Consideration of reasonable alternatives is at the heart of the sustainability process. To achieve the Plan’s preferred alternative, a step-by-step process has been followed and is explained in more detail below and in the main contents of the SA. (Click on the links below for more detailed explanation)
The Plan has concluded that the most reasonable option for new housing development in Goring is to allocate small to medium sites, either brownfield or on the periphery of the built area and contiguous with the edge of the village, which can be mitigated to make development acceptable. The analysis illustrates and emphasises the delicate balance that must be achieved between the efficient use of land to meet housing need whilst protecting the special landscape and environment of Goring and the Goring Gap in compliance with NPPF paragraphs 115 and 116.
Four sites (GNP2, GNP3, GNP6 and GNP10) have been allocated for development, in whole or in part. The Plan states that GNP10 should only be taken forward for housing development if there is clear evidence that the site has no sustainable future as employment land. In that situation, it would become a sustainable site for housing development. All sites will be subject to extensive mitigation (defined by Site-specific Requirements (SSRs)) assigned to each site. These are critical to ensuring that the sites are designed to minimise the adverse impact on the landscape and environment whilst maximising the benefit against other Sustainability Objectives. Due to Goring’s unique sustainability context, the SSRs are more detailed than might normally be expected in a neighbourhood plan. However, to comply with NPPF and to minimise the impact of these major developments in the AONB and in the Goring conservation area, the sites will not be acceptable for development without this detailed level of SSRs.
In addition, from the Strategic Issues analysis, it has been identified that the Plan should support housing density that is in keeping with the characteristics of each allocated site and the village as a whole and that the most sustainable option is to support SODC policies on affordable and low-cost housing and to ensure that the housing mix in Goring is improved by new homes that are mainly 1, 2 or 3 bedrooms.