11. Housing

Sites allocated for housing (including strategic site allocations) are shown on the maps and featured in a list of housing site allocations in Appendix B. Notional dwelling unit capacities indicated are for the purposes of illustrating total land supply and do not signify that consent will be granted for particular numbers of dwellings at any site. Capacity on individual sites will be considered in light of planning policy and usual development management considerations.

The geographical extent indicated for site allocations affecting greenfield land represents the anticipated maximum land requirement. Proposals will be expected to consider, and where possible accommodate, notional maximum dwelling capacities indicated together with all other relevant policy requirements within a lower level of greenfield land take.

Sites will be released for development over specific time periods. The purpose of this is to ensure that the rate of release and take up is reasonably related to expected need and demand, taking account of the economic strategy and geared to planned infrastructure provision. Indicative phasing is shown as "notional delivery period" in the list at Appendix B.

This Local Plan does not identify or allocate potential housing sites likely to accommodate four or less dwellings. Such proposals will be assessed in relation to policy HO1.

Land allocated for residential use will be safeguarded for that purpose in the interest of maintaining a suitable, sustainable and sufficient land supply and reducing the need to find less sustainable alternatives.

Unidentified housing sites

Sites not previously identified and allocated in Local Plans (sometimes referred to as "windfall" sites") have contributed significantly in recent years to housing delivery in the district. It is anticipated that these will continue to come forward. Such opportunities can serve to make effective use of previously developed land and contribute towards the housing land supply. For the purposes of the following policy, previously developed land is as defined in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and does not include residential gardens.

In the case of any allocation or unidentified housing site affecting a site within defined town centre primary frontages, within Margate seafront and harbour arm or Margate Old Town, residential development will be restricted to above ground floor level (in accordance with policies E04 and SP10)

Housing delivery will be monitored annually, and a housing implementation strategy will be put in place to facilitate delivery across the plan period including action that may be taken if necessary to maintain a rolling 5 year supply of deliverable housing sites.

Non-strategic Housing Allocations

The adjoining wards of Cliftonville West and Margate Central contain Thanet's most deprived neighbourhoods. This is manifested in high levels of economic dependency, and a fragmented community. The area has a predominance of cheap and poor quality rented accommodation often attracting vulnerable and transient people. The Cliftonville Development Plan Document (DPD) contains planning policies restricting additional accommodation in forms likely to fuel or perpetuate these problems.

The Council and its partners including Kent County Council and the Homes and Communities Agency are implementing a concerted programme "Live Margate" to focus and stimulate further investment in making Margate and, in particular, these two wards, an area where people aspire to live. A central feature of the programme is purchasing existing properties and turning them into quality family homes. Many properties in these wards have 3-4 storeys and would be suited to multigenerational living (with two or more generations living under the same roof). If house prices continue to rise there may be an increase in demand for multigenerational houses. The following policy supports proposals resulting from or compatible with the Live Margate initiative. In addition to relevant policies in the Cliftonville DPD, the following policy will apply within the DPD area as shown on the Policies Map.

Most of Thanet's villages consist of freestanding rural settlements. These comprise Acol, Cliffsend, Manston, Minster, Monkton, Sarre and St Nicholas at Wade. Each makes its own contribution to the character and diversity of the Thanet countryside, and the Council considers that it is essential for them to retain their separate physical identity and vibrant communities. There are some settlements that, due to their mutual proximity, are potentially vulnerable to coalescence through the development along the road frontages that link them; for example, Minster to Monkton and Manston to Ramsgate. Policies protecting the open countryside provide appropriate safeguards for this.

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) notes that to promote sustainable development in rural areas, housing should be located where it will enhance or maintain the vitality of rural communities. In support of the Local Plan's housing objectives the rural settlements are considered to have some scope for new housing development in order to meet local needs and increase locational choice within overall objectively assessed need. A separate housing topic paper considers the scale of housing that could be accommodated at each of Thanet's rural settlements. This has helped to inform the following policy.

