NON-RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT IN RESIDENTIAL AREAS

RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT ON NON-RESIDENTIAL SITES

HSG6 THE PROVISION OF AN APPROPRIATE AMOUNT OF HIGHER DENSITY RESIDENTIAL ACCOMMODATION WILL BE ENCOURAGED IN SCHEMES FOR THE REDEVELOPMENT OF SUITABLE NON-RESIDENTIAL SITES WITHIN, OR IN THE VICINITY OF, THE BOROUGH'S TOWN AND VILLAGE CENTRES, AS IDENTIFIED ON THE PROPOSALS MAP. THEREFORE, PLANNING PERMISSION WILL BE GRANTED PROVIDED THAT:-

(i)	THE PROPOSAL AS A WHOLE IS IN KEEPING WITH THE CHARACTER, SCALE AND DESIGN OF THE AREA;
(ii)	THE PROPOSAL COMPLIES WITH POLICY ELE9 IF THE CURRENT LAWFUL USE OF THE SITE IS FOR EMPLOYMENT;
(iii)	ALL PROPOSED LAND USES ARE COMPATIBLE WITH EACH OTHER AND THE SURROUNDING AREA; AND
(iv)	THE PROPOSAL DOES NOT UNREASONABLY DISPLACE, DISCOURAGE OR FETTER USES WITHIN OR IN THE VICINITY OF THE SITE, THAT ARE CONSIDERED TO BE DESIRABLE TO THE LOCAL ECONOMY OR CONTRIBUTE TO THE VITALITY OR VIABILITY OF THE AFFECTED TOWN OR VILLAGE CENTRE.

4.19. Locations within, on the edge of, or close to town and village centres may be suitable for higher density housing especially, but not exclusively, for the young or the elderly who prefer accommodation within easy walking distance of local facilities. Regard should also be had to HSG5 on making full use of land. Affordable housing may often be the preferred type of housing in these locations.

4.20. Such locations are at present in a variety of land uses but are often subject to development pressures for more intensive use. While the Council may wish to see employment uses safeguarded, there are likely to be sites where a high density residential use is appropriate and the proportion will depend on the individual circumstances, characteristics and location of each site. The Council will encourage such mixed use development in appropriate circumstances. Policy HSG6 should be used, as appropriate, in conjunction with Policies GEN7, ELE4, STC4 and COM1.

NON-RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT IN RESIDENTIAL AREAS

HSG23 WHEN CONSIDERING PROPOSALS FOR NON-RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT WITHIN PREDOMINANTLY RESIDENTIAL AREAS, THE COUNCIL WILL APPLY THE SAME CRITERIA AS CONTAINED IN POLICY HSG16 ABOVE.

Naturally, not all proposed developments in the residential areas of the Borough are residential; therefore, it is necessary, in order to protect the amenities of the surrounding residents, to ensure that proposals do not detract from the appearance and character of the area, and that all proposals fully comply with all the criteria contained within Policy HSG16.

For Reference

DESIGN AND LAYOUT OF RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT

HSG16 PROPOSALS FOR RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT AND REDEVELOPMENT, INCLUDING INFILL DEVELOPMENT AND EXTENSIONS, SHOULD BE SYMPATHETIC TO, AND NOT DETRACT FROM, THE APPEARANCE AND CHARACTER OF THE SURROUNDING AREAS. THEREFORE, PLANNING PERMISSION WILL BE GRANTED FOR PROPOSALS THAT:-

