As part of the evidence base for the Emerging Local Plan (2019-2040), the Council has prepared a number of documents. They will be subject to further review and potential refresh as the Plan progresses. Further evidence base documents will be published in due course.
Strategic Flood Risk Assessment (SFRA) 2021
The Rother District Level 1 Strategic Flood Risk Assessment (2021) is now available to view, below. However, at present the report has yet to consider potential locations for development in Rother going forward to inform the new Local Plan (up to 2039). This will be undertaken in due course and provided as an addendum to the SFRA when it is available. At this point it will also be determined whether a Level 2 Assessment is necessary.
The 2021 Level 1 Strategic Flood Risk Assessment provides information on all sources of flood risk in Rother District and should be used by developers, alongside data on the Environment Agency’s website, in producing site specific flood risk assessments to support planning applications.
For more information, please see the Strategic Flood Risk Assessment (SFRA) 2021 page.
Housing and Economic Development Needs Assessment (HEDNA)
The HEDNA (2020) has been prepared jointly with Hastings Borough Council. Its purpose is to assess future development needs up to 2039 for housing (both market and affordable) and employment across the Hastings and Rother area, to inform the preparation of the two Authorities’ emerging Local Plans. The document does not set the housing target for local authorities but provides the evidence to inform its starting position. The HEDNA has been produced in line with national Planning Practice Guidance.
Rother Retail & Town Centre Uses Study 2023
The Retail & Town Centre Uses Study updates the Council’s evidence base and recommendations that will inform policy directions for the new Local Plan. This evidence document sets out the need for retail and leisure throughout the District over the plan period, and considers any possible allocations or locations required to meet these needs. The study also identifies areas to be designated as Town and District Centres, as well as Primary Shopping Areas. Finally, the Study provides the evidence base for setting floorspace requirements above which Retail and Leisure Impact Assessments area required.
The Rother Retail & Town Centre Uses Study forms Volume A of the Study, while Volumes B – E constitute the appendices of the Study. Volume E maps the recommended Town Centre and Primary Shopping areas in comparison with the existing boundaries.
- Volume A – Rother Retail & Town Centre Uses Study
- Volume B – Assessment Appendices (Available upon request)
- Volume C – Town Centre Health Checks
- Volume D – Household Survey (Available upon request)
- Volume E – Town Centre Boundary Recommendations
East Sussex Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople Accommodation Needs Assessment
In order to the support the Council’s new Local Plan, we have worked alongside all of the East Sussex local authorities, and the South Downs National Park Authority to commission a joint Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople Accommodation Needs Assessment for the study period between 2021 and 2040. The requirement to assess the accommodation needs of Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople is established through the national Planning Policy for Traveller Sites (PPTS), published by Government in 2015. This study provides a summary of accommodation need for Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople in respect of both their permanent and transit needs for pitches/plots over the study period.
Hastings and Rother Playing Pitch and Built Facilities Strategy 2023-2039
This joint strategy for Hastings and Rother was produced in line with Sport England’s latest guidance and is the follow-on document to the Rother and Hastings Playing Pitch Strategy 2016 and the Leisure Facilities Strategy 2009-2020.
Rother Climate Change Study – Net Zero Carbon Evidence Base Report (July 2023)
Rother District Council (RDC) declared a Climate Emergency in 2019. The new Local Plan will contribute to the council’s ambition for Rother to be net zero across the district by 2030. The Net Zero Carbon Evidence Base Report sets out an assessment of the causes, effects, and future projections of sectoral carbon emissions which the Local Plan will need to address in order to achieve a sustainable and resilient future for Rother residents.
Achieving significant carbon reductions in Rother will require coordination between not just how buildings are developed (as directed by planning policy) but where they are located and how they are grouped, as determined through local plan site allocations and growth scenarios. The key recommendations of this report address both aspects.
