Object

Representation ID: 5240

Received: 16/03/2023

Respondent: Southbourne Parish Council

Legally compliant? Yes

Sound? No

Duty to co-operate? Yes

Bullet 9

Summary: At present the Wildlife Corridor area shown around the Ham Brook differs between the Local Plan and the Neighbourhood Plan. The Wildlife Corridor should be larger as shown in the Southbourne Parish Neighbourhood Plan, Submission Modified Plan 2014 – 2029 Ham Brook Strategic Wildlife Corridor Map (Plan D, page 47). The results of surveys commissioned by the District Council confirm this, as do the more thorough surveys commissioned by the Parish Council and validated by the Sussex Biodiversity Record Centre.

It is not clear whether the Map prepared by the District Council is definitive, or a strategic guideline. The Local Plan (Policy NE4, Map NE4a and para. 4.16) appears to confirm that the boundaries are definitive. However, District Council officers in discussion with officers of the South Downs National Park (Duty to Cooperate Statement of Compliance Jan 2023, page 38) it appears that that it was agreed that details would be agreed through Neighbourhood Plans. This conflict requires rectification.

Conclusion - The Wildlife corridor should be extended to include the area shown in the Neighbourhood Plan on the basis of the evidence secured by both District and Parish Councils. Confirmation is required about whether boundaries are defined in the Local Plan or in Neighbourhood Plans.