Proposed Submission Core Strategy and Policies Development Plan Document Review

CHAPTER 1: Introduction

1.1. What the Document Covers

(2) 1.2. This document is the Core Strategy and Policies development plan document for Ipswich. It forms part of the Ipswich Local Plan. It covers three areas of policy.

• Firstly it sets out a strategic vision and objectives to guide the development of the town (Chapter 6);
• Secondly it promotes the spatial strategy for the development of the town to 2031 through strategic policies (Chapter 8); and
• Thirdly, it provides a suite of policies to control, manage and guide development across the Borough (Chapter 9).

1.3. It also includes two non-policy based areas. Firstly a section on the context to the whole document which explains, amongst other things, the planning system (Chapter 2), the New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership (Chapter 3), the Duty to Co-operate (Chapter 4), and an explanation as to how all Ipswich's planning documents fit together (Chapter 1). It also paints a picture of Ipswich in terms of its geography, history and character and provides some facts about Ipswich as a place (Chapter 5). Secondly, there is a section on implementation, targets and monitoring proposals (Chapters 10, 11 and 12).

1.4. At the back of this document there are a limited number of appendices providing more detail to the policies, for example on open space standards.

1.5. How the document is structured

1.6. Each of the two main policy chapters (8 and 9) follows the same broad structure. In each case a policy is identified and then structured into the following sections:

• A short introduction to the issue;
• The policy; and
• A justification of that solution.

1.7 The purpose of the document

(1) 1.8 This document sets out the strategy for the future development of Ipswich to 2031. It indicates broadly how and where the Borough will accommodate development to meet local needs identified through the evidence base. It also explains how it will ensure this is done in a sustainable way. It contains detailed policies to enable the management of development in Ipswich. Proposed development will be assessed against all relevant policies contained within this plan, the Site Allocations and Policies (Incorporating IP-One Area Action Plan) Development Plan Document and any other relevant plan.

1.9 More fundamentally, the purpose of the document is to support the Council's 'place shaping' role. This involves the Council in showing community leadership and working closely with partners locally, to ensure that Ipswich's problems are tackled and that a shared vision for the future is realised in a coordinated way.

1.10 The Local Plan consists of a series of documents that together will guide development in Ipswich (for more information see Chapter 2).

1.11 The Local Plan itself sits in a context of many more plans and strategies prepared at sub-regional and local levels to guide the work of the Council and its partner organisations. Some of the key sub-regional and local strategies are illustrated in Diagram 1.

Diagram 1

Context for the Ipswich Local Plan

1.12 The status of the document

1.13 The adopted Core Strategy and Policies development plan document is formally part of the development plan and therefore has significant weight via the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 - i.e.

"... for the purpose of any determination to be made under the planning Acts the determination must be made in accordance with the (development) plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise." (Section 38(6) of the Act).

1.14 The Council is required to keep the plan under review and this review updates the adopted plan of December 2011.