Arun Place Plan [pdf]

44 Pages·2016·1.84 MB·English

by  Duncan Barratt

Arun
Place Plan

Arun Place Plan v1.4 26.01.16 Page 1 of 44
Document Title Arun Place Plan v1.0 23.10.15
Version v1.4 26.01.16
Author Greg Ockwell – Growth Lead, Arun
Last Revision Date 26.01.16
Status Confidential – not for wider circulation
Further Reviews Subject to review by Arun District Council and
Planned review by Arun Growth Board

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Foreword
West Sussex offers a significant growth opportunity. Gross Value Added (GVA) is currently below the South East
average and we are determined to increase it.
A number of partners are already investing significantly in West Sussex:
 The LEP have secured Local Growth Fund (LGF) of in excess of £100M for improvements in West Sussex
 West Sussex County Council has a capital programme in excess of £130M per annum that will be focussed
on delivering growth

Delivery of housing and employment space offers the opportunity to raise revenue that can support additional
capital investment resulting in improved GVA performance
However, current relationships are complex – a range of stakeholders and services, sometimes with competing
objectives and access to capital funding that will be insufficient to meet all aspirations.
To maximise the value of investment in the county the County Council, working with partners, is developing Place
Plans and a West Sussex Growth Plan (figure 1).
The objective of the West Sussex Growth Plan is to clearly identify the West Sussex Growth Offer. The plan will
identify the opportunities, through supporting growth in West Sussex to:
 raise GVA per head in West Sussex
 deliver planned housing growth and the infrastructure required to facilitate it
 deliver proposals that attract high value jobs to West Sussex
 support the development of a high calibre workforce
 make West Sussex a place people want to live, throughout their lives
 exploit the natural and cultural resources of the county
 Support young people to get the best possible start in life
 Support West Sussex residents to be independent in later life
 Support work with strategic partners including Surrey County Council, East Sussex County and the Local
Enterprise Partnership (LEP)

The plan will identify an investment and delivery plan to deliver higher GVA, jobs, homes and employment
space.
The West Sussex Growth Plan will be consider place plans for each of the districts and boroughs. The place plans
will:
 Be developed with the Districts and Boroughs – Growth Boards have been established to support the
development of the plans
 Build on a clear understanding of current and projected demographics
 Build on existing Local Plans
 Identify stakeholders and their engagement in the development of proposals
 Identify key places, buildings and services
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 Identify key infrastructure requirements
 Identify planned and potential investment opportunities
 Identify local authority service proposals that will reduce infrastructure requirements
 Prioritise key issues
 Support the development of business cases to support investment proposals
 Identify a local authority Investment Plan
 Identify a delivery programme
The West Sussex Growth Plan will:
 Amalgamate the place plans to develop a clear West Sussex Investment and Delivery Plan (enabling
strategic investment decisions to be made that ensure that best return is achieved against investment)
 Ensure that cross county issues are addressed – e.g. strategic road, rail, transport, skills, utilities, National
Health Service (NHS), South Downs National Park (SDNP)
 Identify cross authority / stakeholder funding opportunities, priorities and proposals
 Provide a clear lobbying tool that will secure funding
Neither the Place Plan nor the Growth Plan will have status as a statutory planning document. However both will,
building from the statutory Local Plan, support key investment decision making for WSCC and partners.

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Figure 1 West Sussex Growth Plan

Later Life
Start of Life

Strategy & Challenges
Strategy & Challenges
Infrastructure Strategy
5 Bold Economic
(including Gatwick &
Ideas & Drivers
Transport)

Horsham
Mid Sussex Rural
Arun
Place Plan
Place Plan Place Plan
Place Plan
Worthing &
Crawley
Chichester
Adur Place
Place Plan
Place Plan
Plan
One integrated strategic growth plan
Louise
Goldsmith

Cabinet lead
WSCC Economy
Board
District & Borough
Growth Boards
WS Chief Executives
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Executive Summary

West Sussex is facing a population increase of over 100,000 people in the next 20 years and Arun will support
significant growth with over 11,000 new homes identified in the emerging Arun Local Plan, 135,500 sqm of
employment space and the opportunity to create over 5,337 new jobs. Securing funding and ensuring delivery of
the infrastructure to support this growth is a key priority, and identifying and attracting high value businesses to
take up the employment space is crucial to delivering jobs.

