c)… in maximising the effectiveness with which activities within subsection (3) are undertaken.
(2) In particular, the duty imposed on a person by subsection (1) requires the person—
(a) to engage constructively, actively and on an ongoing basis in any process by means of which activities within subsection (3) are undertaken...
…
(3) The activities within this subsection are—
(a) the preparation of development plan documents
…
(d) activities that can reasonably be considered to prepare the way for activities within any of paragraphs (a) to (c) that are, or could be, contemplated, and
(e) activities that support activities within any of paragraphs (a) to (c),
so far as relating to a strategic matter.
(4) For the purposes of subsection (3), each of the following is a "strategic matter"—
(a) sustainable development or use of land that has or would have a significant impact on at least two planning areas, including (in particular) sustainable development or use of land for or in connection with infrastructure that is strategic and has or would have a significant impact on at least two planning areas…
(5) In subsection (4)… "planning area" means—
(a) the area of—
(i) a district council (including a metropolitan district council)…
(6) The engagement required of a person by subsection (2)(a) includes, in particular—
(a) considering whether to consult on and prepare, and enter into and publish, agreements on joint approaches to the undertaking of activities within subsection (3), and
(b) if the person is a local planning authority, considering whether to agree under section 28 to prepare joint local development documents.
(7) A person subject to the duty under subsection (1) must have regard to any guidance given by the Secretary of State about how the duty is to be complied with.
…".
"(2) If the person appointed to carry out the independent examination of a development plan document recommends that it is adopted, the authority may adopt the document—
(a) as it is, or
(b) with modifications that (taken together) do not materially affect the policies set out in it.
(2A) Subsection (3) applies if the person appointed to carry out the independent examination of a development plan document—
(a) recommends non-adoption, and
(b) under section 20(7C) recommends modifications ("the main modifications").
(3) The authority may adopt the document—
(a) with the main modifications, or
(b) with the main modifications and additional modifications if the additional modifications (taken together) do not materially affect the policies that would be set out in the document if it was adopted with the main modifications but no other modifications.
(4) The authority must not adopt a development plan document unless they do so in accordance with subsection (2) or (3).
(5) A document is adopted for the purposes of this section if it is adopted by resolution of the authority."
i) If he is satisfied that the plan meets the procedural and "soundness" requirements, he must recommend adoption of the plan and the authority may adopt the plan.ii) If he is not satisfied as to these two matters, and is not satisfied that the authority has complied with its duty to cooperate, he must recommend non-adoption and the authority must not adopt the plan.
iii) If he is not satisfied as to these two matters, but is satisfied that the authority has complied with its duty to cooperate, he must recommend non-adoption; but, on the authority's request, he must also recommend modifications to the plan that would make it satisfy those two requirements. The authority may then adopt the plan with those modifications.
"(3) A person aggrieved by a relevant document may make an application to the High Court on the ground that—
(a) the document is not within the appropriate power;
(b) a procedural requirement has not been complied with.
…
(6) Subsection (7) applies if the High Court is satisfied–
(a) that a relevant document is to any extent outside the appropriate power;
(b) that the interests of the applicant have been substantially prejudiced by a failure to comply with a procedural requirement.
(7) The High Court may—
(a) quash the relevant document;
(b) remit the relevant document to a person or body with a function relating to its preparation, publication, adoption or approval.
(7A) If the High Court remits the relevant document under subsection (7)(b) it may give directions as to the action to be taken in relation to the document.
(7B) Directions under subsection (7A) may in particular—
(a) require the relevant document to be treated (generally or for specified purposes) as not having been approved or adopted;
(b) require specified steps in the process that has resulted in the approval or adoption of the relevant document to be treated (generally or for specified purposes) as having been taken or as not having been taken;
(c) require action to be taken by a person or body with a function relating to the preparation, publication, adoption or approval of the document (whether or not the person or body to which the document is remitted);
(d) require action to be taken by one person or body to depend on what action has been taken by another person or body.
(7C) The High Court's powers under subsections (7) and (7A) are exercisable in relation to the relevant document—
(a) wholly or in part;
(b) generally or as it affects the property of the applicant.
…
(10) A procedural requirement is a requirement under the appropriate power or contained in regulations or an order made under that power which relates to the adoption, publication or approval of a relevant document…".
The Relevant National Policies
"The purpose of planning is sustainable growth.
Sustainable means ensuring that better lives for ourselves don't mean worse lives for future generations.
Development means growth. We must accommodate the new ways in which we will earn our living in a competitive world. We must house a rising population…".
It is said in paragraph 6 of the NPPF that the policies set out in paragraphs 18-219, taken as a whole, constitute the Government's view of what sustainable development means in practice for the planning system. "Sustainability" therefore inherently requires a balance to be made of the factors that favour any proposed development, and those that favour refusing it, in accordance with the relevant national and local policies. However, policy may give a factor particular weight, or may require a particular approach to be adopted towards a specific factor; and, where is does so, that weighting or approach is itself a material consideration that must be taken into account.
"At the heart of the [NPPF] is a presumption in favour of sustainable development, which should be seen as a golden thread running through both plan-making and decision-taking.
For plan-making this means that:
- local planning authorities should positively seek opportunities to meet the development needs of their area;
- Local Plans should meet objectively assessed needs, with sufficient flexibility to adapt to rapid change, unless:
–– any adverse impacts of doing so would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits, when assessed against the policies in this Framework taken as a whole; or
–– specific policies in this Framework indicate development should be restricted…".
"32. The level of housing provision should be determined taking a strategic, evidence-based approach that takes into account relevant local, sub-regional, regional and national policies and strategies achieved through widespread collaboration with stakeholders.
