Banbridge Newry & Mourne Plan 2015

Strategic Plan Framework: Settlement

The population of Banbridge and Newry and Mourne Districts in 2001 census was 41,392 and 87,058 respectively. Based on census information, approximately 61% of the household population of Banbridge District was living within the existing limit of development of its four towns and four villages, with the remaining 39% living in the small settlements and open countryside. Within Newry and Mourne District, approximately 60% of the household population was living within the existing limit of development of Newry City, its four towns and fifteen villages, with the remaining 40% living in the small settlements and open countryside. Further details relating to the population of the settlements within the Plan Area are contained in the Population and Housing Technical Supplement.

Within their respective Districts, both Banbridge Town and Newry City function as the major centres for housing, employment, retail and professional services, education and health care, and for cultural activities, including sport and leisure. A total of 14,744 persons representing 36% of the Banbridge District population, were living within the existing limit of development of Banbridge Town. Within Newry and Mourne District, 27,433 persons representing 31% of the population were living within the existing limit of development of the Newry Urban Area which includes the village of Bessbrook.

There are seven other towns within the Plan Area: - Dromore, Gilford, and Rathfriland within Banbridge District, and Crossmaglen, Kilkeel, Newtownhamilton and Warrenpoint in Newry and Mourne District. These towns vary in size, form and function but they all serve as local service centres for their resident population and rural hinterland.

The villages perform a lesser, but locally significant role, in providing housing, employment and services for their residents and the wider rural community.

Small settlements, at the lower end of the settlement hierarchy, provide a community focus for their immediate rural area but are limited in their infrastructure, services and employment provision and offer only very limited growth potential.

Regional Policy Context

The RDS sets out a Spatial Development Strategy which provides a framework for the future physical development of the region. It identifies a hierarchy of settlements based on main hubs, local hubs and a strong rural community living either in small towns, villages, small settlements or in the open countryside.

The Strategy states that future levels of growth of each town will vary, depending on a range of factors such as strategic location, the size of its population and its catchment area, the range of employment, infrastructure and services available and the quality of the environment and living conditions.

Banbridge and Newry are identified in the Spatial Development Strategy of the RDS as Main Hubs and both are located within the key Eastern Seaboard transport corridor. The Strategy states that towns identified as main hubs have the potential to develop as 'growth poles' for clustering of economic activity, thereby providing a counter-balance to the metropolitan heart of the Region centred on Belfast. These main towns will, therefore, be developed as the major locations for providing employment, services, and a range of cultural and leisure amenities (C8: SPG-RNI 3). The Strategy places emphasis on the employment and service role of Banbridge, and on the commercial and tourism roles of Newry. They will both have a leading role in accommodating the need for urban housing in each council area.

The RDS promotes the strengthening of the external transport network to enhance the Region's role as a Gateway to Europe. It encourages the improvement of existing air, sea and land connections and the further development of strategic transport linkages from Northern Ireland to the Republic of Ireland and Great Britain. The concept of improved transport, communication and energy linkages with the Republic of Ireland is confirmed in its National Spatial Strategy.

The Spatial Development Strategy identifies Warrenpoint as a Local Hub. The RDS also requires that, the planned growth of Dromore, takes account of the town's proximity to the Belfast Metropolitan Area hinterland and the need therefore to accommodate some of that area's housing need.

Villages also have a specific role as identified in the Spatial Development Strategy. They are market centres, providing employment and services. The Strategy refers to the need to sustain and consolidate the role of villages as local rural service centres. It distinguishes between those villages that have experienced excessive levels of growth, disproportionate to their services and infrastructure, and those in decline and in need of revitalisation.

Small settlements provide local housing opportunities for rural dwellers wishing to continue living in the countryside. Consequently, a portion of the regional housing growth indicator (HGI) for each district will be allocated to small settlements and the open countryside.

The Belfast Metropolitan Area travel-to-work hinterland extends into the northern portion of the Banbridge District. The Spatial Development Strategy highlights the need to consolidate villages and small rural settlements within this hinterland and to resist their large-scale expansion.

Settlement Hierarchy

The settlement hierarchy takes account of a wide range of factors, including the Spatial Development Strategy in the RDS, the population of individual settlements and an assessment of the role or function of settlements, including retail base, employment opportunities and community services (e.g. social, religious, educational, recreational) and existing physical infrastructure (e.g. sewerage services, water supply, drainage) including spare capacity and public transport provision.

¹ Poyntzpass falls mainly within the Armagh District while Dromara falls mainly within the Banbridge District

Bessbrook and Ballyholland are designated as villages and are no longer part of the Newry Urban area. Burren is also designated as a village and is no longer part of Warrenpoint. New small settlements are designated at Altnamacken / Cortamlet, Ballyardle (as part of Dunnaval), Ballyedmond (as part of Killowen), Ballymadeerfy, Ballymoyer, Barnmeen, Dorsey, Glassdrumman (Co. Armagh), Glen, Jerrettspass, Mullartown (as part of Glassdrumman, Co. Down), and Tullyherron.

