Affordable Housing: Dwellings developed specifically
for those in need of a home but whose incomes generally deny
them the opportunity to purchase or rent houses on the open
market. Can refer to dwellings for owner occupation, on either
a wholly owned or shared ownership basis, at the lower cost
end of the market or housing for rent. See Circular 6/98.
Aftercare: An agreed programme of work designed
to bring a restored mineral and waste disposal site to a satisfactory
standard for agriculture, forestry or amenity uses. Normally,
imposed in the form of a planning condition to run for a period
of five years following restoration.
Afteruse: The use to which a restored mineral
or waste disposal site is put following completion and restoration
e.g. agriculture, amenity, public open space.
Aggregates Recycling Facility: Facility for
producing secondary aggregates from construction and demolition
wastes.
Agriculture: Defined by Section 336(1) of
the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 as including: horticulture,
fruit growing, seed growing, dairy farming, the breeding and
keeping of livestock (including any creature kept for the production
of food, wool, skins or furs, or the purpose of its use in the
farming of land), the use of land as grazing land, meadow land,
osier land, market gardens and nursery grounds, and the use
of land for woodlands where that use is ancillary to the farming
of land for other agricultural purposes.
Agricultural/Forestry Worker: A person employed
full time in agricultural or forestry activities whose presence
is necessary 24 hours a day at the place of his employment in
order to carry out his duties.
Allocated Land: Land identified in a development
plan as appropriate for a specific land use.
Ancient Monument: A structure regarded by
the Secretary of State Culture, Media, and Sport as being of
national importance by virtue of its historic, architectural,
traditional or archaeological interest. Scheduled Ancient Monuments
are listed in a schedule compiled under the requirements of
Section 1 of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas
Act, 1979.
Ancient Woodland: An area of woodland which
has had a continuous cover of native trees and plants since
at least 1600 AD, neither having been cleared nor extensively
replanted since then. This date is adopted as marking the time
when plantation forestry began to be widely adopted and when
evidence in map form began to become available.
Ancillary Use: A use which is secondary to,
but associated with, the main use, e.g. car parking secondary
to a use as a retail store.
Area of Archaeological Potential: Areas of
Archaeological Potential (AAP) are areas identified in the Cheshire
Historic Towns Survey. AAP’s are focussed on the historic
cores of settlements and are derived from an assessment of the
archaeological and historical evidence for their origin, growth
and development.
Best Practicable Environmental Option (BPEO):
The outcome of a systematic consultative and decision making
procedure which emphasises the protection and conservation of
the environment across land, air and water. The BPEO procedure
establishes, for a given set of objectives, the option that
provides the most benefits as the least damage to the environment,
as a whole, at acceptable cost, in the long term as well as
in the short term.
Best Value Performance Plan (BVPP): An annual
statement of the Council’s corporate objectives, pledges,
and targets together with reviews of progress in achieving them.
Previously known as the Community Plan.
Biodiversity: The range of life forms which
constitute the living world, from microscopic organisms to the
largest tree or animal, and the habitat and ecosystem in which
they live.
Brownfield: A general term used to describe
previously developed land or buildings. For a more detailed
definition, see PPG3, Annex C.
Bulky Goods Retailing: The sale of large
goods which the customer would not normally be expected to take
away without assistance from vehicular transport. Associated
with items such as carpets, DIY goods and large electrical goods.
Circular: A government publication providing
guidance on specific issues. Identified by the number and the
year in which it was published.
Commitment/Committed Development: Land which
already has the benefit of an unexpired planning permission.
Community Forest: See Mersey Forest
Community Plan: See Best Value Performance
Plan (BVPP)
Commuted Sum: One-off payment made instead
of providing facilities or a service, and which takes away responsibility
to make such provision. Most commonly applied in the context
of open space or landscape maintenance.