Demographic evidence for the district shows that the current population of Arun is 152,964, is forecast to
increase to 168,327 by 2034 (an additional 15,363 residents) with resulting pressures on social and physical
infrastructure due to housing growth. The evidence suggests a need to mitigate the impact of an ageing
population trend – over 36% of the population is predicted to be over 65 by 2034, with fewer working age people
(reduction of over 7% by 2034) - linked to a forecast increase of 15,363 additional residents by 2030. Stakeholder
engagement has helped develop a set of priorities that will stimulate growth and meet the outcomes for its
residents through investment in key opportunity areas in the district.
Historically, the district has suffered from low GVA (currently lowest in the Coast 2 Capital (C2C) LEP region), low
growth, low attainment (25% of the population have no qualifications) and low jobs per head (0.62 jobs per
resident). This is coupled with high levels of out-commuting to other employment hubs to the west (Chichester
and Portsmouth) and the east (Worthing and Brighton) where average earnings are higher.
Analysis across the district has identified key places that will deliver most growth (GVA, homes, employment
space and jobs) and has led to clear prioritisation of places or investments that will enable Arun to deliver up to
11,300 homes, 135,500sqm employment space and 5,337 jobs.
The emerging priorities for the District include; investing in: Bognor Regis (Enterprise Bognor Regis, town centre &
seafront, University of Chichester, and ‘Better Bognor’ bold idea) Littlehampton (A284, A259, town centre &
seafront, and public estate optimisation), skills, and emerging growth locations through the Local Plan process. In
addition, there is a need to support tourism and healthcare sectors to take advantage of future opportunities and
meet demographic challenges in the district.
The priorities inform a set of proposals for which outline business cases will be prepared. Each business case will
include a clear investment and delivery plan.

1. Outline business case - Development of a comprehensive and holistic investment package to support existing
and new developments in Greater Bognor Regis to include :-
o Enable Enterprise Bognor Regis to attract high value jobs with appropriate access, infrastructure and
added competitive advantage e.g. digital solutions
o Support development of a digital/creative hub via the ‘Better Bognor’ bold idea
o Link the University of Chichester’s new digital/engineering park to the local economy and skills plan
o Support town centre & seafront development and regeneration – supporting the tourism sector economy
through ensuring that business support and market development principles are in place to sustain and
grow GVA in the sector.
OUTCOME:
This will support delivery of 108,500sqm employment space with potential additional development
land outside of the proposed Local Development Order and improve GVA through securing higher
value employment and up to 4,133 jobs.

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2. Outline business case – Development of a comprehensive package of investments and infrastructure
improvements in the Greater Littlehampton area, to include:-
o Deliver infrastructure improvements to connect key places, including improvements to the A259 (East
Arun)delivery of the A284 Lyminster bypass and sustainable transport enhancements in the district
OUTCOME:
This will support the delivery of 2,600 homes in north Littlehampton and Angmering.
Employment site allocations could deliver up to 1,204 jobs across all sites in 27,000 sqm of employment
space.

3. Outline Business Case - Develop an approach to optimising the public estate in Littlehampton with key
stakeholders: ADC, WSCC, NHS, Sussex Police
o Optimise the public estate in Littlehampton by identifying space and sites for shared or multi-use
operations, releasing potential development opportunities in the town centre.
OUTCOME:
Potential to deliver homes and improved, primary and secondary health facilities, employment space,
whilst allowing Public Sector services to change operating models that meet current and future
operational demands. Infrastructure savings from optimisation can then be re-invested back into the
delivery of services for the town.

4. Outline business case - Development of a comprehensive and holistic investment package to support existing
and new developments in Littlehampton town centre, seafront to include :-
o Supporting ADC regeneration plans for the town including the ‘9 big ideas’.
o Support seafront and harbour development and regeneration - supporting tourism sector economy to
ensure business support and market development principles in place to sustain and grow GVA in the
sector.
OUTCOME:
Support delivery new homes in the Littlehampton area. Employment space and jobs to be identified
through planning and development process.
5. Outline business case – Review and co-ordinate an approach to linking education, skills and local economy
labour demands in Arun:
o Develop a joint approach between education & skills providers and industry employers to establish gaps
in skills and develop approach to grow priority sectors (digital , creative, IT and advanced manufacturing/
engineering, tourism and healthcare)
o Improve access and pathways to work both economically and in terms of travel/transport
o Support for healthcare sector economy and public services to ensure business support and market
development principles are in place to sustain sector growth, meeting additional anticipated demand to
ensure sufficiency of supply (capacity/stock); ensure market capability and ensure market quality
OUTCOME:
Improved GVA from meeting skills gaps and employment opportunities within the District. Business
growth opportunities realised from investment in knowledge economy and higher skilled labour force.
Reduced demand on services from improved quality of life/health measures.