(i)	RESPECT THE INDIVIDUAL FEATURES OF THE SITE INCLUDING LEVELS AND TOPOGRAPHY;
(ii)	ARE IN KEEPING WITH THE SCALE, PROPORTION, LEVELS, AND LAYOUT OF BUILDINGS, ROADS, PARKING PROVISION AND OPEN SPACES IN THE AREA;
(iii)	TAKE ACCOUNT OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE SIZE OF THE PROPOSED AND EXISTING BUILDINGS, THE PLOT SIZE AND THE PREVAILING DENSITY OF THE AREA;
(iv)	TAKE ACCOUNT OF THE DISTANCE BETWEEN A PROPOSED DWELLING AND ITS SITE BOUNDARIES WHICH SHOULD BE CONSISTENT WITH OTHER BUILDINGS IN THE SURROUNDING AREA;
(v)	TAKE ACCOUNT OF THE NEED FOR ADEQUATE SPACE BETWEEN THE PROPOSED NEW BUILDINGS AND THOSE BUILDINGS REMAINING, COMMENSURATE WITH THE SIZE OF BUILDINGS UNDER CONSIDERATION;
(vi)	ARE IN KEEPING WITH THE VISUAL CHARACTERISTICS OF ANY IDENTIFIABLE STYLE, FORM OR DETAIL IN THE SURROUNDING AREA;
(vii)	ENSURE THAT THE HEIGHT AND MASSING OF ITS VARIOUS ELEMENTS ARE NOT UNDULY PROMINENT IN RELATION TO THE SURROUNDING AREA;
(viii)	AVOID A CRAMPED FORM OF DEVELOPMENT
(ix)	AVOID OVERLOOKING AND AN UNREASONABLE LOSS OF PRIVACY OR AMENITY;
(x)	ENSURE THAT THE USE OF MATERIALS AND LANDSCAPING ARE APPROPRIATE TO THE SURROUNDING AREA; AND
(xi)	ENSURE THAT THE SITING OF ANY NEW DEVELOPMENT, INCLUDING GARAGES, TAKES ACCOUNT OF THE EXISTING BUILDING LINE, WHERE DISTINCT, AND DOES NOT DOMINATE THE ROAD FRONTAGE .

ALL PROPOSALS SHOULD ALSO COMPLY WITH POLICIES HSG5, HSG18 AND ENV2 AS APPROPRIATE.

4.39. The Council supports the strategy of the Government and the SSP'94 to make full and effective use of land resources in the urban area. However, it is necessary to ensure that the quality of the environment is safeguarded and maintained for existing and future residents. Therefore, the Council will seek to ensure that proposed new dwellings and extensions complement their surroundings in terms of the scale, size and siting of dwellings, the use of materials, styles of building that are appropriate to the character of the area and the inclusion of an appropriate amount of landscaping. The Council will have special regard to the size of building plots compared with the surrounding area, in order to avoid overlooking, retain privacy and protect the character of individual areas. Reference should also be made to Policy ENV3 on public safety and crime prevention in the Environment Chapter

4.40. It is important that all new plots formed, and the portion of original plots that remain after a curtilage has been subdivided, are of adequate size for the proposed dwelling and also in relation to those in the surrounding area and adjacent dwellings. There is also concern that attempts are made to obtain permission for new dwellings that are simply too large for their plots. If permitted, such a dwelling or dwellings would be out of scale and there would be insufficient distances between adjoining existing dwellings, both to the rear, and on either side. It is considered neither appropriate nor workable for the REBLP to include a maximum size standard or other figure rigidly defining the relationship between the size of proposed dwellings and plot size. Instead, a robust and strict application of this Policy, especially Criteria (ii), (iii), (iv), (v) and (viii), is considered sufficient to protect the amenities of residential areas where redevelopment is taking place. The Council will place considerable emphasis on the relationship between the size of a proposed dwelling and the size of the plot and thereby seek to control dwelling size and secure an appropriate layout. The Council considers the provision of adequate garden space is of the utmost importance. The 11 metre advisory minimum depth for rear gardens is considered appropriate for smaller and medium sized dwellings but not normally for the larger family dwelling where a greater depth will often be necessary. Poor design features such as views of unsightly garages dominating the road frontage, refuse facilities and large, unrelieved parking areas, can spoil an otherwise satisfactory development and adversely affect the area, and should, therefore, be avoided. The design of roads and footpaths within a residential area is also of considerable importance. The Council has adopted a "Residential Design Guide for New Development" which elaborates some of these principles in more detail.