Comparison Goods: A term used in retailing
to indicate goods purchased for longer term use and likely to
be subject to ‘comparison’ between suppliers before
purchase. Includes clothing, footwear, household goods, books,
stationery, chemist goods, photographic goods, jewellery, leather,
sports goods, cycles and prams.
Conservation: The planning and management
of resources or assets so as to secure their wide use and continuity
of supply while maintaining their quality, value and diversity.
Used for both built and natural environment contexts.
Conservation Area: An area designated by
a local planning authority under Section 69 of the Planning
(Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act, 1990, regarded
as being an area of special architectural or historic interest
the character or appearance of which is desirable to preserve
or enhance.
Construction and Demolition Wastes: Masonry
and rubble wastes arising from demolition, construction or other
civil engineering projects.
Contaminated Land: Land which is polluted
by noxious or toxic substances.
Convenience Goods: A term used in retailing
to indicate goods purchased for regular consumption. Includes
food, groceries, drink, confectionery, tobacco, newsprint.
Density: The intensity of development in
a given area. Usually measured, for housing, in terms of number
of dwellings per hectare. Net residential density is measured
as the number of dwelling units per hectare of land developed
specifically for housing and directly associated uses. This
includes access roads within the site, private garden space,
car parking and incidental open space/landscaping.
Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions
(DETR): The Government Department responsible for legislation
on planning and other matters related to the environment, policy
advice on a range of transport issues and overseeing the motorway
and trunk road network.
Derelict Land: There is no statutory definition
of derelict land, but it is defined administratively as ‘land
so damaged by industrial or other development that it is incapable
of beneficial use without treatment’.
Development: Defined in Section 55 of the
1990 Town & Country Planning Act as ‘the carrying
out of building, engineering, mining, or other operations in,
on, over, or under land, or the making of any material change
in the use of any buildings or other land’.
District Centre: Secondary shopping centres
primarily serving the ‘convenience’ shopping needs
of a substantial part of the town and also providing other services
and facilities: in Warrington, the district centres are Birchwood,
Stockton Heath, and Westbrook.
Durable Goods: See Comparison Goods and Bulky
Goods Retailing.
Edge-of-Centre Retailing: A location within
easy walking distance (i.e. 200-300 metres) of the town centre
retail core (the principal shopping area)
Employment: For the purposes of this plan
the term employment will normally refer to land intended for
use within classes B1 to B8, as defined in the Town and Country
Planning (Use Classes) Order, 1987. ‘Sui-generis’
and other employment uses outside these categories may also
be appropriate, subject to normal site planning considerations.
Energy-From-Waste (EfW): The recovery of
energy from waste materials, such as heat from incineration,
or gas generation.
English Heritage: The Government’s
statutory adviser on all aspects of the historic environment,
including historic buildings and areas, archaeology, and the
historic landscape.
English Nature: The agency responsible for
advising Government on the conservation of flora, fauna, geological
and physiographical features in England.
Factory Shop: A retail outlet situated within
a factory site selling goods processed, assembled or manufactured
on the premises by that company.
Family Housing: a dwelling unit with two
or more bedrooms, other than sheltered housing or special needs
housing
Farm Diversification: The development of
a variety of economic activities linked to working farms, such
as the provision of bed-and-breakfast, horse livery, etc.
Green Belt: An area of open countryside which
is protected from urban development in order to check urban
sprawl, safeguard the countryside from further encroachment,
prevent towns from merging, preserve the character of historic
towns, and assist urban regeneration.
Greenfield Land: Land which has not previously
been developed. Greenfield land may also include land which
was previously developed, but where the remains of any structure
or activity have blended into the landscape in the process of
time.
Gypsy Caravan Sites: Circular 1/94 gives
revised guidance on the planning aspects of sites for caravanning
which provide accommodation for gypsies.
Ha / ha: hectares. A hectare is an area 10,000
sq. metres or 2.471 acres. (Roughly equivalent to two football
pitches.)
Habitable Rooms: Rooms which form the living
quarters of a dwelling house, i.e. bedrooms, living rooms, dining
rooms, or dining kitchens, but excluding small kitchens, bathrooms,
halls, and landings.
