District Councillor Role in a Rural Area

The Role of a Ward District Councillor – by Cllr Vic Ient

This is a copy of a talk I gave to Southease Parish at their annual parish meeting held on Saturday 23^rd of April 2016. The meeting was held last Saturday, early evening in the beautiful ancient parish church. It was a lovely sunny evening. Clearly they are a very active parish and for such a small population they seem to do quite a lot. It was also a social occasion for people to get together and I enjoyed meeting catching up with residents. 

Here is a copy of my talk: 

Kingston Ward - Click for a larger image

Thank you for inviting me along. I am lucky to represent such a beautiful part of the South East.  My Council Ward includes the villages along the lower Ouse from Piddinghoe to Kingston as well as Falmer and St Ann Without. Some 11,000 acres in all – most of it the South Downs. Nearly 900 households and a population of just over 2000.  There are five parishes as well as hamlets.

I was elected last May for a four-year term, that’s if I last that long! I was first councillor in the 1970s in Kent. Then my working career took over but now I’m ‘retired’ I found myself councillor again. Norman Baker asked me to stand and the irony was that I got elected and sadly he didn’t. I probably came to his notice because of my campaigning on local issues either directly or via the South Downs Society and the CPRE.

As you may know there are 4 Democratic tiers of elected government: parish, district, county, national and European. In some areas there are also elected mayors and we are just about have our second election for a Police Commissioner.

Of course services and responsibilities between authorities differ. The Lewes District Council has direct responsibility for things like housing, Environmental health, Waste collection and planning.

In addition to district and County councils there are other powerful bodies involved in our local area including the local enterprise partnerships. We sit within the Coast to Capital LEP which stretches right up to Croydon and we border the Southeast LEP which stretches right up to Essex. Since 2012 we have had the South Downs National Park. The whole of my ward is in the park.

Members of the District Council get appointed to these bodies but for an ordinary member like myself it’s not usual. Though, I believe it’s important for a ward member to keep a close watching brief on what those bodies are doing. Indeed, it is important to keep a watching brief on all of the things which affect our area including public transport, government agencies and to be aware of how we can use the EU funding to the best benefit of the area.

At the district council members are appointed to various committees and I sit on Planning and Scrutiny committees as well as some others. I also try and shadow the lead member for waste and recycling.    

     

Planning keep me very busy. The District Council deals with delegated planning on behalf of the National Park and thus handles some 95% of all planning applications in the area. On top of planning applications there are planning issues to deal with.

The scrutiny committee should be able to scrutinise anything which is going on in the district as long as it is operated by a public body. In practical terms it is quite difficult to bring new things up at the committee so one often uses the item on the agenda for ward members questions in order to raise matters. This also applies at the full Council and the Cabinet.

The Cabinet is the most powerful group in the Council. Most councils around the country adopted the ‘Cabinet’ form of local government following its introduction in the year 2000. This effectively vests most of the power of the council in the hands of  7 cabinet members. These are called ‘lead members.’ I don’t agree with this system but I believe the roles of a ward member is  to keep a very close watching brief on what the ‘lead members’ are doing and to try and influence them to the benefit of the local community.

One of the other jobs for a District Council Ward member is to act as a channel of communication to the various government bodies to and from the residents of their Ward. For instance,  alerting them to upcoming issues and changes. Over and above this the Ward member has the opportunity to act as champion for his area. Unfortunately this isn’t how most of the officers of the council see things. Sometimes one gets the impression you’re being a nuisance to them!

Officers have wide-ranging delegated powers and are constantly making decisions which affect the local community. I see the role of the Ward member as someone who is constantly checking on what’s going on to try and influence the officer’s decision or to try and bring it under some form of democratic control.

This also applies to outside bodies. The Local Enterprise Partnerships are very powerful. They are directly funded by government and can affect the local area. For instance the LEP and our area actively supports a second runway at Gatwick. LEP members are appointed by the Government - it is not a democratic body. This happens a lot these days. By the way Newhaven has just been given economic zone status and that means the council partnering with the 2 LEP.

Another outside body to be involved with is the National Park. Unlike the LEPs this is a fully transparent body although its members are nominated by the government,  the local councils and parishes. I support much of what they have done in their draft local plan and many of their initiatives.

The Environment Agency is another important outside body which a local ward member has to keep an eye on. They are responsible for flood alleviation. They are just about to implement flood alleviation measures in Newhaven and along the River Ouse.