Appendix B allocates specific sites for housing development including at some of the  rural villages. These are listed below.

The following policy indicates the scale of housing development that may also be permitted on other sites in the rural settlements of Minster, Cliffsend, St Nicholas at Wade, Monkton, Manston, Acol and Sarre.

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) expects a responsive approach to local housing needs in rural areas, and indicates that release of rural exception sites may be an appropriate means of responding to local need for affordable homes.

Any such release would be conditional upon the first and all subsequent occupiers being first time buyers who are already village residents or their children, village residents living in unsuitable accommodation, dependents of village residents, people whose work is based in the village, or people with local connections who have been forced to move away from the village due to a lack of affordable or suitable housing.

Provision for some new village housing is made through other policies. Proposals on exception sites which include market housing or low cost housing will only be permitted where they form a small element of the scheme and it would provide significant additional affordable housing to meet local needs.

Any consent will be subject to a legal agreement to ensure the housing is available to meet local needs in the long term.

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) states that the development of isolated homes in the countryside should be avoided unless there are special circumstances such as the essential need for a rural worker to live permanently at or near their place of work in the countryside.

Much of Thanet's countryside is in agricultural use. Planning permission will only be granted for a farm dwelling where an agricultural need has been demonstrated. In this context, need means the need of the particular farm business, rather than the owner or occupier of the farm or holding.

The Council takes the view that, in Thanet, agricultural need is directly related to the security of certain types of livestock, and horticultural produce. Thanet's agricultural land is largely in arable production which, by its nature, is not as susceptible to damage as other forms of agriculture.

The pattern of agricultural holdings in Thanet is well-established and stable, and the agricultural area is generally in close proximity to the urban areas. In view of this, the Council believes that there is little justification for new agricultural dwellings. Proposals for agricultural dwellings required for security purposes will be expected to be supported by information demonstrating that alternative measures such as CCTV have been considered.

The range of accommodation needed by various groups in the community extends beyond conventional dwellings to more specialised forms of accommodation such as sheltered housing (specialist accommodation typically individual apartments with on-site support in secure surroundings), extra care housing (typically individual apartments for older people with varying levels of care need and benefiting from shared facilities such as laundry, lounges or garden), residential care homes and nursing homes providing 24/7 care. Kent County Council has prepared a strategy (Kent Social Care Accommodation Strategy) to help deliver choice and access to high quality accommodation to vulnerable adults eligible for care and support. A key principle of this is to ensure people are not isolated from their communities and are able to live healthily and safely in their own homes. The accommodation strategy is informed by estimates of projected demand for need for particular types of accommodation. However, gaps in provision will be identified and addressed to reflect the objective of independent living and promoting appropriate housing and support to reduce reliance on residential and nursing care.

There is a growing need for specialist housing for older persons, as identified in the SHMA. In order to meet the forecast change in population of people aged 75 and over, the SHMA identifies a potential need for 1,522 units of specialised accommodation for older persons over the plan period (76 units per annum).

Thanet has historically been overprovided with some forms of accommodation which has caused concerns regarding importation and concentration of vulnerable and dependent people. For example in spring 2013 it was estimated that nearly two thirds of the 525 looked after children in Thanet were placed from areas outside the district; the majority of placed children being from outside Kent. While sympathetic to the needs of such people, the Council does not regard this overprovision of accommodation to meet demand arising outside the local area as sustainable or conducive to a balanced community. Therefore in considering individual proposals the Council will have regard to evidence of local need and, where applicable, the potential contribution development could make to the accommodation strategy for adult social care clients in Kent (Kent County Council).

The needs of the district for supported housing are an important consideration, and proposals meeting such need and in line with the Accommodation Strategy will be supported. Sheltered housing proposals will be supported where it is demonstrated that proposals would accommodate expected needs arising within the district.

