Agenda item

Report attached.

Members considered a report of Councillor Munsif Dad BEM JP, Leader of the Council, presenting the Main Modifications to the Council’s Publication Draft Local Plan which the appointed independent Inspector had identified as necessary in order for the Plan to be found sound and legally compliant.  The report also sought Council approval for the Main Modifications and accompanying documents to be published for public consultation, together with approval of the proposed consultation arrangements.

 

Councillor Dad provided a brief introduction to the report including a summary of the chronology so far and the main purpose of the Local Plan, which would help to define the location of developments to provide jobs and homes for the future.  He also outlined the Main Modifications proposed and the timetable for consultations.

 

The report indicated that preparation of a new Local Plan had commenced in 2017.  The Local Plan (Strategic Policies and Site Allocations) had set out the strategic vision, objectives, and spatial strategy for the Borough, including the strategic planning policies that would guide future development.  It established a framework to ensure that development accorded with the principles of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).  Covering the period 2021 to 2040, the Plan identified the main locations for growth, including site allocations to meet development requirements of 194 dwellings per annum (3,686 dwellings in total) and 70 hectares of employment land.

 

Once adopted, the new Plan would replace the saved elements of the 1996 Local Plan, and the 2012 Core Strategy.  The two key documents representing the full Development Plan for Hyndburn would then be the new Local Plan (the subject of the current report), and the existing Development Management DPD 2018, which contained local (non-strategic) policies.  The Accrington Area Action Plan would also remain in force as part of the development plan for Hyndburn.

 

The Plan had been subject to several stages of public consultation between 2018 and 2024.  Following approval by Council, it had been submitted to the Secretary of State for examination in March 2025.  An independent Inspector had been appointed to examine the Plan, and Public Hearing Sessions had been held between 16^th and 25^th September 2025.

 

Following the Hearing Sessions, officers had prepared a Schedule of Actions and submitted additional evidence to address matters of soundness raised by the Inspector.  On 27^th November 2025, the Inspector had issued a post-hearings letter setting out the next steps and identifying any remaining concerns, a copy of which was provided at Appendix 1 to the report.  The principal matters arising from that letter were as summarised below:

 

• The Inspector had confirmed that the Council had met the statutory Duty to Cooperate, demonstrating effective and constructive engagement with relevant bodies on strategic planning matters.

 

• The Inspector was satisfied that there was no need to pause the examination pending the outcome of National Highways’ funding bid for improvements to M65 Junction 8, which were required to support growth in the Huncoat area, including the Huncoat Garden Village strategic housing site.

 

• The Inspector had concluded that three sites proposed for addition to the Green Belt (land north of Blackburn Road, Oswaldtwistle; John Street and Tinker Brook Allotments, Oswaldtwistle; and land south of Moorfield Industrial Estate, Clayton le Moors) should not be designated as Green Belt, as exceptional circumstances had not been demonstrated.

 

• The Inspector had recommended the removal of housing allocation H4 (Land at Hopwood Street) due to concerns regarding deliverability and the absence of a realistic prospect of development within the plan period.

 

• Amendments were required to Policy SP6 (Centre Hierarchy, Strategy and Retail Provision) to more accurately reflect the role of Hyndburn Retail Park as a predominantly large-scale retail and leisure destination.

 

• An amendment was required to Policy SP10 (Housing Provision) to reduce the affordable housing requirement on brownfield sites from 20% to 10%, reflecting viability evidence indicating that the higher requirement would be unviable.

 

Main Modifications

 

The above modifications, as well as those put forward by the Council during the Examination, those put forward in response to representations made by objectors to the Plan and those in response to questions put to the Council by the Inspector during the Public Hearing Sessions, were set out in full in a Main Modifications Schedule at Appendix 2 to the report.

 

The Main Modifications covered a wide range of matters and varied in their extent, some amending or replacing a single word, and others replacing an entire policy or section of text.  All of the Main Modifications were necessary to ensure that the Plan was sound and legally compliant.

 

Proposals Map

 

The Proposals Map illustrated the spatial application of policies within the Local Plan.  While it was not subject to consultation in its own right, where Main Modifications necessitated changes to the Proposals Map, these were illustrated in a separate schedule for clarity (Appendix 3 to the report).

 

Additional Modifications

 

Alongside the Main Modifications that were deemed necessary by the Inspector, there were a number of other minor changes to the Plan, called ‘Additional Modifications’.  These changes included the correction of typographical errors and updating of matters of fact.  These Additional Modifications had no material impacts on the policies of the Plan and did not fall within the scope of the Inspector during the Examination of the Local Plan.

 

It was however, proposed that the Additional Modifications and associated changes to the Proposals Map were published alongside the Main Modifications.  The proposed Additional Modifications were included at Appendix 4 to the report.