33. In determining the local, sub-regional and regional level of housing provision, Local Planning Authorities and Regional Planning Bodies, working together, should take into account:
- Evidence of current and future levels of need and demand for housing and affordability levels based upon:
- Local and sub-regional evidence of need and demand, set out in Strategic Housing Market Assessments ["SHMAs"] and other relevant market information such as long term house prices.
- Advice from the National Housing and Planning Advice Unit on the impact of the proposals for affordability in the region.
- The Government's latest published household projections and the needs of the regional economy, having regard to economic growth forecasts.
- Local and sub-regional evidence of the availability of suitable land for housing using Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessments ["SHLAAs"] and drawing on other relevant information….
- The Government's overall ambitions for affordability across the housing market, including the need to improve affordability and increase housing supply.
- A Sustainability Appraisal of the environmental, social and economic implications, including costs, benefits and risks of development. This will include considering the most sustainable pattern of housing, including in urban and rural areas.
- An assessment of the impact of development upon existing or planned infrastructure and of any new infrastructure required.
34. Regional Spatial Strategies should set out the level of overall housing provision for the region [expressed as net additional dwellings (and gross if appropriate)], broadly illustrated in a housing delivery trajectory, for a sufficient period to enable Local Planning Authorities to plan for housing over a period of at least 15 years. This should be distributed amongst constituent housing market and Local Planning Authority areas.
35. Regional Spatial Strategies should also set out the approach to coordinating housing provisions across the region…."
"To boost significantly the supply of housing, local planning authorities should:
- use their evidence base to ensure that their Local Plan meets the full, objectively assessed needs for market and affordable housing in the housing market area, as far as is consistent with the policies set out in this Framework, including identifying key sites which are critical to the delivery of the housing strategy over the plan period;
- identify and update annually a supply of specific deliverable sites sufficient to provide five years worth of housing against their housing requirements with an additional buffer of 5% (moved forward from later in the plan period) to ensure choice and competition in the market for land…".
i) In line with the Localism Act 2011, the NPPF abandoned the regional, top down, approach to housing strategy in favour of localism with a duty to cooperate with neighbouring authorities. The burden of developing housing strategy now falls on local planning authorities.ii) Whilst clearly subject to a requirement that both plan-making and decision-taking must be consistent with other NPPF policies – including those designed to protect the environment – the NPPF put considerable new emphasis on the policy imperative of increasing the supply of housing. As reflected in the first words of the Ministerial Foreword quoted above (paragraph 25), in relation to dwellings, there was a policy objective to achieve a significant increase in supply. Therefore, the NPPF imposed the policy goal on a local authority of meeting its full, objectively assessed needs for market and affordable housing, unless and only to the extent that other policies were inconsistent with that goal. Thus, paragraph 47 makes full objectively assessed housing needs, not just a material consideration, but a consideration of particular standing.
"Local planning authorities should have a clear understanding of housing needs in their area. They should:
- prepare a [SMHA] to assess their full housing needs, working with neighbouring authorities where housing market areas cross administrative boundaries. The [SMHA] should identify the scale and mix of housing and the range of tenures that the local population is likely to need over the plan period which:
- meets household and population projections, taking account of migration and demographic change;
- addresses the need for all types of housing, including affordable housing and the needs of different groups in the community (such as, but not limited to) families with children, older people, people with disabilities, service families (and people wishing to build their own homes); and
- caters for housing demand and the scale of housing supply necessary to meet this demand..."
- prepare a [SHLAA] to establish realistic assumptions about the availability, suitability and the likely economic viability of land to meet the identified need for housing over the plan period."
Therefore, the NPPF supposes that full, objective assessment of housing needs referred to in paragraph 14 will be informed by a SHMA.
"The Local Plan will be examined by an independent inspector whose role is to assess whether the plan has been prepared in accordance with the Duty to Cooperate, legal and procedural requirements, and whether it is sound. A local planning authority should submit a plan for examination which it considers is "sound" – namely that it is:
- Positively prepared – the plan should be prepared based on a strategy which seeks to meet objectively assessed development and infrastructure requirements, including unmet requirements from neighbouring authorities where it is reasonable to do so and consistent with achieving sustainable development;
- Justified – the plan should be the most appropriate strategy, when considered against the reasonable alternatives, based on proportionate evidence;
- Effective – the plan should be deliverable over its period and based on effective joint working on cross-boundary strategic priorities; and
- Consistent with national policy – the plan should enable the delivery of sustainable development in accordance with the policies in the Framework."
"11. I would emphasise that this guidance, useful though it may be, is advisory only. Generally it appears to indicate the Department's view of what is required to make a strategy 'sound', as required by the statute. Authorities and inspectors must have regard to it, but it is not prescriptive. Ultimately it is they, not the Department, who are the judges of 'soundness'. Provided that they reach a conclusion which is not 'irrational' (meaning 'perverse'), their decision cannot be questioned in the courts. The mere fact that they may not have followed the policy guidance in every respect does not make the conclusion unlawful.
….
33. … As I have said, 'soundness' was a matter to be judged by the inspector and the Council, and raises no issue of law, unless their decision is shown to have been 'irrational', or they are shown to have ignored the relevant guidance or other considerations which were necessarily material in law."
In other words, whether a plan is "sound" for the purposes of Section 20(5) of the 2004 Act is a matter of planning judgment for the inspector, and is subject to challenge only on normal public law grounds. This court is not concerned with the merits, which are a matter entirely for the inspector. However, in accordance with those principles, an inspector errs in law if he fails to take relevant guidance into account, or fails to deal with a "material controversy" (see Barratt at [45]).