6. Outline business case – plan future housing and infrastructure needs to enable development at the growth
locations outlined in the emerging Local Plan sustainability appraisal.
o Work with Arun District Council to prioritise and support delivery of growth locations determined through
the Local Plan process
o Develop a timeline of investment proposals with stakeholders including ADC and developers.
o Build the case for additional infrastructure needed to support the build out proposals including education,
health and community facilities
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OUTCOME:
Delivery of additional homes and employment space with required infrastructure over the plan period.
A strategic approach to Place shaping that creates sustainable communities, where people want to live
that is well-connected to employment, leisure and amenities and are more self-sufficient.

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Contents Page
Section 1: The Place
Section 2: Partnership Working and Stakeholder Engagement
Section 3: The Evidence
Section 4: Key Places
Section 5: The Priorities

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Section 1: The Place

Arun is a coastal District in southern West Sussex with Chichester and Portsmouth to the west and Worthing and
Brighton to the east. The District is defined by its coastal settlements of Bognor Regis and Littlehampton, with the
historic market town of Arundel established as a gateway to the SDNP which runs along the northern margin of
the district.

The population of Arun is 152,964, which is set to increase to 168,327 by 2034. There is an ageing trend, meaning
the proportion of 65+ living in Arun will have increased by 8.2%, with a decrease of the working age population of
7.4% by 2034.

Forecast growth in the emerging Arun Local Plan is primarily based around existing settlements of greater Bognor
Regis and greater Littlehampton. The emerging Local Plan will provide evidence to support further strategic
development in the District, potentially including development at inland settlements in the district. Growth is
constrained by the physical characteristics of the district with 16 miles of coastline to the south and the SDNP
along the northern border.

The total growth offer for the Arun District (based on the 2014 published Local Plan) is:-

Housing: Up to 11,370 new homes
Employment Space: up to 135,500sqm
Jobs: up to 5,337 jobs

These projections are subject to change with supplementary evidence and assessment being provided for the
emerging Local Plan.

The coastal settlements of Bognor Regis and Littlehampton have experienced growth in housing in recent history,
namely at Site 6 (Bersted and Felpham) and Courtwick/North Littlehampton. Infrastructure to support
development in Bognor Regis has been delivered by the developer in the form of the North Bognor Regis relief
road. Housing developments at north Littlehampton and Angmering will be supported by the delivery of
improvements to the A259 (east Arun) and the A284 Lyminster bypass. The Local Plan identifies further homes at
north Littlehampton and Angmering.

Bognor Regis will continue to provide an economic and cultural hub in the district. Enterprise Bognor Regis (EBR)
is one of the most significant, exciting and deliverable growth opportunities in the Coastal West Sussex area. The
aim is to provide major knowledge-economy employment in the region. EBR could create up to 4,133 Jobs and
108,500sqm of employment space. The town centre and seafront will continue to develop and prosper supported
by the ‘Better Bognor’ bold idea – a programme to establish a cluster of creative and digital start-ups in Bognor
Regis with a package of business support including skills, marketing and shared working space. The programme
links to the University of Chichester’s planned - Engineering and digital technology park (at their Bognor Regis
campus), delivering: 2,500sqm of accommodation, 1,000sqm of work space and 60 jobs and contributing valuable
skills and investment into the local economy.
Littlehampton will boast an attractive and more competitive town centre with a wider range of attractions for
residents and visitors along the seafront in the longer term, the town will feature a leisure-based harbour with
new housing and employment development. Angmering, directly to the north east of Littlehampton has been
identified in the Local Plan to accommodate at least 600 new homes. There is a need to understand the pressures
on the public services and the public estate uses in Littlehampton town centre. The NHS, District Council and
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