Hazardous Industry: An industry or related
installation which, because of the nature of its process or
the raw materials used or stored, presents a potential threat
to the safety of employees or the general public. It will have
been certified as hazardous by the Health & Safety Executive.
Hectare: See Ha / ha
Heritage: A general term used to refer to
historical and archaeological features, buildings, monuments,
landscape, etc. which are of local, regional, or national interest
and importance.
Household or Domestic Waste: Wastes arising
from private houses, caravans, residential homes etc.
Home Zones: a street or group of streets
designed primarily to meet the interests of pedestrians and
cyclists rather than motorists
‘Important’ Hedgerows: As defined
by The Hedgerows Regulations 1997 made under Section 97 of the
Environment Act 1995. The regulations enable local planning
authorities to protect ‘important’ hedgerows in
the countryside by controlling their removal through a system
of notification. A set of criteria is used to establish whether
a hedgerow is important.
Incineration: Waste disposal method utilising
high-temperature combustion processes.
Industrial Waste: Waste from factories and
industrial and commercial facilities.
Inert Waste: Wastes that do not undergo any
significant physical, chemical or biological transformation.
Infill Site: An area which can accommodate
one or two dwellings within a small gap in an existing, otherwise
built up frontage.
Infrastructure: The provision of roads, transport
facilities, drainage, and services including water and power
supplies. Social infrastructure refers to the availability of
schools, shopping, and other local community facilities and
services.
Inset Village: A village enclosed by, but
excluded from, the green belt.
Landfill Gas: Gas, principally methane and
carbon dioxide, resulting from the biological decomposition
of wastes within a landfill site.
Landfill: Disposal of waste by using it to
fill excavations or occasionally natural land features.
Landraise: The process of depositing waste
at or above ground level to produce a new raised landform.
Land Supply: The amount of land readily available
or likely to become available within a specified period.
Leachate: Potentially polluting liquid resulting
from the biological decomposition of wastes within a landfill
site.
Legal Agreement: See Planning Obligation.
Listed Buildings: A building of special architectural
or historic interest included on a list prepared by the Secretary
of State for Culture, Media and Sport under Section 1 of the
Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act, 1990.
Consent is normally required for its demolition in whole or
part, and for any works of alteration or extension (both internal
and external) which would affect its special interest.
Local Agenda 21: A process to develop a local
programme of action for sustainable development.
Local Centre: A centre offering convenience
shopping facilities which is important to people who live within
walking distance.
Local Nature Reserve: Established by a local
authority under the powers of the National Parks and Access
to the Countryside Act, 1949.
Local Housing Needs: homes required for those
who live or work locally or have local family or other ties.
Materials Recycling Facility (MRF): Facility
where a waste stream is separated to allow recyclable components
to be removed.
Mersey Forest: The Mersey Forest was approved
in 1991 under the Community Forest Programme. The aim of the
project is to increase woodland cover in a broad area of Merseyside
and North Cheshire. The forest will have multiple uses including
recreational and educational opportunities, the creation of
wildlife habitats and landscape enhancement. It is jointly supported
by the Countryside Agency, the Forestry Commission, and local
authorities in the area.
Minerals: Underground materials won by mining.
Mobility Housing: Housing built to certain
standards so that it can be readily adapted to be lived in by
most people with disabilities.
Municipal Waste: Waste collected and disposed
of by, or on behalf of, a local authority. Generally consists
of household waste and some commercial waste and waste taken
to Recycling and Household Waste Centres by the public. It may
also include road and pavement sweepings, gully emptying wastes
and some construction and demolition wastes arising from local
authority activities.
National Nature Reserve (NNR): A nationally
important area of land owned and/or managed by English Nature
to safeguard its geological or wildlife interest.
National Playing Fields Association (NPFA):
The independent national charity which advises on the design,
layout and safety of playing fields and other playing space.