For the purposes of planning policy, proposals for retirement homes, sheltered housing and extra care housing will, unless circumstances indicate otherwise, be regarded as residential dwellings and subject to usual planning policies for residential development. Household projections indicate an increase of 591 people living in registered care accommodation over the plan period (30 per annum). Where accommodation provides a higher level of care, such as nursing homes, then such uses will be regarded as Class C2 and specifically subject to clause 2 of the following policy.

The following policy seeks to facilitate an appropriate level of provision of good quality accommodation in line with the objective of supporting a balanced and inclusive community, and enabling independent living as far as possible.

Accommodation within a building can be regarded as non-self-contained where unrelated households share one or more facilities such as a bathroom or kitchen. Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) are an example where a high degree of sharing of facilities is typical, and where living arrangements, being more intense than single family occupation, can give rise to noise, nuisance, more callers, a higher parking requirement and visual deterioration of buildings and gardens.

While the Council does not wish to encourage proliferation of HMOs as a permanent measure, it does recognise that such sharing arrangements can provide a source of cheap rented accommodation, including affordable accommodation for students and supported housing. The previous Local Plan applied a criteria based policy, the principles of which are considered to remain valid.

In 2010 the Government introduced new legislation signifying that planning permission would no longer be required for change of use of a dwelling house to a house in multiple occupations for up to 6 unrelated people. The Council subsequently approved an Article 4 direction so that planning permission would still be required for such change of use in Thanet.

The extent to which non-self-contained accommodation may generate the problems referred to above depends not only on intensity of occupation, sharing of facilities and management of the building, but also the nature of the area in which it is situated, the type of building, and the concentration of similar uses in its vicinity.

Alternative use of family homes as private student accommodation in the form of multiple occupations has caused local concerns focused on the neighbourhood around the Broadstairs University campus. Christ Church University and East Kent College are highly important for delivering skills required by the workforce, meeting the expectations of existing and potential employers and stemming out migration of young people. Supporting the functions of our higher and further education establishments includes the need to recognise demand arising for suitably located decent accommodation for students. At the same time it is essential to ensure that satisfying such demand does not result in undue concentration of non self-contained accommodation in order to avoid local disturbance and to maintain a mixed and settled community.

In 2014 the percentage of properties in use as private sector student accommodation in the form of HMOs at the residential estate adjoining the campus was estimated at 2.4%. While such uses have generated local concern, including that recent changes of use might signal an ongoing trend, the Council does not consider that restriction on further change of use is currently justified in principle. Nonetheless, these concerns point to the need to incorporate within policy an indicative ceiling level of cumulative impact in order to maintain mixed and settled communities. Having assessed the circumstances in the district and approaches applied in other locations, the Council considers 5% represents an appropriate level. Bearing in mind the potential for displacement pressure that such restriction may generate, this level is considered appropriate across the district. In order to address potential for localised concentration within this headroom, the 5% is applied on the basis of a 50 metre radius or exceed or further exceed 1 HMO in any group frontage of 20 dwellings houses.

The Cliftonville Development Plan Document (DPD) imposes a restriction on HMOs, and in the area it applies to that DPD takes precedence over the following policy.

The 2011 Census identified a total of 69 households in Thanet with a White: Gypsy or Irish Traveller’ ethnicity. Of these, 1 household lived in a caravan or other mobile or temporary structure and 68 households lived in bricks and mortar (house, bungalow, flat, maisonette or apartment). The bi-annual DCLG Traveller caravan count identified no caravans over the last six counts up to July 2017. Likewise, the annual Travelling Showperson caravan count (undertaken each January) also found no Travelling Showpeople caravans in Thanet during the past four counts (2014-2017). There are no authorised Gypsy and Traveller sites or Travelling Showpeople yards in Thanet.

The Thanet Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment (GTAA) 2017/18 has become available since the publication and submission of the Reg.19 Plan. It analyses the latest available evidence to identify the accommodation needs of Gypsies and Travellers, Travelling Showpeople and houseboat dwellers from across the area. This data has been analysed to provide a picture of current provision and activity across the Thanet District and an assessment of future need.

