Agenda item

The Executive Member for Planning and Growth said that East Herts Council had agreed to update the District Plan with a view to commence formal work in early 2026. She said that to facilitate this update, a vast quantity of underpinning evidence was required to support the strategies that the council will ultimately choose.

The Executive Member for Planning and Growth said that various evidence-based studies would inform each policy in the District Plan to ensure that these were based on comprehensive and robust information that addressed key local priorities and issues.

Members were advised that the Hertfordshire Green Infrastructure Study was commissioned by the Hertfordshire Infrastructure and Planning Partnership (HIPP) to update the original 2011 green infrastructure plan and to provide a joint approach on green infrastructure planning.

The Executive Member for Planning and Growth said that the current District Plan was informed by the 2011 Hertfordshire Green Infrastructure Plan, which was endorsed as part of the evidence base to inform the current District Plan. She said that this Hertfordshire Green Infrastructure Strategy would, if adopted, form part of the evidence base for the new District Plan.

Members were advised that the full evidence base was detailed within the Statement of Community Involvement and this could be seen under the environment and landscape scheme. The Executive Member for Planning and Growth said that there was a plethora of evidence documents including items such as the green belt review, climate change study and the water cycle study.

The Executive Member for Planning and Growth said that the purpose of an evidence base was to support and inform the strategy and policies that were eventually included in the District Plan and that for the avoidance of doubt, there was no hierarchy in the evidence base.

Members were advised that the Hertfordshire Green Infrastructure Strategy provided a strategic framework for considering green infrastructure within the district and covered 6 main GI themes, as  detailed within the agenda.

The Executive Member for Planning and Growth said that green infrastructure was multi-functional with a range of benefits for people, nature and the climate, which underlined why it was so important it was conserved and enhanced in East Herts.

Members were advised that the strategy presented an overview of the strengths and weaknesses of Hertfordshire’s current green infrastructure network and identified strategic priorities and actions to restore and improve green infrastructure in Hertfordshire.

The Executive Member for Planning and Growth advised that Officers considered, and she concurred, that the strategic analysis and actions in the Hertfordshire Green Infrastructure HIPP strategy provided an overarching framework that can usefully inform the new District Plan.

The Executive Member for Planning and Growth said that now that work had commenced on collating the evidence base, it was recommended that the strategy was agreed as part of the evidence base for the District Plan.

Councillor Glover-Ward proposed that the recommendation in the report be supported, subject to a slight amendment that had been agreed by the Executive, as detailed on page 33 of the agenda. Councillor Copley seconded the proposal and reserved her right to speak.

The motion to support the recommendation having been proposed and seconded was put to the meeting and upon a vote being taken, was declared CARRIED.

RESOLVED – that (A) the Hertfordshire Green Infrastructure Strategy (2022), attached in three sections as Appendix A, B and C, be agreed as part of the evidence base to inform the new East Herts District Plan, and

(B)   the Hertfordshire Green Infrastructure Strategy (2022) be agreed as a material consideration for Development Management purposes in the determination of planning applications.