Ground 1
Introduction
i) Household projections: These are demographic, trend-based projections indicating the likely number and type of future households if the underlying trends and demographic assumptions are realised. They provide useful long-term trajectories, in terms of growth averages throughout the projection period. However, they are not reliable as household growth estimates for particular years: they are subject to the uncertainties inherent in demographic behaviour, and sensitive to factors (such as changing economic and social circumstances) that may affect that behaviour. Those limitations on household projections are made clear in the projections published by the Department of Communities and Local Government ("DCLG") from time-to-time (notably, in the section headed "Accuracy").ii) Full Objective Assessment of Need for Housing: This is the objectively assessed need for housing in an area, leaving aside policy considerations. It is therefore closely linked to the relevant household projection; but is not necessarily the same. An objective assessment of housing need may result in a different figure from that based on purely demographics if, e.g., the assessor considers that the household projection fails properly to take into account the effects of a major downturn (or upturn) in the economy that will affect future housing needs in an area. Nevertheless, where there are no such factors, objective assessment of need may be – and sometimes is – taken as being the same as the relevant household projection.
iii) Housing Requirement: This is the figure which reflects, not only the assessed need for housing, but also any policy considerations that might require that figure to be manipulated to determine the actual housing target for an area. For example, built development in an area might be constrained by the extent of land which is the subject of policy protection, such as Green Belt or Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Or it might be decided, as a matter of policy, to encourage or discourage particular migration reflected in demographic trends. Once these policy considerations have been applied to the figure for full objectively assessed need for housing in an area, the result is a "policy on" figure for housing requirement. Subject to it being determined by a proper process, the housing requirement figure will be the target against which housing supply will normally be measured.
Housing Provision: Background
"The Council has assessed housing land supply taking a 'bottom-up' approach through detailed site assessment and the [SHLAA]. It is considered that 11,000 (net) additional homes can be delivered towards meeting projected household growth of 14,000 households (2006-2028). This is the level of housing provision that the Council considers can be provided without adverse impact on the Meriden Gap, without an unsustainable short-term urban extension south of Shirley and without risking any more generalised threat to Solihull's high quality environment. This level of growth supports the West Midlands Urban Renaissance Strategy to develop urban areas in such a way that they can increasingly meet their own economic and social needs in order to counter the unsustainable movement of people and jobs facilitated by previous strategies, including the need to direct development to those parts of the West Midlands Region needing housing."
i) a reduction to 10,000 (500 dpa) because town centre capacity had fallen due to the recession and sufficient town centre housing capacity could not be found; andii) because the SLP period was not the 20-year period 2006-26 but rather the 22-year period 2006-28 (to ensure the development plan covered at least 15 years from the date of its adoption), an extra two-years at 500 dpa (i.e. 1,000) was added.
Thus, an aggregate figure of 11,000 was proposed, at 500 dpa.
"The (draft) West Midlands Phase 2 Revision, containing housing provision targets per authority, concluded its Examination in Public stage at the end of June [2009] with the Panel report published on 28 September. This [SHMA] and the housing needs analysis it includes will therefore not have a bearing on the allocation of new build housing target numbers for the Authority. Instead, its primary function is to inform those parts of the housing policy framework which are to be determined through local policy setting, most notably the determination of housing need, the type and tenure of new build, the requirement for affordable housing to meet that need and inform decisions on the spatial aspect of new development."
The 2009 SHMA therefore provided considerable data on housing market trends and by reference to various characteristics including (in section 5) affordable housing. However, the data on future housing need were deliberately limited: on pages (iii) and (iv) there were figures for "total demand" for housing, and estimated social rented housing need and intermediate need for 2006-11. Other than the references to the WM RSS Revision figures, there do not appear to any longer-range estimates of housing needs.
A Technical Issue
The Abandoned Justifications
"The level of housing need in Solihull has been objectively assessed (considering all evidence and consistency with other policy) through the [WM RSS] Phase II Revision and was examined by the Panel. The Panel examined household and population projections, taking account of migration and demographic change and made recommendations to cater for housing demand and the scale of housing supply necessary to meet this demand. Sub-regional and local Strategic Housing Market Assessments address the need by type and tenure. Evidence of housing land availability was also considered by the Panel to establish realistic assumptions about availability, suitability and the likely economic viability of land in the region and each sub-region. This meets with the requirements of NPPF paragraph 159."
Then, after referring to various housing projection models, it continued (at paragraph 15):
"Such predictions are nothing more than a theoretical, mathematical calculation providing an indication of how housing need could change in the future. Objectively assessing need involves a more sophisticated policy analysis of both needs and what level of growth an area can realistically sustain. In Solihull, the [WM] RSS Phase II Panel Report is the latest assessment of housing need." (emphasis added).
"… [I]t is asserted that the Council has decided 'that it is not going to meet its own objectively assessed need'. That is again at best a misconception. The figure of 11,000 which informs the housing requirement is the objectively assessed need for the borough for which it is planning. Paragraph 8.4.1 of the [SLP] quotes projected household growth and thus the objectors have confused that with the objectively assessed need which the plan seeks to meet. The objectively assessed need is one which has been derived through the Phase 2 RSS process on a 'policy on' basis…". (emphasis added).
It contended, in terms, that the WM RSS Phase 2 Revision "engaged with and discharged the functions of a SHMA set out in paragraph 159 of the [NPPF]" (paragraph 8).
The Approach of the Inspector
"10. … [The Council has adopted a consistent approach, basing the SLP on the most recent independent objective assessment of housing requirements undertaken for the WM RSS Phase 2 Revision, including policy elements relating to the urban renaissance strategy and its associated distribution of development; the level of housing provision proposed in the SLP fully accords with this assessment. [The Council] has also considered the implications of more recent 2008 & 2011 household projections and undertaken further work to ensure that the proposed housing provision figure remains sound and robust. There is insufficient evidence to demonstrate that Solihull does not intend to full meet its objectively assessed housing requirements and has thus failed to meet the requirements of the Duty to Cooperate. [In paragraph 8 of the interim conclusions, he put that point thus: 'It cannot therefore be assumed that Solihull does not intend to fully meet its objectively assessed housing requirements and has thus failed to meet the requirements of the Duty to Cooperate.'] Detailed concerns about the overall housing provision level, including the [SHMA], are dealt with under the housing issues, later in this report."