By becoming elected to the District Council one becomes aware of many more government initiatives and changes in legislation. For instance a piece of legislation which is going through Parliament at the moment is the Housing and Planningbill. Many local authorities and certainly my political party are very concerned about the effect of this legislation. The upshot of reviewing new legislation is that you have to study it to understand it and to then go no to provide objective comments or proposals to national government.

As an elected member one becomes involved in how we can save money with the reducing grants from central government. In this respect were partnering with Eastbourne Borough Council and sharing services and officers. That’s all very good but the government is changing the structure of local authorities alongside this. Something which I’m concerned about is the move towards a ‘Greater Brighton.’  A Greater Brighton City Region has been agreed with government before I became elected.  

I work closely with my County Council colleague,  Carla Butler.  Residents can talk to either of us about any district or county council issue. In this respect I am interfacing with the East Sussex County Council frequently with regard to highways issues and public rights of way matters as well as other things like the closure of Rodmell School. For a while now there’s been a consistent trend towards reducing services from the county council - because of government cuts  -  and that means there are lots of consultations. It is important to let local people know about those consultations via parish councils and directly if I have their email addresses but it’s also important for the ward member to make sure they comment adding weight to residents’ concerns.

A Ward member can also kick off his or her own initiatives. Amongst others I have 2 major initiatives - buses and safety on the C7.  The C7 issue has a working party made up of representatives from parishes along the valley and we are hoping to produce a long-term strategy for improvements. For public transport we have been working on ways of stabilising and promoting the bus services. One small victory we have had is to get the 132 bus to come up this side of the Valley on Sundays. I would also like to promote the CTLA dial a ride service.

There’s a myriad of other things which we are  involved with. For instance there is currently a review being undertaken by the Boundaries Commission to change the ward boundaries in our area. The important thing for the ward member to do is to make sure that the boundaries commission get the right feedback. Hopefully I’m doing that.

One of the nice things about being a ward member is getting out and about seeing people which combines seeing our beautiful countryside while helping residents ……… and, of course,  coming to events like this which is very pleasant.

Thank you

Cllr Vic Ient

​

Lewes District Councillor - [Kingston Ward: Falmer - St Ann Without - Kingston - Swanborough - Iford - Northease - Rodmell - Southease - Piddinghoe] 

T: 07788720929     E: vic.ient.libdem@gmail.com    W: http://sussexcampaign.com/

https://www.facebook.com/vic.ient    https://twitter.com/victor_ient      Google:  SussexCampaign  

Shooting Lodge on the South Downs - Planning Hearing

As the Lewes District Council did not advertise the upcoming public hearing I have written to residents in my ward alerting (see below).  

What does it concern? It relates to the operation of a shooting lodge on a 6 day a week basis in the season which is associated with game shooting on the South Downs. Where is it? Here is a map of the area:

Lodge is shown with a red circle. Footpaths & South Downs Way in green. Public Right of Access to Open Access Land shaded in yellow. Click image for larger map. © Crown Copyright 2015. Extract from OS Map OL11

For more information on the planning application see links below. For related information click on these headings:

Attending a public hearing 

Further reading

-------

Dear Residents,

Last year a planning application was submitted to extend the use of a building on the South Downs as a ‘shooting lodge’ to host shooting parties throughout the shooting season on a six-day a week basis. The current situation is that the applicant has appealed. As a result there will be a public hearing on Tuesday 25^th August.

Lodge is shown with a red dot adjacent to the Kingston & Iford Hill Site of Special Scientific Interest

Details of this appeal are: 

Application Number: SDNP/14/05468/CND

Application Summary: Variation of condition 1 attached to planning approval LW/09/1177 to vary the use of the building as a facility connected to game shooting and agriculture, the use shall only occur between Monday to Saturday 7am-5pm

The hearing into this appeal will start at 10:00 on 25 August 2015.

The venue for the hearing is: The Stanley Turner Ground, Kingston Road, Lewes, East Sussex, BN7 3NB

To see the documents go to: http://planningpublicaccess.southdowns.gov.uk/online-applications/

Then put in the application number: SDNP/14/05468/CND    Here you will see the inspector’s letter and all the application documents.    

To write to the inspector use one or all of these emails:

teamp13@pins.gsi.gov.uk  or cassandra.low@pins.gsi.gov.uk or enquiries@pins.gsi.gov.uk

or go via: www.planningportal.gov.uk/planninginspectorate

It is important to quote ref: APP/Y9507/W/15/3002162

A number of people have asked me about the procedure relating to planning hearings. I have been in touch with the Planning Inspectorate and here is their answer:

“Anyone is entitled to attend a hearing without prior notification.  The Inspector will conduct the hearing and all procedural matters will be under the guidance of the Inspector after he or she has formally opened the proceedings.  If you wish to submit representations before the hearing, you should send these to the relevant case officer and it will be for them, on consultation with the Inspector, as to whether they are accepted. Anything submitted on the day of the hearing will be for the Inspector to decide whether to accept.”

