68030 Staffordshire Moorlands Local Plan Sustainability Appraisal Report of Preferred Options Local Plan July 2017 Draft Sustainability Appraisal Report July 2017 1 Consultation questions 5 2 Introduction 8 3 Appraisal methodology 14 4 SA Scoping stage 37 4.1 SustainabilityAppraisal Framework 52 5 Summary of findings 61 5.1 Appraisal of housingrequirementoptions 62 5.2 Appraisal of alternative employment land requirements 82 5.3 Appraisal of site options 91 5.3.1 Gypsy and Traveller site options 218 5.4 Appraisal of alternative developmentapproachesfor Cheadle 227 5.5 Appraisal of preferred option policies 238 6 Cumulative Effects 253 7 HRA and EqIA 261 7.1 Introduction 261 7.2 Habitats RegulationsAssessment - methodology 261 7.3 Habitats RegulationsAssessment - Summary of findings 261 7.4 EqualityImpact Assessment - methodology 264 7.5 EqualityImpact Assessment - Summary of findings 265 8 Monitoring Proposals 270 9 Quality Assurance Checklist 275 10 Next steps 282 11 Consultation responses 284 Staffordshire Moorlands Preferred Option Local Plan SA - July 2017 Draft Sustainability Appraisal Report July 2017 12 Appraisal of site options 292 12.1 Leek 293 12.1.1 Other uses 362 12.1.2 Sites outside current development boundary 403 12.2 Biddulph 467 12.2.1 Urban extension 499 12.2.2 Other uses 504 12.2.3 Sites within Green Belt 518 12.3 Cheadle 607 12.3.1 Urban extension 653 12.3.2 Other uses 658 12.3.3 Sites outside the development boundary 672 12.4 Larger villages 826 12.4.1 Larger Villages: Brown Edge to Cheddleton 958 12.4.2 Larger villages: Endon to Kingsley 1056 12.4.3 Larger villages: Upper Tean to Werrington & Cellarhead 1177 12.5 Smaller villages: Bagnall to Checkley 1316 12.5.1 Smaller villages: Dilhorne to Foxt 1371 12.5.2 Smaller villages: Hollington to Longsdon 1398 12.5.3 Smaller villages: Lower Tean to Rushton Spencer 1453 12.5.4 Smaller villages: Stockton Brook to Whiston and other areas 1508 12.6 Gypsy and Traveller sites TR001-TR016 1554 12.7 Gypsy and Traveller sites TR017-TR033 1624 12.8 Additionalsite appraisals July 2017 1701 12.8.1 Leek 1702 12.8.2 Biddulph 1716 12.8.3 Villages 1738 13 Appraisal of alternative housing requirement options 1757 14 Appraisal of alternative options for an employment land 1839 requirement 15 Appraisal of alternative development approaches for Cheadle 1876 Staffordshire Moorlands Preferred Option Local Plan SA - July 2017 Draft Sustainability Appraisal Report July 2017 16 Appraisal of preferred option policies 1916 16.1 Strategic policies 1917 16.2 DevelopmentManagement Policies 2013 16.2.1 Sustainable Development 2014 16.2.2 Economy and Employment 2044 16.2.3 Housing 2074 16.2.4 Town Centres and Retailing 2104 16.2.5 Design and Conservation 2122 16.2.6 Sustainable Communities 2147 16.2.7 Natural Environment 2166 16.2.8 Transport 2172 16.3 DevelopmentSite Policies 2184 17 Site Appraisals - Constraints maps 2186 17.1 Locationof Gypsy and Traveller site options 2202 Staffordshire Moorlands Preferred Option Local Plan SA - July 2017 Draft Sustainability Appraisal Report July 2017 Consultation questions Staffordshire Moorlands Preferred Option Local Plan SA - July 2017 4 Draft Sustainability Appraisal Report July 2017 1 Consultation questions 1.1 The purpose of this consultation is to seek your views on this SA Report prepared to accompany the Preferred Options Local Plan July 2017. We would particularly welcome your comments on the following: Question 1 Do you support the overall approach taken to the appraisal of options? Question 2 Have we correctly identified the main significant effects and potential mitigation measures? Question 3 Do you wish to make a comment on the appraisal of one or more Local Plan policy option(s)? Question 4 Doyouwishtomakeacommentontheappraisalofoneormorehousingoremployment requirement option(s)? Question 5 Doyouwishtomakeacommentontheappraisalofoneormoreproposeddevelopment site option(s)? Question 6 Doyouwishtomakeacommentontheappraisalofalternativedevelopmentapproaches for Cheadle? Staffordshire Moorlands Preferred Option Local Plan SA - July 2017 5 Draft Sustainability Appraisal Report July 2017 Question 7 Do you wish to make a comment on the monitoring proposals, in particular the