"24. The Spatial Strategy is based on two main elements: firstly, the former WM RSS Phase 2 Revision, which established the overall scale and pattern of development in the Borough; and, secondly, the needs and opportunities identified in more recent studies through the process of preparing the SLP…."
In other words, in respect of the housing provision figure of 11,000, the Council relied upon the WM RSS Phase 2 Revision Draft figure as amended, together with the more recent DCLG projections and the 2009 SHMA.
"51. Dealing first with the overall level of housing provision, the NPPF (¶ 14/47) indicates that local plans should meet the full, objectively assessed needs for market and affordable housing in the housing market area, unless any adverse impacts of doing so would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits, when assessed against the policies in the NPPF, including development constraint policies such as the Green Belt. Although household projections are the starting point in assessing overall housing needs, they are only one element; they are a snapshot in time and, being based on demographic trends, do not model other aspects of housing need or the effective demand for homes. In establishing the appropriate level of housing provision for the area, the key drivers of housing need and demand related to demographic, economic and social factors have to be balanced alongside supply-side factors and wider national/local objectives and strategic priorities relating to sustainability, deliverability, infrastructure, viability, land availability and environmental capacity. Evidence should be relevant, robust, proportionate and up-to-date."
i) He noted that paragraph 218 of the NPPF allows authorities to continue to draw on evidence that informed the preparation of regional strategies in support of local strategies, supplemented as needed by up-to-date, robust local evidence (paragraph 52). That is correct. Paragraph 218 provides:"Where it would be appropriate and assist the process of preparing or amending Local Plans, regional strategy policies can be reflected in Local Plans by undertaking a partial review focusing on the specific issues involved. Local planning authorities may also continue to draw on evidence that informed the preparation of regional strategies to support Local Plan policies, supplemented as needed by up-to-date, robust local evidence."ii) He noted that the SLP proposal of 11,000 dwellings in the period 2006-28 reflected the figure recommended in the WM RSS Phase 2 Revision Panel Draft. Although that had never been approved by the Secretary of State and the regional strategy had now been revoked, "the Panel's assessment represents the most recent independently examined assessment of housing requirements in the West Midlands, taking account of cross-boundary housing issues and market areas, environmental capacity and the strategic housing distribution policy elements related to the urban renaissance strategy" (paragraph 52).
iii) He noted that, in addition to the WM RSS Phase 2 Revision Draft recommendation, the SLP relied upon further work and evidence, including the household projections from the more recent 2008-based and 2011-based household projections, and the 2009 SHMA (paragraph 52). With regard to the CLG household projections, he noted that the 2006-based projections were for 16,000 new households in Solihull in the period 2006-26; and the 2008-based projections were for 14,000 in the period 2006-28 (paragraph 53). He noted (in paragraph 55) that some had argued that the plan should make minimum provision of 14,000 new dwellings on the basis of this projection: but this was only one projection and did not represent the objectively assessed need for housing in the borough. Finally, he noted that the latest 2011-based projections were for 6,000 households in the period 2006-21 at 533 dpa (paragraph 52), an apparent reference to the Council's calculation, based on the 2011-based DCLG projection (see paragraphs 42-44 above). He concluded:
"52. … This work confirms that the underlying housing requirement proposed in the SLP remains valid, robust and sound…53. … Even though the former WMRSS EiP Panel report figure did not fully meet all the housing needs of Solihull at that time, more recent projections confirm that the number of new households anticipated in Solihull between 2006-28 has significantly reduced since then, and that the annual need may only be slightly above that planned for the submitted SLP."The last reference appears to be to the Council's calculation, based on the 2011-based DCLG projection, that the projected need for Solihull was 533 dpa, compared with the 500 dpa in the SLP.iv) With regard to the SHMA, the Inspector said this:
"57. There is also some concern about the adequacy of the SHMA. However, a joint SHMA, covering Birmingham, Solihull, Lichfield and Tamworth was undertaken and was updated specifically for Solihull in 2009, using 2006-based projections, in line with the emerging former WMRSS Phase 2 Revision and national guidance at the time, which supports the proposed level of housing provision. It assessed the likely need for market and affordable housing over the plan period and, taken together with the more recent work on housing need produced for the examination of the SLP and that of the former WMRSS Phase 2 Revision and EiP Panel, this meets the requirements of the NPPF (¶ 159; 178-181)58. [The Council] recognises that the existing SHMA will need to be reviewed and updated in 2014, to take account of more recent and forthcoming household projections and the needs of the wider housing market. This review will also need to update the original assessment of housing requirements undertaken for the former WMRSS Phase 2 Revision insofar as it relates to the relevant housing market area, and may necessitate a review of the SLP. The firm commitment to undertake this review is to be confirmed in the SLP, to ensure that the plan remains up-to-date and soundly based, as required by the NPPF (¶ 158)."v) He noted that some had questioned the continuing relevance of the urban renaissance strategy; but he found it "continues to be relevant and significant in the planning of the sub-region", as illustrated by the adopted Black Country Core Strategy (paragraph 58).
vi) He noted (at paragraph 8) that:
"… [T]here are no specific or agreed requirements for Solihull to meet the housing or other needs of adjoining authorities, or for any neighbouring authorities to meet any of Solihull's housing or other needs";and it would be unreasonable to delay its work on the SLP to await the results of further work on the housing needs of Birmingham (which might result in unmet need there, which Solihull might be asked to meet), particularly as Solihull currently lacked a 5 year housing supply (paragraphs 9, and 59-61)
"62. [The Council] maintains that the SLP is fully meeting the identified housing needs of the Borough, but has considered higher levels of housing at the option stage. In considering the possibility of higher housing figures, it is important to bear in mind the significant policy constraints in Solihull, particularly the Green belt, including the strategically important Meriden Gap, and the implications of higher levels of development on the recognised environmental quality of the Borough. [The Council] proposes to amend the SLP to explain the adverse implications of higher levels of housing provision on the quality of the environment and the Green belt, particularly the Meriden Gap. This is supported by evidence, including the SHLAA and site assessments.
