One of the legal requirements on local Councils is to cooperate with neighbouring councils to deal with housing that they cannot accommodate. As a result it has long been known that there would be pressure from Oxford City to take even more housing, over and above the large housing target already being tackled by the Vale. Today Councillors have debated the need for Oxford City to review its own Local Plan to ensure that it maximises the use of land within the City boundaries before looking to rural districts to take the strain. The Vale recognises the need to cooperate with other Councils and tonight has set out the way in which it intends to tackle what is known as Oxford's 'unmet need', including proper public consultation on the options available. The Vale has been working over recent months with other Council's in Oxfordshire to scrutinise the claims by Oxford City of the amount of housing that may require to be built outside of their own district. The Council is committed to working with neighbouring authorities, including Oxford on this subject and to that end it has called upon Oxford City to do more to accomodate housing with in the City. Leader of the Vale of White Horse District Council, Cllr Matthew Barber, said, "This is an additional challenge to out housing numbers which no-one will welcome, but we must address it head on. The Vale will be proactive in tackling the so-called 'unmet need' from Oxford and the Cabinet will examine the options and publish a public consultation in due course." At a meeting of the full Council in Wantage the following motion was debated:
Council recognises that following the issue of the Oxfordshire Strategic Housing Market Assessment in 2014, and its identification of Oxford City's Objectively Assessed Need (OAN) for new housing, it is likely that Oxford City will be unable to meet its OAN in full, and so will look to its neighbouring authorities, including the Vale, to assist. Council considers that Oxford City's existing local plan from 2011 and its development policies contain many constraints on development and hinder the City's ability to meet its own OAN. Council therefore calls upon Oxford City to immediately carry out a full review of its local plan in order to meet as much of its own OAN as is sustainably possible. Council notes the recent Inspector's report following Examination in Public of the Cherwell District Council Local Plan, and his comment: "I am satisfied that it is appropriate for this plan to proceed on that basis [meeting its own full district OAN], provided that there is a firm commitment from the Council to play its part in addressing the needs of Oxford citythrough that joint process [to fully address the OANs of the whole county] in the near future, once those needshave been fully clarified/confirmed." Council confirms its intention to meet its appropriate share of Oxford's Unmet Need and supports the Cabinet in its work to help identify and assess how Oxford’s Unmet Need could be accommodated. The Council will continue to work within the Oxfordshire Growth Board to strengthen the joint working across the county to identify and accommodate the unmet need in Oxfordshire. Council recognises that this work is underpinned by the following principles:
- The district Local Plans are sovereign and all work should feed into Local Plans for them to determine the spatial future of the districts;
- A recognition however that the work must be collaborative and joined up to provide a county wide spatial picture and strategy;
- A recognition therefore that joint work on future spatial options, transport infrastructure and green belt will be required to feed into Local Plans;
- Recognition that the City cannot fully meet its housing needs and there is a need to agree on the level of unmet need. However work on determining spatial options in Local Plans can commence alongside this;
- A wish that the timescale for completing the Review is 12 – 18 months and that this should not hold up Local Plan timescales.
As a means to progressing these objectives Council endorses Cabinet's intention to consider and consult on strategic options to provide evidence for the Growth Board which will be robust in providing a sound proposal for Oxfordshire. Council is committed to the resolution of unmet housing need in Oxfordshire, the adoption of Local Plan Part 1 and the development and adoption of Local Plan Part 2 on the earliest possible timetable that is compatible with good governance and public consultation.
The motion was passed without opposition, the Council's Cabinet will bring forward formal proposals in due course.