THE LOCATION OF EMPLOYMENT DEVELOPMENT

ELE3 EMPLOYMENT DEVELOPMENT WILL BE PERMITTED WITHIN THE TOWN AND VILLAGE CENTRES, AS SHOWN ON THE PROPOSALS MAP, AND ON OTHER SUITABLY LOCATED EXISTING SITES IN EMPLOYMENT USE, PROVIDED THAT ANY RESULTING INTENSIFICATION OR USE, IS COMPATIBLE WITH ENVIRONMENTAL, INFRASTRUCTURAL AND OTHER MATERIAL CONSIDERATIONS.

5.24. Having regard to the need to protect the Green Belt, the best use must be made of existing land resources in the urban area, particularly via the recycling of appropriate outworn sites and premises. The town and village centres and traditional industrial estates have been the foci of economic activity in Elmbridge, and the Council will seek to ensure that they remain so. Further guidance on town and village related employment development is provided by Policies ELE4 and STC5. In addition, there is a wide variety of other individual sites in an existing employment use which could, in principle, be appropriate for employment development. In all cases, sites should be suitably located. Taking account of the prevailing settlement pattern within Elmbridge, this means that they are suitable in terms of location, traffic generation and access by means of transport other than the private car, and any proposed development is compatible with the locality in terms of use, scale, design and impact on amenity. Thus there should be no material environmental, infrastructural or other reasons constraining the development or use of the site for employment generally and the particular proposal specifically.

EMPLOYMENT DEVELOPMENT AND RESIDENTIAL AMENITY

ELE5 IN ADDITION TO THE RELEVANT REQUIREMENTS OF POLICIES HSG16 AND HSG20, THE COUNCIL, WHEN CONSIDERING PROPOSALS FOR EMPLOYMENT DEVELOPMENT WITHIN, CONSPICUOUS FROM, OR ACCESSED VIA RESIDENTIAL AREAS, WILL REQUIRE THAT:-

(i)	THE EXISTING ROAD NETWORK IS CAPABLE OF ABSORBING THE LEVEL OF TRAFFIC GENERATED;
(ii)	ADEQUATE SPACE CAN BE PROVIDED ON SITE FOR AN APPROPRIATE LEVEL OF CAR PARKING, WHICH DOES NOT HAVE A SIGNIFICANTLY ADVERSE IMPACT ON THE AMENITY OF THE SURROUNDING AREA;
(iii)	THE SITE IS REASONABLY ACCESSIBLE FROM THE PUBLIC TRANSPORT NETWORK; AND
(iv)	IT IS OF A SUITABLE SCALE AND DESIGN AND COMPATIBLE WITH THE SURROUNDING AREA.

5.26. Given the potential impact that an employment development can have on the area in which it is located, it is essential that any proposal is carefully assessed, especially where residential amenity is a material consideration. Therefore, in order to ensure that a development is compatible with its locality, the Council will consider all aspects of a proposal, including design, density, height, scale, visual appearance, accessibility, traffic movements and car parking provision and location. This assessment will apply to all forms of employment development, including Business (B1) which should, by definition, be compatible with a residential environment. In the absence of sufficient details to the contrary, the assessment of applications will be based upon the form of employment development having the greatest impact. Similarly, if it is considered that any potential subsequent increase in employment or change of use on a site via permitted development rights could have unacceptable local effects, the Council may seek to restrict the overall amount of floorspace, or Use Class, by legal agreement or condition.

IMPACT OF A CHANGE OF USE ON THE SURROUNDING AREA

ENV7 IN CONSIDERING PROPOSALS FOR THE CHANGE OF USE OF LAND AND/OR BUILDINGS, THE COUNCIL WILL SEEK TO ENSURE THAT THE NEW USE WOULD NOT HAVE AN ADVERSE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ON THE SURROUNDING AREA.

7.21. When considering proposals for change of use, it is important to ensure that the new uses are compatible, and do not have an adverse effect, on the surrounding properties and the locality, particularly in a residential environment, and that proposals should not be detrimental to the character of the area.