Also acquires, protects and improves playgrounds, playing fields
and other play space.
Net Density: See Density.
New Town Outline Plan: The land use strategy
for the development of Warrington New Town approved in 1972.
Non-inert Waste: Waste that may undergo significant
physical, chemical or biological transformation.
North Cheshire: that area of Warrington BC
which lies outside the North West Metropolitan Area defined
in RPG13 (now RSS).
North West Metropolitan Area: the town of
Warrington (north of the Ship Canal, and its urban area to the
south).
On Deposit: The stage at which the UDP is
formally available for public reaction whether by way of support
or objection. Statutory procedures currently require two deposit
periods, each of 6 weeks minimum duration.
Out-of-Centre Retailing: A term relating
to retail development outside of town centres, but not necessarily
outside urban areas. A ‘town centre’ can include
district, neighbourhood and suburban centres which form part
of the hierarchy of provision in an area.
Outline Planning Permission: Confirms the
principle of developing land for a given land use, normally
for a period of three years.
Park-and-Ride: An arrangement whereby car
parks are provided, often in peripheral locations, to facilitate
passenger transfer to a shuttle bus service for conveyance to
the town centre or a major employment area.
Plan Period: The time period within which
the plan will operate. The UDP end-date is 2016.
Planning Conditions: Requirements attached
to a grant of planning permission in order to ensure the effective
and proper implementation of the development.
Planning Obligation: A legally binding agreement
under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act, 1990,
between the local authority and any person interested in land
in their area for the purpose of restricting or regulating the
development or use of the land, either permanently or during
such periods as may be prescribed by the agreement. Usually
used in connection with off-site requirements for development
on land outside the control of an applicant.
Planning Policy Guidance Note (PPG): Published
by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister to provide concise
and practical guidance. Planning policy guidance notes are produced
for a variety of specific topics. PPG’s are no longer
produced, a list of those remaining as current guidance is in
appendix 1.
Planning Policy Statement (PPS): since the
enactment of the Planning and Compensation Act 2004 the Office
of the Deputy Prime Minister have issued PPS to provide guidance
in planning policy. A list of current guidance is in appendix
1
Primary Aggregate: Sand, gravel and crusted
rock used in the construction industry for purposes such as
making concrete, mortar, asphalt or roadstone.
Primary Route Network: All trunk roads and
important principal roads of more than local significance in
both urban and rural areas, but not motorways. The network is
designated jointly by the Highways Agency and the local highway
authority.
Proposals Map: A map illustrating each of
the detailed policies and proposals in the UDP Written Statement,
defining sites for particular developments or land uses, and
areas within which specific policies apply.
Public Open Space: General term including
all space for formal and informal recreation activities with
access generally open to the public, and usually in public ownership.
Regional Planning Guidance (RPG): Issued
by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and
the Regions. A statement of the overall planning aims for the
region, to set the context within which individual local planning
authorities prepare their development plans.
Regional Economic Strategy: regional strategy
prepared by the North West Development Agency
Renewable Energy: The term ‘renewable
energy’ covers those resources which occur and recur naturally
in the environment. Such resources include heat from the earth
or the sun, power from the wind and from water and energy from
plant material and from the recycling of domestic, industrial
or agricultural waste.
Restraint: As used in housing policies, is
the limiting through planning policies of both the total number
and the rate of development of new housing. The term is also
used in a wider sense in relation to development in parts of
the borough or the region where it is desirable to limit development
either in support of the regeneration of the conurbations, or
for local environmental reasons.
Retail Parks: Sites containing a concentration
of at least three retail warehouses, usually in out-of-centre
locations or on major highway routes, and developed in a less
restrictive era of retail planning policy guidance. Retail parks
are not ‘town centres’ and do not form part of the
hierarchy of retail centres in the borough.
Retail Warehouses: Large single-level stores
specialising in the sale of comparison goods such as household
goods and DIY items, catering mainly for car-borne customers
and often in out-of-centre locations.
