Volume 1: Sustainability Appraisal of the Maidstone Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople Development Plan Document 2023–2040

4 Assessment of draft policies

4.1 Preface

4.1.1 The emerging DPD contains a range of strategic and non-strategic policies, including development management (DM) policies. At this stage of plan making, seven draft strategic policies have been prepared which cover broader issues including the spatial strategy and quantum of GTTS growth to be delivered through the DPD, whilst the two DM policies focus on more detailed planning guidance, such as the design and layout of new GTTS development.

4.1.2 The DPD additionally includes a draft vision and objectives which set out the aims for the GTTS community and meeting their requirements during the plan period until 2040.

4.1.3 The nine over-arching DPD policies are as follows:

• TR1 Spatial strategy;
• TR2 Approach to meeting accommodation needs;
• TR3 Safeguarding permitted sites;
• TR4 Accommodation on allocated sites;
• TR5 New public site provision;
• TR6 Rural exception sites;
• TR7 Accommodation on non-allocated sites;
• TR8 General site design and layout; and
• TR9 Dayrooms and amenity blocks.

4.1.4 The sustainability performance of the draft DPD vision, objectives and policies has been evaluated based on the SA Framework (see AppendixA) and the methodology as set out in Chapter 2. The assessments are set out in full within Appendix D. This chapter summarises the results of these assessments.

4.1.5 The DPD also contains 27 site allocation policies; these are discussed in Chapter6.

4.2 Overview of policy assessments

4.2.1 The summary impact matrices for the draft vision, objectives, and all draft policy assessments are presented in Table 4.1. These impacts should be read in conjunction with the assessment text narratives in Appendix D.

4.2.2 The draft vision and objectives of the GTTS DPD show strong sustainability performance, particularly in meeting accommodation needs (SA Objective 1), promoting social inclusion, and improving access to services, with major positive effects identified for housing, community cohesion, health and wellbeing, and the economy (SA Objectives 1, 3, 4 and 5). Minor positive impacts are also noted for natural resources, landscape, climate change, and accessibility (SA Objectives 2, 6, 10 and 13). The sustainability performance could be further strengthened through more explicit commitments to active travel, biodiversity, green and blue infrastructure, and the conservation of cultural heritage and landscape character.

4.2.3 Strategic Policies TR1-TR7 support the phased, sustainable delivery of GTTS accommodation across Maidstone, aiming to meet identified needs (529 pitches and 7 plots) and reduce unauthorised encampments. The spatial strategy (TR1) and pitch provision (TR2) are expected to have major positive impacts on housing (SA Objective 1), while safeguarding existing sites (TR3), identifying allocations (TR4), and enabling public (TR5), rural exception (TR6), and windfall (TR7) sites offer additional flexibility. The policies promote community integration, access to services and sustainable transport, health and wellbeing, and economic inclusion, leading to minor positive effects (SA Objectives 2, 3, 4 and 5). However, development in some locations may result in minor negative effects on natural resources, air quality, climate change, landscape, and biodiversity (SA Objectives 6, 8, 10, 11 and 13) due to the potential loss of undeveloped land, increased emissions, and impacts on rural character. Effects on water, flooding, and cultural heritage (SA Objectives 7, 9 and 12) are more uncertain and site-specific.

4.2.4 DM Policies TR8 and TR9 promote high-quality, sustainable GTTS sites. Policy TR8 delivers minor positive impacts across housing, community wellbeing, accessibility, climate change, biodiversity, water, and landscape (SA Objectives 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 10, 11 and 13) by encouraging safe access, appropriate drainage, energy efficiency, and BNG, while protecting landscape character. However, the policy could be strengthened by explicitly supporting active travel and reinforcing cultural heritage conservation. Policy TR9 complements this by ensuring that dayrooms and amenity blocks are appropriately designed to meet residents' needs, support social integration, and minimise environmental impacts, supporting minor positive effects on housing, health, landscape, climate, biodiversity, and water efficiency (SA Objectives 1, 4, 7, 10, 11 and 13).

4.2.5 Opportunities for enhancement may also be secured through policies in the DPD. Where there are opportunities to improve the sustainability performance of draft policies, or general recommendations for MBC to consider in the plan making process, these have been identified in the SA (see recommendations in Chapter 8).