63. In terms of the overall housing requirement, [the Council] has taken a consistent and pragmatic approach, having produced a positively prepared and effective plan, of cross-boundary housing requirements undertaken for the former WMRSS Phase 2 Revision, and backed up with more up-to-date, robust and reliable evidence, projections and studies. The commitment to review the SLP if it becomes necessary to address the issue of Birmingham's shortfall in future housing provision will ensure that cross-boundary housing issues are addressed when the results of these studies are finalised, reflecting the guidance of the NPPF (¶ 179). The commitment to early review of the SHMA will ensure that Solihull's housing needs are kept up-to-date, including reviewing the SLP, if necessary.
64. Taking account of all the evidence and having examined all the elements that go into making an objective assessment of housing requirements, a total level of 11,000 dwellings or 500 dwellings/year represents an effective, justified and soundly based figure which would meet the current identified housing needs of the district over the plan period and, with the agreed amendments, is consistent with the overall requirements of national policy in the NPPF."
"8.4.1 The housing land provision target of 11,000 net additional dwellings (2006-2028) reflects the requirement recommended by the [WM RSS] Phase II Revision Panel Report which objectively assessed housing need. Around 65% of growth is projected to emerge from net immigration into Solihull on the basis of past trends. The projected level of growth may reduce with the successful continued implementation of the West Midlands Urban Renaissance Strategy which seek to develop urban areas in such a way that they can increasingly meet their own economic and social needs in order to counter the unsustainable movement of people and jobs facilitated by previous strategies, including the need to direct development to those parts of the West Midlands Region needing housing. The Panel's assessment of housing need took the 2006-based household projections into account. Subsequent 2008-based and interim 2011-based household projections project a lower level of household growth for Solihull, providing further confidence that the provision target mill meet need
8.4.2. Solihull is recognised for its high quality environment which attracts residents and investors to the Region. The key Regional objective of stemming out migration can be best served by preserving and enhancing Solihull's environment. The Council is assessing housing land supply throughout the development of the West Midlands Regional Spatial Strategy taking a 'bottom-up' approach through detailed assessment and the [SHLAA]. It is considered that 11,000 (net) additional homes can be delivered towards meeting projected household growth of 14,000 households (2006-28). This is the level of housing provision that the Council considers can be provided without adverse impact on the Meriden gap, without an unsustainable short-term urban extension south of Shirley and without risking any more generalised threat to Solihull's high quality environment…".
Housing Provision: The Parties' Respective Cases
"9. Will data and research currently held by Regional Authority Leaders' Boards still be available?
Yes. The regional planning function of Regional LA Leaders' Boards – the previous Regional Assemblies – is being wound up and their central government funding will end after September of this year. The planning and research they currently hold will still be available to local authorities for the preparation of their local plans whilst they put their own alternative arrangements in place for the collection and analysis of evidence….
10. Who will determine housing numbers in the absence of Regional Strategy targets?
Local planning authorities will be responsible for establishing the right level of local housing provision in their area, and identifying long term supply of housing land without the burden of regional housing targets. Some authorities may decide to retain their existing housing targets that were set out in the revoked Regional Strategies. Others may decide to review their housing targets. We would expect that those authorities should quickly signal their intention to undertake an early review so that communities and land owners know where they stand.
11. Will we still need to justify the housing numbers in our plans?
Yes – it is important for the planning process to be transparent, and for people to be able to understand why decisions have been taken. Local authorities should continue to collect and use reliable information to justify their housing supply policies and defend them during the LDF examination process. They should do this in line with the current policy in PPS3.
12. Can I replace Regional Strategy targets with "option 1 numbers" [i.e. the policy on figures submitted by local authorities to the regional authorities as part of the regional process of fixing housing provision]?
Yes, if that is the right thing to do for your area. Authorities may base revised housing targets on the level of provision submitted to the original Regional Spatial Strategy Examination (Option 1 targets), supplemented by more recent information as appropriate. These figures are based on assessments undertaken by local authorities. However, any target selected may be tested during the examination process especially if challenged and authorities will need to be ready to defend them."
Mr Dove also relied upon paragraph 218 of the NPPF (quoted at paragraph 66(i) above).
i) considering whether there are policies in the NPPF which are consistent/inconsistent with those full needs;ii) constraining the figure which represents the full objectively assessed needs where any adverse impacts of meeting those needs "would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits, when assessed against the policies in [the NPPF] taken as a whole or specific policies in [the NPPF] indicate development should be restricted" (paragraph 14 of the NPPF); and
iii) where the result is a constrained figure (i.e. a figure which, on policy grounds, is less than the full objectively assessed figure for housing need in that area), cooperating with adjoining or other near-by local planning authorities on the strategic matter of meeting that otherwise unmet need (section 33A of the 2004 Act).
Discussion
"[The Council] maintains that the SLP is fully meeting the identified housing needs of the Borough, but has considered higher levels of housing at the option stage."
