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

5 Post-mitigation assessment of reasonable alternative sites

5.1 Overview

5.1.1 The process which has been used to appraise reasonable alternative sites is sequenced through two stages. Firstly, sites are assessed in terms of impacts on the baseline without consideration of mitigation (see Chapter 3). Secondly, the appraisal findings are further assessed in light of any relevant mitigation that is available through emerging GTTS DPD policies prepared by MBC (see Chapter 4), or policies from the adopted LPR³¹ which the GTTS DPD will sit alongside.

5.1.2 The pre-mitigation assessment provides a baseline assessment of each site whilst identifying any local constraints, but does not consider mitigating factors such as local plan policy. The purpose of this stage is to identify the impacts that will need to be overcome for development to optimise sustainability performance.

5.1.3 The post-mitigation assessment considers how mitigating factors, including emerging DPD policy and adopted LPR policy, will help to avoid or reduce the impacts that were identified at the pre-mitigation stage.

5.1.4 It is important to demonstrate the amount of mitigation that may be required to ensure a site can optimise sustainability performance. The level of intervention that may be required to facilitate effective mitigation varies and can help determine the eventual choice of preferred option in the plan. Sites which require low levels of intervention are likely to be preferable to sites that require complex and potentially unviable strategies.

5.2 Post-mitigation site assessments

5.2.1 The post-mitigation assessments are presented in full in Appendix E, where adverse impacts identified through the assessment of sites pre-mitigation for each SA Objective (as explained in full within Appendix C and summarised in Chapter 3) have been reviewed, indicating which of the emerging DPD policies or adopted LPR policies will be likely to mitigate or reduce these adverse effects.

5.2.2 The impact matrix for all reasonable alternative sites post-mitigation is presented in Table 5.1. These impacts have been identified following consideration of the likely mitigation effects of the draft DPD and adopted LPR policies as discussed in Appendix E.

5.2.3 Recommendations to further improve the sustainability performance of development sites, and general recommendations for the Council to consider, are presented in Chapter 8.

³¹ Maidstone Borough Council (2024) Adopted Local Plan Review 2021-2038. Available at: https://localplan.maidstone.gov.uk/home/local-plan-review [Date accessed: 25/09/25]