Housing SPD
In July 2018 the council adopted a new Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) on Housing for the determination of planning applications from 1 August 2018. The Housing Supplementary Planning Document has been produced to expand upon the housing policies in the Basingstoke and Deane Borough Local Plan (2011-2029). It comprises a number of individual chapters relating to: affordable housing; housing mix for market housing; housing for older people and those in need of care; and self-build and custom housebuilding. The SPD replaces old guidance including the Affordable Housing SPD (2007) and the Housing Mix and Mobility Standards SPD (2007) which have been withdrawn.
| The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) was revised in July 2018 and February 2019, after the adoption of the Housing SPD. The NPPF is an important material consideration in the determination of planning applications.
The NPPF (2019) updates the threshold for the size of planning applications that can provide affordable housing. It requires that affordable housing 'should not be sought for residential developments that are not major developments, other than in designated rural areas (where policies may set out a lower threshold of five units or fewer)'. Major development, for housing, is defined as developments of 10 or more homes, or sites with an area of 0.5ha or more. Within the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), which is a designated rural area, affordable housing (or an equivalent off-site contribution) will be sought on all developments providing net new dwellings (as of June 2021). This is because adopted Local Plan Policy CN1 (Affordable Housing) requires affordable housing on all market sites, and so establishes this threshold in the AONB. The council will therefore apply these thresholds in the determination of planning applications. Table 2.1 in the SPD is therefore superseded, and the council will apply the thresholds set out below: |
|---|
| Dwellings (net) | Site area | Affordable housing requirement |
|---|---|---|
| 1-4 outside AONB | <0.5ha | No affordable |
| 1-4 outside AONB | >0.5ha | Equivalent off-site contribution |
| 1-4 inside AONB | All | Equivalent off-site contribution |
| 5-9 outside AONB | <0.5ha | No affordable |
| 5-9 inside AONB | <0.5ha | On-site provision |
| 5-9 | >0.5ha | On-site provision |
| 10+ | All | Onsite provision |
Table 2.1 Site size thresholds for affordable housing
The NPPF also changes the definition of affordable housing. This supersedes the definition set out in SPD Appendix 2.1. View the new definition of affordable housing in Annex 2 of the National Planning Policy Framework.