That can only be explained by "housing needs" being used in a policy on sense. Leaving aside any obligation to meet unmet need from an adjacent authority (not in play here, because the Inspector throughout worked on the basis that there was no such need), the Council of course need not – and would not – consider meeting levels of housing higher than the full objectively assessed need.
i) Although the first bullet point of paragraph 47 directly concerns plan-making, it is implicit that a local planning authority must ensure that it meets the full, objectively assessed needs for market and affordable housing in the housing market, as far as consistent with the policies set out in the NPPF, even when considering development control decisions.ii) Where there is no Local Plan, then the housing requirement for a local authority for the purposes of paragraph 47 is the full, objectively assessed need.
"… The words in [the first bullet point of paragraph 47], 'as far as consistent with the policies set out in the Framework' remind one that the Framework is to be read as a whole, but their specific role in that sub-paragraph seems to me to be related to the approach to be adopted in producing the Local Plan. If one looks at what is said in that sub-paragraph, it is advising local planning authorities:
'to ensure that their Local Plan meets the full, objectively assessed needs for market and affordable housing in the housing market area, as far as is consistent with the policies set out in this Framework.'
That qualification contained in the last clause quoted is not qualifying housing needs. It is qualifying the extent to which the Local Plan should go to meet those needs. The needs assessment, objectively arrived at, is not affected in advance of the production of the Local Plan, which will then set the requirement figure."
That makes clear that, in the context of the first bullet point in paragraph 47, policy matters and other constraining factors qualify, not the full objectively assessed housing needs, but rather the extent to which the authority should meet those needs on the basis of other NPPF policies that may, significantly and demonstrably, outweigh the benefits of such housing provision. It confirms that, in plan-making, full objectively assessed housing needs are not only a material consideration, but a consideration of particular standing with a particular role to play.
"There is insufficient evidence to demonstrate that Solihull does not intend to full meet its objectively assessed housing requirements …".
All of this makes clear, in my view, that the Inspector erred in his approach to this issue: he failed to have proper regard to the policy requirements of the NPPF.
Ground 2
"… Joint working should enable local planning authorities to work together to meet requirements which cannot wholly be met within their own areas – for instance, because of lack of physical capacity or because to do so would cause significant harm to the principles and policies of this Framework…".
"It is considered that 11,000 (net) additional homes can be delivered towards meeting projected household growth of 14,000 (2006-2028)."
That (he submitted) accepts that there is a shortfall of 3,000 between housing needs and housing requirement; and there is no evidence of any attempts to cooperate between the Council and its neighbours to work out how and where this unmet need will in fact be met.
Ground 3
Introduction
"Local planning authorities with Green Belts in their area should establish Green Belt boundaries in their Local Plans which set the framework for Green Belt and settlement policy. Once established, Green Belt boundaries should only be altered in exceptional circumstances, through the preparation or review of the Local Plan. At that time, authorities should consider the Green Belt boundaries having regard to their intended permanence in the long term, so that they should be capable of enduring beyond the plan period." (emphasis added)
Policy and Factual Background
"2.4 Many detailed Green Belt boundaries have been set in local plans and in old development plans, but in some areas detailed boundaries have not yet been defined. Up-to-date approved boundaries are essential, to provide certainty as to where Green Belt policies do and do not apply and to enable the proper consideration of future development options. The mandatory requirement for district-wide local plans, introduced by the Planning and Compensation Act 1991, will ensure that the definition of detailed boundaries is completed.
…
2.6 Once the extent of a Green Belt has been approved it should only be altered in exceptional circumstances. If such an alteration is proposed the Secretary of State will wish to be satisfied that the authority has considered opportunities for development within the urban areas contained by and beyond the Green Belt. Similarly, detailed Green Belt boundaries defined in adopted local plans or earlier approved development plans should be altered only exceptionally….
2.7 Where existing local plans are being revised and updated, existing Green Belt boundaries should not be changed unless alterations to the structure plan have been approved, or other exceptional circumstances exist, which necessitate such revision.
2.8 Where detailed Green Belt boundaries have not yet been defined, it is necessary to establish boundaries that will endure…".
"When local authorities prepare new or revised structure and local plans, any proposals affecting Green Belts should be related to a time-scale which is longer than that normally adopted for other aspects of the plan. They should satisfy themselves that Green Belt boundaries will not need to be altered at the end of the plan period. In order to ensure protection of Green Belts within this timescale, this will in some cases mean safeguarding land between the urban area and the Green Belt which may be required to meet longer-term development needs…. In preparing and reviewing their development plans authorities should address the possible need to provide safeguarded land. They should consider the broad location of anticipated development beyond the plan period, its effects on urban areas contained by the Green Belt and on areas beyond it, and its implication for sustainable development…"
"B2. Safeguarded land comprises areas and sites which may be required to serve development needs in the longer term, i.e. well beyond the plan period. It should be genuinely capable of development when needed.
B3. Safeguarded land should be located where future development would be an efficient use of land, well integrated with existing development, and well related to public transport and other existing and planned infrastructure, so promoting sustainable development.
B4. In identifying safeguarded land local planning authorities should take account of the advice on housing in PPG3 and on transport in PPG13….
B5. Development plans should clearly state the policies applying to safeguarded land over the period covered by the plan. They should make clear that the land is not allocated for development at the present time, and keep it free to fulfil its purpose of meeting possible longer-term development needs….
B6. Development plan policies should provide that planning permission for the permanent development of safeguarded land should only be granted following a local plan or UDP review which proposes the development of particular areas of safeguarded land. Making safeguarded land available for permanent development in other circumstances would thus be a departure from the plan."
"Bearing in mind the apparent conflict between the possible allocation of these sites for housing in the future and the latest regional strategy, I consider an urgent review of their suitability as long-term housing sites should be undertaken. This should not delay the adoption of the [UDP Revision], but should inform its next review under the new… regime…".
