P7.7: Infrastructure

A key aspect of creating successful, healthy and sustainable communities is that they should be well served by a full range of public, private, community and voluntary infrastructure that is appropriate to people’s needs and are accessible to all. The quality and availability of the infrastructure, in particular social  – the schools, health centres, children’s centres, sports and community halls and so on – are all vitally important, and can provide the ‘glue’ that brings together and strengthens local communities.

ATLAS believe that any application for a significant number of residential units should clearly explain and justify how the population growth would be supported by essential services and facilities addressing everyday needs such as education, health, recreation as well as emergency and essential services. This is likley to be covered through the Environmental Statement but it may be worthwhile preparing a separate Infrastructure Statement that clearly indicates what kind of infrastructure would be required to serve the needs of new residents. This should be based upon the current and projected ‘supply’ and capacity of existing and proposed services/facilities set against the anticipated population growth and increased ‘demand’ resulting from new residents. It should clarify when and where this infrastructure is required and how it will be delivered based upon the phased occupation of a site. This information can form the basis for making investment decisions and the approach to planning obligations.

The provision for new social infrastructure should also investigate how different services and facilities can be brought together and co-located to deliver integrated services for residents, also ensuring that they are in place in time to address the needs of new occupiers.