Other

ID sylw: 107344

Derbyniwyd: 07/03/2025

Ymatebydd: Stratford-on-Avon District Social Inclusion Partnership

Accessible green spaces are well understood to have therapeutic capacity in health and wellbeing terms and we believe that these should be protected and accessible. Access to healthy and nutritious food is not always available to all residents so every opportunity should be taken to develop community orchards and allotments and the management and distribution networks supporting these initiatives which also assist in supporting good health and wellbeing and develop relationships and community. We agree with Draft Policy Direction 43a, 43b, 43c, 43d & 43e.

In respect of parks with equipment, these should in our opinion be sited on all-weather surfaces, so they remain accessible and safe places for children to access year round. Unfortunately, where surfaces become boggy or inaccessible during the winter, this can lead to the loss of a useful bumping space for months on end, during which communities lose access to import opportunities to enable outdoor play for children and places for parents to meet and build community.

Other

ID sylw: 107345

Derbyniwyd: 07/03/2025

Ymatebydd: Stratford-on-Avon District Social Inclusion Partnership

Accessible green spaces are well understood to have therapeutic capacity in health and wellbeing terms and we believe that these should be protected and accessible. Access to healthy and nutritious food is not always available to all residents so every opportunity should be taken to develop community orchards and allotments and the management and distribution networks supporting these initiatives which also assist in supporting good health and wellbeing and develop relationships and community. We agree with Draft Policy Direction 43a, 43b, 43c, 43d & 43e.

In respect of parks with equipment, these should in our opinion be sited on all-weather surfaces, so they remain accessible and safe places for children to access year round. Unfortunately, where surfaces become boggy or inaccessible during the winter, this can lead to the loss of a useful bumping space for months on end, during which communities lose access to import opportunities to enable outdoor play for children and places for parents to meet and build community.

Other

ID sylw: 107346

Derbyniwyd: 07/03/2025

Ymatebydd: Stratford-on-Avon District Social Inclusion Partnership

We support this element of the place including Draft Policy Direction-44. We would add that pitches, courts etc. need to be delivered in accordance with the required standards for such facilities, to ensure long term accessibility.

Other

ID sylw: 108683

Derbyniwyd: 07/03/2025

Ymatebydd: Stratford-on-Avon District Social Inclusion Partnership

Draft Policy Direction 1 - Meeting South Warwickshire's Sustainable Development Requirements Rural development is a challenge, it requires greater reliance on dwindling rural services and often leaves the VCS to step in and ensure equality of access to services. Consideration should be made to whether the housing
needs of more vulnerable, less mobile groups that rely most significantly on the provision or public and VCS services to maintain their health and wellbeing, access services and employment, should have housing in these
more rural locations. A more sustainable solution for this group may be to seek a greater proportion of social housing in urban areas in close proximity to existing services and a lesser proportion in rurally isolated areas.
Rural development, in respect of these more socially excluded groups, can present challenges around access to employment, affordable childcare, supportive relationships for childcare/social care and similar, social and support networks etc. etc. Many poorer households are wholly reliant on public transport or lifts and therefore can be at risk of significant social exclusion because of moving to a more rural settlement, especially if infrastructure is not in place at the same time as the development of the social housing.
Comments in respect of rural exception sites:
In response to PD-1, would it be possible to promote the opportunity for using Rural Exception Sites as a way to deliver more affordable rural housing schemes? Our experience shows that there are two types of homes that are usually found to be missing within the rural context - small (2 bedroom) bungalows for older persons to downsize to, and small (2 bedroom) houses for young families. Both of these groups benefit from the housing advantages presented by Rural Exception Sites.
Furthermore, older persons often prefer to remain with the local area to benefit from support networks they have established over a number of years but wish to do so in a smaller home. And by enabling younger families to
remain in or return to rural areas, Local Needs Homes on Rural Exception Sites ensure a steady stream of people who can sustain local businesses and
facilities, which contributes to the longer-term viability and stability of the community.
Rural communities need to be continually adjusted and transformed to make them attractive places to live and work, and to stabilise the population. Local Needs housing, developed at a small scale and with local support on Rural Exception Sites, is one way of attaining this.