Development contributions

Introduction

The primary objective of the planning system is to deliver sustainable development. Sometimes developers offer, or local authorities seek, legal agreements (known as section 106 agreements or planning obligations) to secure improvements to a planning application to provide a more sustainable form of development.

These agreements can be useful instruments where the matters covered in the agreement are necessary to the development and fairly related to it in scale and kind. Local authorities can justifiably take such matters into account in coming to a planning decision. Detailed Government guidance is in ODPM Circular 05/05 which can be seen at the following external link to the Communities and Local Government website at http://www.communities.gov.uk/

Examples of matters covered by such agreements are provision of affordable housing within new development, off site highway or drainage improvements; or financial contributions to upgrade local schools and other facilities so they can cope with the increased population arising from a development.

However, Government advice is that extra inducements which go beyond this (so-called "planning gain") should not affect the ourcome of a planning deicsion. This is because it is not legitamate for unacceptable development to be permitted just because of benefits/ inducements offered by way of planning obligations.

Policy in Lewes District

Planning obligations provide a means of ensuring that developers contribute towards the infrastructure and services that Lewes District Council, or East Sussex County Council, consider necessary to facilitate the proposed development. A protocol between the two authorities was agreed in November 2004.

Contributions, depending on the case, may be in cash or kind.

Lewes District Council Supplementary Planning Guidance on developer contributions to provisions of play space, affordable housing and kerbside recycling can be viewed on our website (link below):

www.lewes.gov.uk/environment/3514.asp

East Sussex County Council's Supplementary Planning Guidance - "A new Approach to Development Contributions" can be viewed on their website (external link below):

www.eastsussex.gov.uk/environment/planning/development/newapproach/downloadsa.htm

Where have Development Contributions been provided in Lewes District?

We have been seeking developer contributions for a number of years to support more sustainable development. A schedule setting out the sites from which developer contributions have been provided, the money or contributions in kind made, and how they have been spent, can be seen by clicking onto the link below.

The following PDF document goes to the Development Contributions Spreadsheet (last update 24/06/2008)
 Development Contributions (25.01kb, plan_devcontrib.pdf)

*Please note the spreadsheet only includes Development Contributions allocated from January 2003. Any old than this date are cases where we have not yeat spent the monies we have received.