"Given the current adequacy of housing land supply, both within the Plan period and beyond, and bearing in mind the permanent nature of the established Green Belt boundaries, I cannot see any general justification for identifying further safeguarded land. This would require amendments to existing Green Belt boundaries which, in the absence of any exceptional circumstances, could not be justified in terms of current national policy or the latest regional strategy. Similarly, since these sites have been removed from the Green Belt relatively recently, after a thorough debate at two UDP inquiries, there would have to be some very special circumstances to justify their re-inclusion in the Green Belt. In the absence of exceptional circumstances, ad hoc amendments to the Green belt boundary to either allocate additional or alternative long-term housing sites, to remove existing safeguarded sites, would undermine the integrity and enduring nature of the existing Green Belt boundary established in the adopted UDP. Furthermore, any loss of the Green Belt land without directly supporting urban regeneration would be contrary to the latest regional spatial strategy. Consequently, I can see no general justification for any changes to existing Green Belt boundaries, and these matters are best addressed on a site-by-site basis."
"If further housing land is needed, during or beyond the current Plan period, safeguarded greenfield land may not necessarily be the first choice, particularly since most identified sites lie outside the [Major Urban Areas] where new housing development is to be focused, and both PPG3 and RPG11 give priority to previously developed land. Such a policy could also prejudice the release of other more suitable sites that may come forward in the future…".
"… amending the text accompanying Policy H2 to confirm that, although these sites have been removed from the Green Belt and safeguarded to meet longer term housing needs, no decision has yet been taken on the positive allocation of any of these sites for housing, and that they are not intended as 'reserve' housing sites in the event of shortfalls in housing land supply;"
and
… subject to the Council's priorities in undertaking a review of this UDP Review…, priority be given to assessing the suitability of safeguarded land for housing against current national policy and the latest regional strategy, along with an assessment of longer term housing land supply, housing strategies and potential housing sites, to inform the next review of this UDP."
"The Council will identify sites to help to meet long-term (i.e. post-2011) housing needs. In areas excluded from the Green Belt for this purpose, strong development control measures will apply limiting any development on the land only to uses which would:
(i) Be allowed in the Green Belt under Policy C2;
(ii) Not prejudice the long-term use of the site for housing.
The possible future designation of the land for housing will be determined through subsequent reviews of the [UDP]."
The Sites – with the other 15 sites previously identified – were again identified as safeguarded land.
The Inspector's Report
"There is also serious concern about the proposed return to the Green belt of some Safeguarded land previously identified in the [UPD]. However, when the [UDP] was examined, it was made clear that the status of this land should be reviewed in the context of the approved and emerging WM RSS strategy for urban renaissance. [The Council] undertook this review, and rejected the future development of sites at Tidbury Green because this settlement lacks the range of facilities necessary for further strategic housing growth, the scale of development envisaged would also be far too large to meet local housing needs and would threaten the coalescence with other settlements, including Grimes Hill. National policy enables reviews of the Green Belt to be undertaken (NPPF ¶ 84), including considering the need to promote sustainable development, and it is clear from [the Council's] evidence that these sites would not meet this objective. These factors constitute legitimate reasons and represent the exceptional circumstances necessary to justify returning these sites to the Green Belt."
i) The risk of coalescence between Tidbury Green and Grimes Hill, in a gap already narrowed since 2005 by the grant of planning permission by the adjacent authority for housing on land at Selsdon Close in Grimes Hill (see paragraph 9 above), which would undermine the integrity and function of this part of the Green Belt.ii) Planning permission had been refused for the land at Norton Lane in the adjacent Bromsgrove District (again, see paragraph 9 above), on Green Belt grounds.
iii) Planning permission had been refused for the Lowbrook Farm site in January 2013, before it had been allocated to the Green Belt, as it conflicted with the SLP spatial strategy, the land not being within a village identified for strategic housing growth.
iv) The development of the Sites was out of proportion with the existing settlement, and would completely dominate it.
v) As envisaged in the 2005 review, the suitability of the Sites for housing was assessed through the SHLAA, which concluded that they did not meet the minimum criteria for access to key services and were unsuitable to meet identified local housing needs. The Tidbury Green Farm was also considered to have "unacceptable impact on green belt functions and openness".
Those reasons were reflected in the Council's written submissions to the Inspector dated 20 December 2012, to which I was also referred.
The Legal Background
i) Planning guidance is a material consideration for planning plan-making and decision-taking. However, it does not have statutory force: the only statutory obligation is to have regard to relevant policies.ii) The test for redefining a Green Belt boundary has not been changed by the NPPF (nor did Mr Dove suggest otherwise).
a) In Hunston, Sir David Keene said (at [6]) that the NPPF "seems to envisage some review in detail of Green Belt boundaries through the new Local Plan process, but states that 'the general extent of Green belts across the country is already established'". That appears to be a reference to paragraphs 83 and 84 of the NPPF. Paragraph 83 is quoted above (paragraph 109). Paragraph 84 provides:"When drawing up or reviewing Green Belt boundaries local planning authorities should take account of the need to promote sustainable patterns of development…".However, it is not arguable that the mere process of preparing a new local plan could itself be regarded as an exceptional circumstance justifying an alteration to a Green Belt boundary. National guidance has always dealt with revisions of the Green Belt in the context of reviews of local plans (e.g. paragraph 2.7 of PPG2: paragraph 83 above), and has always required "exceptional circumstances" to justify a revision. The NPPF makes no change to this.b) For redefinition of a Green Belt, paragraph 2.7 of PPG2 required exceptional circumstances which "necessitated" a revision of the existing boundary. However, this is a single composite test; because, for these purposes, circumstances are not exceptional unless they do necessitate a revision of the boundary (COPAS at [23] per Simon Brown LJ). Therefore, although the words requiring necessity for a boundary revision have been omitted from paragraph 83 of the NPPF, the test remains the same. Mr Dove expressly accepted that interpretation. He was right to do so.iii) Exceptional circumstances are required for any revision of the boundary, whether the proposal is to extend or diminish the Green Belt. That is the ratio of Carpets of Worth.
iv) Whilst each case is fact-sensitive and the question of whether circumstances are exceptional for these purposes requires an exercise of planning judgment, what is capable of amounting to exceptional circumstances is a matter of law, and a plan-maker may err in law if he fails to adopt a lawful approach to exceptional circumstances. Once a Green Belt has been established and approved, it requires more than general planning concepts to justify an alteration.