Speaking: “You do not need to give prior notification. You simply attend on the day and the Inspector will guide you from then on.”

If you need to confirm anything please contact the Inspectorate: Customer Support Team, Planning Inspectorate for England:  0303 444 5000  enquiries@pins.gsi.gov.uk

Here is an extract from the Planning Inspector’s letter of the 16^th June: 

As your local district councillor, I urge you to consider whether or not you support the application, as once the inspector has made his decision there will be no further opportunity to object to the shooting activity. 

Regards

Vic Ient

Lewes District Councillor - [Kingston Ward: Falmer - St Ann Without - Kingston - Swanborough - Iford - Northease - Rodmell - Southease - Piddinghoe] 

T: 07788720929     E: vic.ient.libdem@gmail.com    W: https://sussexcampaign.wordpress.com/ 

Save Cockshut Lane

For walkers, dog walkers & cyclists

Re: Cockshut Lane (the western end from the Stanley Turner ground to the corner near the bridge under the A27) 

Blind turning  left under A27

Since 2005 there has been a planning application condition which prohibited the use of Cockshut Lane (the western end from the Stanley Turner ground to the corner near the bridge under the A27) by vehicles associated with the business units at Rise Farm. This is part of the multi-user path to the west of Lewes. As you may know there was considerable effort put in by many people to designate this track as a ‘bridleway’ which has been supported by the ESCC and LDC and the South Downs National Park. 

Blind corner by water works

Sadly the gate at the Stanley Turner end of the track has been damaged and removed. This has led to an increase of cars and vans using the track speeding around two blind corners which is a very real danger to walkers, dog walkers & cyclists. 








The owner of Rise Farm, has now put in an application (SDNP/15/00575/CND) to have the vehicular restriction lifted. The application can be viewed and comments posted at: http://planningpublicaccess.southdowns.gov.uk/online-applications/

Then enter the above reference number. 

The closing date for comments (on-line by e-mail or by post) is 4th March 2015 

If you would object to the use of the track as a road please register your objection on line of by writing in.

More information on the situation:

Click on map to see detail.

This map show existing options for the Rise Farm businesses. Adding a 3rd (red dotted line) would provide an unrestricted (no speed limit) 'rat run into Lewes day and night! 

map Ordnance Survey copyright   

Click on picture to see detail.

The Highways Agency & ESCC own the track! 

The gates at each end have been removed &/or damaged. 









ESCC & the Highways Agency own the track! Please read this copy of my email to Rupert Clubb, Director of Communities, Economy and Transport at ESCC on 25 Feb 2015:

Dear Sir,

Your department has submitted a note in relation to the above-mentioned application saying they wish to make no comments. Please would you review your Council’s position on this application? Please take into consideration the following:

1)   I find this very surprising for a number of reasons, none the least of these being the fact that the county council are in the process of becoming the owner of the trackway concerned in this application. I understand that the Highways Agency and the East Sussex County Council are in the last stages of arranging the transfer of land ownership.

2)   I’m also surprised to find that your department wishes to make no comment since the county council are also in the last stages of confirming the route of this trackway as being a bridleway.

3)   Allowing the free movement of vehicles along this trackway will present a danger to walkers and cyclists which include mothers with prams, disabled with mobility scooters and children on their way to school at the Priory School.

4)   I trust that your officers are aware also that this trackway forms part of the proposed Egrets Way which has the support of the South Downs National Park and I believe your own authority.

5)   The businesses at Rise Farm already have 2 options in terms of entry and exit to their site:

i)     For large vehicles – via Ham Lane into Mountfield Road, which is already used by heavy vehicles travelling to and from the household waste recycling centre and the sewerage works.

ii)   For small vehicles – via Cockshut Road and under the railway bridge to Southover High Street.

6)   Opening up the general use of this track way to the west will encourage other users to use this as a cut-through to various parts of Lewes thus increasing the danger to pedestrians and cyclists, day-time and night-time. NB there is no lighting on this track.

7)   Please note that the original planning permission for this trackway  was to allow agricultural vehicles only to gain access to land on the southern side of the A27 bypass. I have no objection to this specific condition and I don’t think any of the local residents in the area do either.