Settlement Development Limits

A settlement development limit is defined for each city, town, village and small settlement in the Plan Area. They are designated in Volumes 2 and 3 of the Plan. Settlement development limits are defined following a detailed assessment of each settlement in accordance with regional policy as part of the Countryside Assessment. This has involved a detailed analysis of each settlement, including specific roles and functions, environmental issues, availability of services, community facilities, infrastructure and spare capacity, and current development pressures. Detailed consultation has been carried out with other statutory bodies. Further details are contained in the Countryside Assessment Technical Supplement.

Development proposals within settlement development limits will be considered in the context of all prevailing regional planning policy and with any relevant Plan Policies and Proposals.

Zoned Land

In accordance with PPS 1 - General Principles, zoned land, along with the key site requirements which developers will be expected to meet, are set out and shown in Volumes 2 and 3 of the Plan. The zoning of land provides a basis for rational and consistent decisions on planning applications and provides a measure of certainty about which types of development will and will not be permitted.

Mixed Use sites are zoned where it is desirable to permit a degree of flexibility in the final use of the site. This could, for example, be to allow for a range of uses at a particularly accessible location in a town or to provide for social and/or community facilities in villages.

Development Opportunity Sites are zoned where lands in city and town centres are under-utilised or vacant and where development, which might provide a mix of new uses, could promote the vitality and viability of the urban area or town centre, or could enhance the townscape, for example, by closing frontage gaps or by replacing unattractive features. Such development within a town centre could enhance shopping frontages, encourage pedestrian movement and so assist commercial growth.

It is not the Department's practice to zone land within small settlements. Zoning creates a degree of inflexibility that can restrict the orderly development of smaller settlements. However, exceptionally sites have been identified where they are required for planned community facilities or to meet identified social housing need.

Development proposals on zoned land will be considered in the context of all prevailing regional planning policy and with any relevant Plan Policies and Proposals, including, where specified, key site requirements.

Key Site Requirements

Key site requirements may include access / infrastructure requirements, public open space provision, landscaping, provision for walking and/or cycling and other site specific requirements. In the case of larger sites, the submission to the Department of a Concept Master Plan may be a key site requirement in the interests of comprehensive and quality development.

Infrastructure

New development often requires the alteration of existing infrastructure and/or the provision of new infrastructure. Such works may include improvements to water and sewerage, land drainage or transport networks. Under current government policy developers may be required to provide or contribute to the capital cost of works required to facilitate their development proposals. This policy applies to both public and private developments.

Under the Reform of Water and Sewerage Services for Northern Ireland the provision of infrastructure charges is being reviewed, including the policy for developer's contribution to infrastructure improvement requirements associated with their development proposals.

In carrying out the Appropriate Assessment for the Plan under the EC Habitats Directive 92/43, it was not possible to show that there would be no adverse effects on the integrity of the Carlingford Lough Special Protection Area and Murlough Special Area of Conservation as a result of a potential lack of adequate sewage treatment facilities in the following areas:

• Newry and its catchment including Ballyholland, Bessbrook, Burren, Camlough, Mayobridge and Newtowncloghogue;
• Warrenpoint and its catchment including, Rostrevor and Killowen/ Ballyedmond;
• Cranfield; and
• Annalong and its catchment including Glassdrumman/Mullartown and Longstone.

Therefore, in the light of the outcome of the Appropriate Assessment, the Department has agreed to continue to work with the Department for Regional Development, Water Service in order that all development proposals will be scrutinised in accordance with the provisions laid out in Planning Policy Statement 2 - Planning and Nature Conservation to ensure that they would not have an adverse impact on the conservation objectives of international conservation designations. There may be the option, in certain cases, for developers, in consultation with Water Service and the Environment and Heritage Service, to provide private wastewater treatment facilities. Developers may also wish to discuss with Water Service the possibility of improvements to Waste Water Treatment Works and/or sewerage systems being taken forward as a result of the developer contributing to the cost of such improvements and within a programmed timescale agreed by Water Service. In other cases it may be necessary for the Department to refuse planning permission in advance of the provision of the necessary infrastructure.

In regard to transport infrastructure developers will be required, taking account of the nature and scale of the development proposed, to provide footpath and possibly cycle links to meet existing pedestrian and cycle infrastructure. As a minimum, all developers will be required to provide footpath links across the development frontage.

Developers should note that while the key site requirements for the development of zoned sites are set out in the Plan, the need for certain supplementary infrastructural works and/or mitigation measures necessary to facilitate the specific scale and form of development proposed may only be identified at planning application stage. An example may be as a result of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) or a Transport Assessment (TA).

Where appropriate, planning agreements under Article 40 of the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 may be used to enable developers to proceed. Developers are urged to liaise early in the preparation of their proposals with the relevant Department, Agency or service provider.

Some development sites will require existing infrastructure, such as major watermains and sewers, and designated watercourses, to be safeguarded. This may include ensuring that such infrastructure is not built over and that necessary wayleave strips are retained to facilitate maintenance. It is the responsibility of the developer to liaise with the relevant agencies in this regard.

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