The Parties' Contentions
"I do not find in either of these decisions any clearcut ruling that if a council making a new green belt local plan is concerned with white unallocated land on the edge of the green belt in an earlier plan it must find that exceptional circumstances exist before it can alter the green belt boundary at this point. The decision of the Court of Appeal in the Carpets of Worth case shows that a local authority must have regard to Government green belt policies in… PPG2, but if it concerned with white unallocated land I can see no reason why in the exercise of its discretion it should not make a very clear finding, on green belt policy grounds, why the uncertainties which had existed when the previous plan was made have now been resolved, and why it should not in those circumstances determine to bring the land into green belt now without being out into the strait jacket of having to decide whether circumstances which can properly be described as exceptional exist. The duty of a council pursuant to section 36 of the 1990 Act is to have regard to Government policy. Provided that it has regard to it it is entitled to depart from it so long as it gives adequate reasons for doing so: see Carpets of Worth."
Mr Dove submits that that covers this case.
Discussion
"I would hold that the requisite necessity in a PPG 2 paragraph 2.7 case like the present – where the revision proposed is to increase the Green Belt – cannot be adjudged to arise unless some fundamental assumption which caused the land initially to be excluded from the Green Belt is thereafter clearly and permanently falsified by a later event. Only then could the continuing exclusion of the land from the Green Belt properly be described as 'an incongruous anomaly'".
In other words, something must have occurred subsequent to the definition of the Green Belt boundary that justifies a change. The fact that, after the definition of the Green Belt boundary, the local authority or an inspector may form a different view on where the boundary should lie, however cogent that view on planning grounds, that cannot of itself constitute an exceptional circumstance which necessitates and therefore justifies a change and so the inclusion of the land in the Green Belt (see Hague at [32] per Collins J. Collins J in Hague held that, in addition to the undoing of an assumption on which the original decision was made, a clear error in excluding land from the Green Belt is sufficient, no such error is suggested here; and I need not consider that aspect of Hague further.)
i) I have referred to two sites beyond the Bromsgrove district boundary, namely land at Selsdon Close and land at Norton Lane (paragraph 9 above). In 2005, the former was allocated, not to the Green Belt, but as an Area of Development Restraint. Since 2005, planning permission for housing development has been granted. In the SLP examination, the Council submitted to the Inspector that there was the risk of coalescence between Tidbury Green and Grimes Hill, in a gap already narrowed since 2005 by the grant of planning permission for housing on the Selsdon Close site. However:a) In paragraph 3.149 of his 2005 report, the Inspector found that:"… Both sites are well-contained and the Green Belt boundary remains firm and well-defined. There is no erosion of the gap between Solihull and Redditch and, given the retention of Green Belt around Grimes Hill in Bromsgrove DC, no risk of coalescence with this settlement…".b) Selsdon Close was not in the Green Belt, and possible future development must have been contemplated in 2005.c) The grant of planning permission for Selsdon Close was not referred to by the Inspector in his SLP report as a change in circumstances sufficient to support the justification of a change in Green Belt boundary (or, indeed, referred to at all).In short, there has been no change in circumstances since 2005: the Inspector – the same inspector – appears simply to have taken a different planning view of the adverse impact of coalescence between Tidbury Hill and Grimes Hill.ii) The land at Norton Lane was in the Green Belt in 2005, and, since then, housing development on that site has been refused on Green Belt grounds. That is unsurprising. That development control decision was presumably made in the knowledge that the Sites are white unallocated land. Again, no reference to the Norton Lane site is made by the Inspector in his SLP Report; but, in any event, it is difficult to see how the refusal of planning permission for that Green Belt site could support justification for a change in the Green Belt boundary. The reasons for the refusal of permission merely stressed the importance of the Green Belt in this area. That does not support a contention that the allocation of further land into the Green Belt is justified on grounds of exceptional circumstances.
iii) Planning permission had been refused for the Lowbrook Farm site in January 2013, as it conflicted with the SLP spatial strategy, the land not being within a village identified for strategic housing growth. I do not see how this can possibly justify a change in the Green Belt boundary. Planning permission was refused on the basis of a conventional planning balance, the land being white unallocated land with the policy restrictions in Policy HS5 I have described (see paragraph 119 above), and the policy factors from the spatial strategy being sufficient to outweigh the factors in favour of development. This simply shows the planning system functioning as it should.
iv) The development of the Sites would be out of proportion to the existing settlement, and would completely dominate it. This is the only point relied upon by the Council that concerns Green Belt factors. However, the position with regard to the sites and the settlement of Tidbury simply has not materially changed since 1997.
v) The Council also rely on the fact that, as envisaged in the 2005 review, the suitability of the Sites for housing was assessed through the SHLAA, which concluded that they did not meet the minimum criteria for access to key services and were unsuitable to meet identified local housing needs. The Tidbury Green Farm was also considered to have "unacceptable impact on green belt functions and openness". However, these conclusions were drawn on the basis of the conventional planning balanced exercise, and on the basis that the Sites were unallocated land. The SHLAA conclusions merely emphasise that, as policy currently stands, it may be unlikely that either of the Sites will be developed even if they remain as unallocated land.
"… Following assessment in the [SHLAA], this land is no longer considered suitable for development and is proposed to be returned to the Green Belt."
Conclusion