8)   The original control of access was by 2 gates – one at the west and one at the east end. I believe these gates were installed by East Sussex County Council. Sadly they have now being damaged or removed.

9)   Please do not confuse Cockshut Lane with Cockshut Road.

10)       Please note that this trackway has only been ‘opened up’ in the last few years since the time the gates were removed or damaged. Prior to this and since about 1979 this trackway has been exclusively used for pedestrians, cyclists and authorised agricultural vehicles.

11)       Please remember that this track is used by walkers & cyclists from Cranedown/Kingston Road and Kingston as well as  other villages in the eastern side to the Ouse valley.

I hope you would agree with the points raised in this email but if you do not I would be happy to arrange a site meeting with your officers and representatives of local organisations and groups so that we may discuss the matter in detail.

Neighbourhood Plans

Under the Localism Act (2011) a new form of planning control & development was introduced - Neighbourhood Plans. This empowers local communities giving them a major role in the planning system and allowing them to shaping the development in their areas. 

This guide is designed to get a village, town or area group started in understanding what a neighbourhood plan is. It is focused on the South Downs National Park area. For more information follow the links at the end of this blog. 

This is where the neighbourhood plan fits into the planning system: 

For the town or neighbourhood:

It may only be for the town, parish or area

but it can have a major impact on 

protecting, developing 

and improving the area.

To quote a government planning inspector: 'neighbourhood plans are about land use.' What is the make up of a neighbourhood plan? Quite simply in the end the plan will be made up of these main sections:

What aspects of our local community and area can a neighbourhood plan have an effect on? Here are some examples:

Some general principles for Neighbourhood Plans:

While a Neighbourhood Plan is flexible to some extent in terms of what can be included, you cannot put whatever you like in it:

A Neighbourhood Plan can…

• Decide where and what type of development should happen in the neighbourhood.
• Promote more development than is set out in the Local Plan.
• Include policies, for example regarding design standards, that take precedence over existing policies in the Local Plan for the neighbourhood – provided the Neighbourhood Plan policies do not conflict with the strategic policies in the Local Plan.

A Neighbourhood Plan cannot…

• Conflict with the strategic policies in the Local Plan prepared by the local planning authority.
• Be used to prevent development that is included in the Local Plan.
• Be prepared by a body other than a parish or town council or a neighbourhood forum.
• What can a Neighbourhood Plan contain?

So long as your Neighbourhood Plan complies with the above principles, it can be as narrow or as broad as you wish. But it must be primarily about the use and development of land and buildings. It can also have a say in how buildings should look (their ‘design’), or the materials they are constructed from.

Typical things that a Neighbourhood Plan might include:

• The development of housing, including affordable housing and bringing vacant or derelict housing back into use.
• Provision for businesses to set up or expand their premises.
• Transport and access (including issues around roads, cycling, walking and access for disabled people).
• The development of schools, places of worship, health facilities, leisure and entertainment facilities, community and youth centres and village halls.
• The restriction of certain types of development and change of use, for example to avoid too much of one type of use.
• The design of buildings.
• Protection and creation of open space, nature reserves, allotments, sports pitches, play areas, parks and gardens, and the planting of trees.
• Protection of important buildings and historic assets such as archaeological remains.
• Promotion of renewable energy projects, such as solar energy and wind turbines.

What are the steps in making up the plan. Here is an extract from the CPRE guide:

Useful links (NB: the link may go out of date but the organisation can still be found by searching the web): 

CPRE - Short document and guide

http://www.cpre.org.uk/resources/housing-and-planning/planning/item/2689-how-to-shape-where-you-live-a-guide-to-neighbourhood-planning

file:///C:/Users/Vic/Downloads/How_to_shape_where_you_live.pdf

page 11/12

UK Gov: 

http://planningguidance.planningportal.gov.uk/

http://planningguidance.planningportal.gov.uk/blog/guidance/neighbourhood-planning/what-is-neighbourhood-planning/what-is-a-neighbourhood-plan-and-what-is-its-relationship-to-a-local-plan/

http://planningguidance.planningportal.gov.uk/blog/guidance/neighbourhood-planning/

Guidance:

Locality (national network of community-led organisations):

http://locality.org.uk/resources/neighbourhood-planning-roadmap-guide/

The Royal Town Planning Institute
http://www.rtpi.org.uk/planning-aid/neighbourhood-planning/

South Downs National Park Authority, SDNPA 

https://www.southdowns.gov.uk/planning/planning-policy/neighbourhood-planning/

Forum (anyone can join)

http://southdownsforum.ning.com/group/neighbourhood-planning

Grants:

http://mycommunity.org.uk/programme/neighbourhood-planning/

Old Magistrates Court

Old Magistrates Court - Quora Developments Flat Roof Box Design 

We understand that the SDNPA will meet on the 12th December 2013 to decide on future of this site. 

