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Planning Contributions SPD

The Council has analysed Copeland’s infrastructure and is determining the priorities for improving it. (Infrastructure includes not only the physical infrastructure - such as transport, energy and water supply, drainage – but also social and environmental assets - such as sports facilities, community halls and open space). This SPD will set out those priorities as a basis for negotiating planning contributions from developers, so that new development helps to meet the impacts which it has on the Borough. The SPD will also inform negotiations with the developers of the proposed nuclear power station to secure the investment needed to make sure that benefits to the community of nuclear new build are optimised. The Council may decide to adopt a Community Infrastructure Levy, which would be a tariff potentially on all development. The SPD cannot do this and any proposal for a levy would be in a separate document subject to separate consultation and independent public examination.

Site Allocations and Policies Plan

The Site Allocations and Policies Plan will demonstrate how the adopted Core Strategy, and crucially the policies which outline the borough’s ambitious targets for growth and development, will be delivered on the ground, as well as identifying areas to be protected from development. Together with the adopted Core Strategy and Development Management Policies it will provide the basis for determining planning applications.

The Local Plan should allocate enough land to meet the borough’s predicted needs over the plan period (2013-2028) which is identified in the adopted Core Strategy. The Site Allocations and Policies Plan will achieve this with a suite of site specific policies followed by the proposed options for land allocations. Once adopted, they will replace the remaining allocations that have been saved from the Copeland Local Plan 2001-2016.

Development Management DPD Section

Archived Content - This page is for information only.

The Council submitted the Core Strategy and Development Management Policies DPD for independent examination on 31 October 2012. Visit the Core Strategy and Development Management Policies Examination webpage.

Strategic Flood Risk Assessment

A significant proportion of the urban areas within Copeland are situated in close proximity to the coast and the large rivers of the Borough, and these areas are consequently at risk of coastal and fluvial flooding. However, these are not the only flood risks. There are many locations that are threatened by flooding from the numerous small watercourses that are features of the upland and rural nature of Copeland, and from overloaded drainage and sewage systems.

The Copeland Strategic Flood Risk Assessment (SFRA) has been carried out to meet the following key objectives:

to collate all known sources of flooding to identify areas that have a ‘low’, ‘medium’ and ‘high’ probability of flooding;

to recommend appropriate land uses within flood affected areas;

to recommend possible flood mitigation solutions.

West Cumbria Employment Land and Premises Study

The West Cumbria Employment Land and Premises Study was commissioned by Copeland and Allerdale Borough Councils.

West Cumbria Retail Studies

In April 2008, Copeland Borough Council, Allerdale Borough Council and Cumbria County Council commissioned WYG Planning and Design to undertake an assessment of the current and future retail role of the main centres within the West Cumbria Sub-Region. The study includes an in-depth analysis of the retail provision within the main centres of the West Cumbria Sub-Region, including an assessment of the extent to which the centres are meeting the retail needs of the local population and the role of the local shopping network and the Sub-Regional shopping hierarchy. The West Cumbria Retail Study was published in April 2009.

The West Cumbria Retail Assessment Addendum was published in January 2012.

Whitehaven Town Centre Heritage and Design Series

A number of documents have been produced as part of the Whitehaven Town Centre Heritage and Design Series.

Leisure Studies Series

In 2010 the Council commissioned a series of leisure studies examining open space, sport and recreation facilities for the Copeland Borough. The three reports are available to download below.

Infrastructure Deficit Report

The Local Development Framework is underpinned by work on the Borough’s infrastructure. By “infrastructure” we mean the basic facilities, services, and installations needed to make Copeland work as a place to live, do business or visit. It falls into three broad categories: physical, such as roads and railways, drainage and energy supply systems - what many people would define as infrastructure; community infrastructure – schools, libraries, community centres, leisure, sports, cultural, health and police facilities; green infrastructure – parks and public open space, and also anything that contributes to or maintains biodiversity.

Development may increase pressure on aspects of infrastructure which are deficient or at capacity. Where this is the case, planning obligations can be imposed to make sure that developers contribute to work which mitigates the impact of the development. This might include, for example, improvements to road junctions to reduce traffic congestion, or the provision or improvement of open space and sports facilities.

Whitehaven Town Centre and Harbourside SPD

Copeland Borough Council formally adopted the Whitehaven Town Centre and Harbourside Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) on 6th September 2012.

Copeland Borough Council

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