The GTAA 2017/18 has found evidence of Gypsy and Traveller pitch need over the next five years (2018/18 to 2021/22) equating to 5 pitches under the cultural definition, or 1 pitch under the PPTS 2015 definition of Gypsy/Traveller. This takes account of existing evidenced need (one household who is PPTS-compliant) and an estimate of need arising from households currently living in bricks and mortar accommodation (assumed not to fulfil the PPTS definition).

For the remainder of the Local Plan Period (up to 2030/31) the GTAA has identified a cultural need for 2 pitches and a PPTS need for 2 pitches. This takes account of a longer-term projection of need based on demographic modelling. The need over the total Plan Period is 7 permanent and 5 transit pitches. There is thus a need to identify pitches for the plan period and this work will have begun before the adoption of the Plan but will not be completed before then. In light of the early review of the plan to commence within 6 months of adoption in accordance with the Secretary of State’s direction, it is intended to identify and allocate the necessary number of permanent sites within the review process. Until then the Council will act proactively to accommodate emerging needs on a temporary and, if possible, permanent basis.

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) expects empty housing and empty buildings to be identified and brought back into use in line with local housing and empty homes strategies. As indicated in the Council's housing strategy, the Council is committed to bringing empty properties back into use.

Thanet has a substantial stock of empty property and vacant dwellings and has an active and robust programme for bringing those properties back into use. The Local Plan identifies an allowance of 540 housing units to come from empty properties being brought back into use. This is based on the position that the properties in question have been empty for a period of 4 years or more. Over that period it can be argued that those properties have been vacant and unused for such a long period that they are no longer available in the housing market and therefore not part of the active housing stock. Such properties brought back into use are returned to the market, so can be included as new housing stock. This will need to be regularly monitored, and is dependent on the Council's Empty Homes programme continuing through the plan period.

To complement policies aimed at increasing the overall housing stock it is important to retain the existing housing stock in such use.

Residential annexes are a common form of development that is generally proposed in order to allow relatives to live with their family with a degree of independence. The benefits of this include:

• Allows family members to provide the care and support required
• Reduces the stress and impact on local services, ie nursing homes, home visits from care professionals etc.
• Cost effective and affordable solution to supported living
• Provides a measure of independence, while still being close to support
• Can provide accommodation for family members unable to purchase a house through the open market

In many cases, such proposals are considered to be acceptable by the Council.

However, such annexes would rarely be suited for occupation as separate living accommodation unrelated to the household occupying the main dwelling for a number of reasons including lack of self-containment, inadequate separate access, amenity space and lack of privacy.

Planning permission will therefore normally be subject to a condition to ensure that the occupation of the unit remains ancillary to the main dwelling.

The Council, with its key partners, is concerned about the impact of new foster homes, or similar facilities, being located in the district, and in particular, in the Cliftonville West Ward, where there is already a very high concentration of foster homes. Parts of Margate and Cliftonville experience multiple layers of risk and significant deprivation, and are the subject of substantial inter-agency efforts to improve the environment and lives of people already resident in the area.

The Margate Task Force was set up in 2010, and is a multi-award-winning, integrated team, co-located at the Council’s offices, made up of 14 different agencies and 30 staff, working in two of the most deprived wards in Kent (Margate Central and Cliftonville West). MTF aims to identify the most complex social issues and deliver a joint ‘street level’ service to respond to risk and vulnerabilities.

There is evidence from Kent Police, the Clinical Commissioning Group, Kent County Council and others to suggest that the concentration of these premises in this area causes a range of problems, including:

• children placed in these facilities being at increased risk;
• a significant impact on, and diversion of, the resources of key agencies, undermining the delivery of core services in the area; and
• Harm to the area in which these homes are located.

Until the profile of these areas change positively, through ongoing management and planning initiatives and intervention, they are not areas which currently possess the necessary characteristics conducive to a positive fostering environment. This approach is supported by Kent Police, the Clinical Commissioning Group and Kent County Council. The policy applies to proposals which include more than 6 residents (including staff).