It may still be possible to submit your comments in these closing stages. Have a go! For the sake of our town!  

See below for recommended wording of objection letter

The historic town of Lewes deserves better than this!

The SDNPA are scheduled to meet on the 14^th November to decide on this application to (a) demolish the existing building & (b) erect a new building in its place. Please would you let the SDNPA know of your objections? We all hope that the authority will reject this inappropriate flat roof design right in middle of the conservation area in the heart of historic Lewes. 

To comment go to:
http://planningpublicaccess.southdowns.gov.uk/online-applications/ Enter the application number (SDNP/13/02497/FUL) and click the ‘comments’ tab. You will then be able to send your comments on line. You can also object to the application to demolish the courthouse by entering that application number: SDNP/13/02499/CON. 

If built this building were constructed it be bang next door to the Grade II Listed Fitzroy Memorial Library. In fact the architects carefully avoided any including of nearby building as you can see from the design sketch above! 

About the architects & the developer:

As indicated by their web site Juice architects are used to designing buildings more suitable for an out-of-town shopping centre or a new town. There is no indication that they have any skill in designing buildings suitable for an historic town. see their website: http://www.juicearchitects.com/4A_01_Sustainability.htm   

As for Quora,  their developments are along same lines of bland that 60s and 70s architecture, much of which is deplored today. Here is an example: http://www.quoradevelopments.com/projects-killamarsh.html. 

And Premier Inn (part of Whitbread plc) who are due to run the hotel aren’t much better:

Here is an example of Premier Inn and the county council riding roughshod over the local opinion despite the submission of a 12,000 signature petition: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-22871341. Premier Inn doesn’t have a good track record in terms of architecture or enhancing the character, fabric and community in towns and cities.  

The existing building





                   Ariel View 

Lewes Town 

Recommended wording of objection e-mail: 

I strongly object to this development and request Refusal of this application because of the scale and design of development and its lack of respect for the traditional materials, scale and appearance of the historic core of Lewes, which will cause harm to the traditional appearance of the national park in this location.

The traditional character of Lewes is set out in the conservation area appraisal (published in 2007 by the LDC & revised by the SDNPA in July 2012, draft) for this historic core of the town where is says that ‘fundamental principles’ must be adhered to for example it says “Any intervention should echo and reinforce those characteristics of the buildings, townscape and public realm of Lewes which make a positive contribution to the town and its local distinctiveness”.

Traditional materials are durable - local brick and tiles or traditional stucco. Roofs are traditionally pitched and tiled, or in Victorian times slate was used. The bulk of older buildings along the High Street were tiled with pitched roofs of red clay tiles or later, with slate roofs, with a return to tiles during the Edwardian period. The existing courthouse building used good quality traditional materials, although from a rather somber pallet. It has a complex tiled, pitched roof which reflects its context. The walls and façade are necessarily rather forbidding partly because the site was walled for security. The buildings did not cover the whole of the site.

This proposal would involve the demolition of the courthouse and its replacement by a flat roofed structure. The new building would have a curved, grey glazed tile elevation which includes shops on the ground floor. with a hotel above, facing towards the public car park regarded as being at the rear of the courthouse. The materials used are not commonly found in the conservation area, nor – by and large - are flat roofs. The main hotel elevation facing the car park is formed of large boxy unit 

Regardless of its durability, the design is out of scale with the smaller units found in Lewes and will not conserve, let alone enhance, the appearance of the conservation area.

The building proposed echoes much of the architecture of the 60s & early 70s which are in many towns & cities in the UK and are seen as eyesores now. 

We, who will have to put up with this structure long after the current developers have disposed of it will not want to be reminded of such architectural failures. 

Historically and currently residents, tourists & visitors are drawn to Lewes from a wide area because of the flint castle, flint and brick walled twittens, and the small scale, pretty streets of warm colours and quaint shops. A test for any new building in the historic core should be whether it will carry on the tradition and in turn become part of the attraction of this historic market town, rather than merely exploiting it.

This development is bland and large in scale. It might be acceptable in a new town context or on the fringe of an industrial area but is out of scale with the historic core of Lewes and will neither conserve nor enhance the South Downs National Park.