Cherwell Sustainable Community Strategy

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Cherwell Sustainable Community Strategy
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Policy
Evidence Base
Local Knowledge
Sustainable Community Strategy
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Relationship between Local Development Framework
and Community Strategy

• LDF is delivery vehicle for Community Strategy
• Turn vision into policy
• Ensure cross-cutting approach is taken
• Government guidance (PPS 12) requires LDF to
  align to Community Strategy to pass the test

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Policy
Evidence Base
Local Knowledge
Sustainable Community Strategy
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Creating a robust evidence base

• Lies, damn lies and statistics
• Profiling of District and individual settlements
  to include
• Official sources eg. population or unemployment
• Locally sourced information eg. parish plan
  questionnaire or health issue

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Creating a robust evidence base

• Lies, damn lies and statistics
• However, it is known that statistics at this
  level mask rural deprivation issues
• One key task for the SCS is to identify how
  best to look at rural evidence

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Population

• 137,600 people (63 are working age)
• About a third live in rural areas.
• Two thirds of villages have pop. Of less than 500
• Average household size is 2.33 persons per
  dwelling (falling to 2.21 in 2016)
• The population group of over 75s in rural
  Cherwell expected to grow by 81 over 20 years.

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Economy

• 68,000 jobs (80 in services) in 5800 workplaces
• Rural Cherwell has 28 home-based workers (above
  county and regional averages)
• 3.9 unemployment but JSA claimant levels only
  total 1400
• 6800 economically inactive people wanting a job
  (45 higher than GB average)
• Most rural economically active commute
• Skills profile similar to UK average (50 NVQ
  Level 3 ) but well below Oxfordshire

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Housing

• House prices in rural Cherwell are high in
  relation to average earnings.
• Two thirds of villages are small (less than 500)
• Last decade showed trebling in value of
  Cherwells cheapest housing
• Only 9 of houses fall into Council Tax Band A
  (compared to 25 nationally)

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Education

• 54.2 of pupils achieving GCSE A-C (including
  english and maths). This is 9 lower than
  national average and lowest (except Oxford) in
  county.
• Unauthorised absences are half the national
  average

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Crime

• Vandalism, graffiti and criminal damage are
  highlighted as some of the main issues the
  district faces
• Burglary, robbery, theft from vehicle and sexual
  offences all fell between 06/07 and 07/08
• Fear of crime is the highest in Oxfordshire

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Health

• Male and female life expectancy is slightly
  higher than national average
• Under 18 conception rate (37.8 per 1000) is 8
  lower than national average
• Long term limiting illness rate (121.2 per 1000)
  is 22 lower than national average
• 11 infant deaths per 1,000 live births rate is
  higher than national average.

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Environment

• 590 sqkm of land
• 700 farms
• Major designations are Green Belt (14) and AONB
  (8 estimated)
• 32 Scheduled Ancient Monuments,
• Lowest woodland in Oxfordshire
• Daily domestic water use is 10 higher than
  national average
• 45 of household waste is recycled highest in
  Oxfordshire

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Key Cherwell issues

• Inter-relationship between settlements
• Educational attainment
• Traffic, transport and travel-to-work
• Fear of crime
• Accommodating growth 13,400 new homes

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Keeping it real

• Lies, damn lies and statistics
• Its local people who know what the real issues
  are
• Talking with residents must be given at least
  equal weight as evidence base in final
  conclusions

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Key Rural issues Commission for Rural
Communities 2008

• Promote and support the economic potential
• Affordable housing
• Decline in rural services but some great
  opportunities
• Rural transport
• Cohesive, empowered and active communities
• Climate change carbon challenge

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• What are the key issues for rural Cherwell in the
  long term?
• 15 - 25 years
• 30 minutes

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• Select your top three priorities
• 15 minutes

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• With each of your top three identify
• What do you want to protect?
• What do you want to change?
• 20 minutes