sustainability effects to be monitored and the information to be collected, including by whom and when? Question 8 Do you wish to make any other comments about this SA Report? Question 9 Does this July 2017 draft SA Report, together with the SA Scoping Report, provide sufficientinformationatthisstagetoensurethatanappropriateSAiscarriedoutofthe emerging Staffordshire Moorlands Local Plan? Question 10 Do you wish to make a comment on either or both of the supporting documents: the HabitatsRegulationsAssessmentreportoftheStaffordshireMoorlandspreferredoption LocalPlanJuly2017,ortheEqualityImpactAssessmentreportoftheemergingLocal Plan at this stage? Both these reports are available alongside this draft SA Report. 1.2 Details of how to respond are provided from paragraph 2.22 of this report. 6 Staffordshire Moorlands Preferred Option Local Plan SA - July 2017 Draft Sustainability Appraisal Report July 2017 Introduction Staffordshire Moorlands Preferred Option Local Plan SA - July 2017 7 Draft Sustainability Appraisal Report July 2017 2 Introduction 2.1 Staffordshire Moorlands District Council is in the process of preparing a Local Plan which, when adopted, will guide future development across the plan area, up to the year 2031. 2.2 This draft Sustainability Appraisal Report has been published to accompany the Preferred Options Staffordshire Moorlands Local Plan July 2017. Sustainability Appraisal (SA)isanongoingprocess. ThisSAReportfollowsonfromtheInitialSustainabilityAppraisal ReportthataccompaniedtheLocalPlanPreferredOptionsSitesandBoundariesconsulted on between 28th April 2016 and 13th June 2016; and the Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report, consulted on between 13th August 2014 and 26th September 2014. 2.3 National Planning Practice Guidance describes how sustainability appraisal is a systematicprocessthatmustbecarriedoutduringthepreparationofaLocalPlan. Itsrole istopromotesustainabledevelopmentbyassessingtheextenttowhichtheemergingplan, when judged against reasonable alternatives, will help to achieve relevant environmental, economic and social objectives. 2.4 This process is an opportunity to consider ways by which the Plan can contribute to improvements in environmental, social and economic conditions, as well as a means of identifyingandmitigatinganypotentialadverseeffectsthatthePlanmightotherwisehave. By doing so, it can help make sure that the proposals in the Plan are the most appropriate giventhereasonablealternatives. ItcanbeusedtotesttheevidenceunderpinningthePlan andhelptodemonstratehowthetestsofsoundnesshavebeenmet. Sustainabilityappraisal should be applied as an iterative process informing the development of the Local Plan. 2.5 ThesustainabilityappraisalprocessisgovernedbyEuropeanandnationallegislation, supported by government policy, which includes: ThePlanningandCompulsoryPurchaseAct2004whichrequiressustainabilityappraisal of emerging Development Plan Documents and SupplementaryPlanning Documents. The requirements of European Directive 2001/42/EC (often known as the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Directive) which requires the preparation of an environmental report that considers the significant environmental effects of a plan or programme. ThisDirectiveistransposedintoUKlawbyTheEnvironmentalAssessment ofPlansandProgrammesRegulations2004:StatutoryInstrument2004No.1633(SEA Regulations). Planning practice guidance issued by the Department for Communities and Local Government on Strategic environmental assessment and sustainability appraisal; (1) published 9 February 2015 . 2.6 This sustainability appraisal incorporates the requirements of the SEA Directive, by combining the more environmentally-focused considerations of SEA with wider social and economic effects. Staffordshire Moorlands Local Plan 2.7 The Staffordshire Moorlands Core Strategy was adopted in March 2014. The plan identifiedahousingrequirementof300homesperyearandanemploymentlandrequirement of at least 24ha over the period 2011 to 2026. The Core Strategy also established the 1 https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-environmental-assessment-and-sustainability-appraisal 8 Staffordshire Moorlands Preferred Option Local Plan SA - July 2017