In this chapter

• Introduction to development management policy
• Housing
• Climate change
• Nature and ecosystem services
• Green Belt
• Jobs and economy
• Healthy, vibrant and inclusive communities
  • Policy HVC/TC: Town centre retail hierarchy and development
  • Policy HVC/TCD: Town, district and local centre development
  • Policy HVC/LS: Dispersed local shops
  • Policy HVC/H: Health and wellbeing
  • Policy HVC/HIA: Health impact assessments
  • Policy HVC/HFT: Hot food takeaways
  • Policy HVC/CF: Community facilities
  • Policy HVC/PS: Safeguarding land for primary school use
  • Policy HVC/PSC: Primary school capacity
  • Policy HVC/C: Safeguarding land for cemeteries
  • Policy HVC/A: Protecting allotments
  • Policy HVC/B: Broadband connection at new residential properties
  • Policy HVC/LGS: Local green spaces
• Heritage and design
• Sustainable transport
• Pollution, contamination and safety
• Minerals and waste
• Waste
• Infrastructure

Policy HVC/A: Protecting allotments

About this page

How this part of the Local Plan Options Document works

These Development Management policy option pages contain the following sections:

Policy background

• Relevant national policy or regulations
• National or regional trends
• Local situation and needs/li>
• How we have dealt with this issue in the past
• The thinking behind the policy

Policy options for the new Local Plan

We may suggest a variety of approaches:

• Keeping existing policy as it is
• Making small changes
• Replacing the policy with something that is substantially different
• Identifying factors or events which may affect this policy in the future

Policy option analysis

• A list of the advantages and disadvantages that we have identified for each of the policy options we are presenting.

More on this topic

View the Topic Paper on Healthy and Vibrant Communities for in-depth focus about this topic, and the evidence which informs our policy. Visit our library of Local Plan Options supporting documents to learn more. 

Explore the policy

Select a section below to read more.

Policy background

9.316 Local food growing spaces are not only an important leisure resource, but they are recognised locally and nationally for their value as open spaces, especially in urban areas and for their contribution to sustainable development and health objectives including local food production, promoting physical activity, community cohesion, green infrastructure networks, biodiversity and their potential for education opportunities.

9.317 The council currently manages 24 allotments across Bath and elsewhere other allotments are managed by local bodies such as social housing organisations and parish councils.

9.318 Since policy LCR8 was adopted a new allotment site was permitted under reference 17/00329/FUL. These allotments were granted permission to replace allotments lost under reference 16/05548/MINW which resulted in the loss of allotment land to mineral extraction. The site sits within a minerals allocation area.

9.319 A new allotment has also been provided by the council at Fairfield Valley between Fairfield Park Road and Fairfield Avenue.

9.320 Policy LCR8 is a strong policy which affords protection to statutory, temporary, and private allotments. The new land at Combe Down allotments and the new site at Fairfield Valley are statutory allotments run by the council and therefore the Policies Map should be amended to include these sites as set out in the maps below.

Figure 64: Proposed policies map amendment

Figure 65: Proposed policies map amendment/p>

9.321 During the course of the Local Plan period new sites for housing will be allocated which will likely result in requirements for additional allotment land. The Planning Obligations SPD sets out the requirements for allotment land. Under the adopted policy any new allotments provided in the plan period would be afforded the same protection as the allotments on the proposals map.

Policy options for the new Local Plan

Option A

Amend the proposals map to include the new allotment land permitted under application reference 17/00329/FUL and the new allotment site at Fairfield Valley.

Advantages of Option A

Recently permitted allotment land will be afforded the same protection as existing allotments.