Section 106 Agreement: See Planning Obligation.
Site of Interest for Nature Conservation (SINC):
Site of local interest for nature conservation or geology.
Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI):
The designation under Section 28 of the Wildlife and Countryside
Act, 1981, of an area of land of special interest by reason
of any of its flora, fauna, geological or physiographical features.
Slippage: An allowance made in allocating
land for development to ensure that sites which are not subsequently
developed as anticipated do not cause a shortage of allocated
land which could prejudice the Council’s ability to refuse
planning permission for the development of unallocated sites
which it considers should be safeguarded from development.
Social uses: Uses that contribute to the
well-being of sustainable communities, for example meeting places,
community halls, and premises providing local services and facilities
Soil Screening Facility: Facility where construction
and demolition wastes are screened to allow re-usable soils
to be separated from the mixed wastes.
Supplementary Planning Guidance (SPG): Planning
guidance issued by the Council from time to time, which supplements
and interprets the policies and proposals of the plan itself,
for example housing design guides. The purpose of such guidance
(SPG) is to offer positive assistance to those who are preparing
to submit an application for planning permission as to how particular
policies will be applied in practice, or how a range of policies
are relevant and will be applied to, a specific site or area.
Since the inception of the Planning and Compensation Act 2004
local governments are longer able to produce SPG. A list of
those which remain relevant are at appendix 4.
Supplementary Planning Document (SPD): SPDs
are now issued to supplement and interpret policy in the UDP.
A list of SPD’ s, currently in draft form is at appendix
4.
Sustainable Development: A guiding principle
for all activities in their relationship with the environment.
One of the most popular definitions is that ‘sustainable
development meets the needs of the present without compromising
the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’.
Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS): a means
of controlling surface water run-off as close as possible to
its origin before it enters a water course
Take-Up Rates: The rate at which land is
developed. Usually measured in number of dwellings/amount of
floorspace/hectares of land per annum.
Town Centre: In planning policy terms, this
covers all centres that provide a broad range of facilities
and services, and fulfil a function as a focus for both the
community and public transport. It excludes out-of-centre retail
parks, small parades of shops, and individual shops of purely
local significance.
Traffic Calming: Physical measures which
slow down traffic to make areas safer for pedestrians and cyclists.
Traffic Management: The promotion of a more
efficient use of road space by re-arranging flows, co-ordinating
traffic signals, controlling intersections, regulating parking,
and prioritising public transport and pedestrian movement.
Urban Regeneration: Initiatives to promote
the improvement of substandard housing, industrial, or commercial
areas or other environments within urban areas through a combination
of economic, social and environmental measures developed in
partnership with the community and other relevant local agencies.
Urban Traffic Management and Control (UTMC):
A central, computer controlled system of traffic management
which monitors traffic flows at and through key junctions and
minimises congestion and delay.
Use Classes Order: Planning legislation specifies
that there are 16 ‘Use Classes’. Generally, where
a change of use of land or buildings falls within the same ‘Use
Class’ then development is not involved, and planning
permission is not required. A change of use from one ‘Use
Class’ to another normally involves development and thus
requires planning permission.
Village: A group of houses with some community
facilities, in a predominantly rural area.
Vitality and Viability: The factors by which
the economic health of a town centre can be measured
Waste Disposal Facility: A facility at which
waste is finally disposed of, such as by landfill or incineration
without energy recovery.
Waste Management Facility: A facility at
which waste is managed, i.e. treated or disposed.
Waste Transfer Stations: Sites where general
wastes, often delivered in skips, can be sorted for recycling
and re-use, and bulked-up for efficient transportation to a
waste management facility.
Waste Treatment: The collection, bulking-up,
sorting, separation, biodegradation, chemical thermal or mechanical
processing of wastes.
Windfall Site: A site for housing development
whose availability for development was not anticipated, is not
allocated as such in a development plan, and which subsequently
receives planning permission.
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