 

Sustainability Appraisal and Habitats Regulation Assessment

 

Sustainability Appraisal (SA) and Habitat Regulation Assessment (HRA) processes were two of the key legal tests for plan making.  They were an integral and iterative part of Local Plan preparation and helped to inform each stage of the process.

 

The Main Modifications and Policies Map Changes at Appendices 2 and 3 of the report had been subject to SA and HRA by the Council and no significant adverse impacts had been found.  SA and HRA addendums would be published alongside the Main Modifications.

 

Consultation Arrangements

 

Public consultation on the necessary Main Modifications was required for the Inspector to be satisfied that all interested parties, not just those who had participated during the Hearing Sessions, had had a chance to comment on them.  Comments were only invited on Main Modifications, which were put forward without prejudice to the Inspector’s final conclusions on the Plan.  This was not an opportunity to re-open matters that had been addressed or could have been addressed during the Hearing Sessions.

 

The proposed consultation would run for a six-week period and would include the issuing of a press release, notification of all consultees on the Local Plan consultation database and statutory bodies, and the publication of consultation materials online and at local libraries, in accordance with the Council’s Statement of Community Involvement.

 

It was proposed that the consultation should commence on Friday 23^rd January 2026 and close on Friday 6^th March 2026, although this might be subject to change.

 

Next Steps

 

All representations received on the Main Modifications would be collated by the Council and sent to the Inspector for her consideration.  Once the Inspector had considered the representations, she would set out her recommendations in her Report, which the Planning Inspectorate would send to the Council for publication.  The Council was then obliged by the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 to publish the Report as soon as reasonably practicable.

 

The Local Plan would then be prepared for adoption, implementing the recommendations set out in the Inspector’s Report.  The Council would then need to take a decision on whether to adopt the Local Plan.

 

Councillor Dave Parkins reminded members of his lengthy involvement in opposing the Huncoat Garden Village proposal.  He remained concerned that the highways infrastructure was not sufficient for a development of the scale proposed and commented that his suggestion of a one-way road system had not been taken up.  He was also concerned that the proposed development would not provide a new school and that allotments would be lost.  Overall, he was not against housing development, but he believed that this proposal was ill thought out, given that the former power station site was effectively land locked. 

 

Councillor Zak Khan commented that the Local Plan and its final consultation stage was still within the remit of Hyndburn councillors to agree.  It was the last chance for local representatives to get this process right, as the Borough would cease to exist in 2028.  He expressed some concerns about the changes proposed to the areas no longer identified for inclusion in the Green Belt, particularly land north of Blackburn Road, Oswaldtwistle.  He envisaged that many residents would wish to comment on the changes and, therefore, requested:

 

• That those directly affected be re-consulted;
• That the consultation period be extended, if possible;
• That every effort be made by the Council to draw the proposed changes to the attention of Hyndburn residents.

 

Councillor Judith Addison sought clarification about how elected members should comment on the proposed Main Modifications and whether this should be by direct e-mail or as part of the public consultation process.  She also spoke about the modification proposed in connection with land at Hopwood Street.  The land had originally been included in the Derelict Land Programme, but had subsequently been allocated for housing in the 1996 Local Plan.  Nearby residents had not been in favour of that type of development.  Now it was proposed that the land should be withdrawn as a housing site.  She asked if the Council could turn this site into a nature reserve or if any other plans were being considered.

 

Councillor Munsif Dad summed up the debate, responding as follows:

 

• He acknowledged that Councillor Parkins had consistently made his views known about the Huncoat Garden Village proposal throughout the Local Plan process;
• He undertook to ask about a possible extension to the consultation period for the Main Modifications, as he also considered that the time period was too short;
• He commented that he was in favour of the extension of the Green Belt and that he would encourage officers to make the case for this, where realistically possible;
• He noted that the Planning Department would arrange for the formal consultation, but he encouraged elected members also to spread the word;
• He would be happy to meet the Head of Planning and Transportation, together with Councillor Khan, to discuss the consultation process;
• He was familiar with the Hopwood Street site and would prefer this to be developed for housing.  The land was privately owned.  Local residents currently wanted it the land left open, but it was not currently in a good state.  The trees had been removed from the site, but it seemed unlikely that this land would be developed for housing in the foreseeable future.

 

Resolved                                 (1)   That the Council notes the Inspector’s recommendations regarding the Main Modifications required to the Publication Draft Local Plan, as set out in the Inspector’s post-hearing letter dated 27^th November 2025 (Appendix 1) and detailed in the Main Modifications Schedule (Appendix 2).

 

(2)   That the Head of Planning and Transportation is granted delegated authority to make any necessary amendments to the Main Modifications and associated documents in order to correct errors and/or improve clarity prior to the commencement of the consultation period.

 

(3)   That the Main Modifications and associated documents are approved for the purposes of public consultation.

 

(4)   That all representations received during the consultation period are reviewed by officers and submitted to the Inspector for her consideration prior to the publication of her final report.