Policy information sourced from the Braintree District Council Local Plan 2013-2033.
LPP 33: Specialist Housing.
Specialist housing is defined as accommodation which has been specifically designed and built to meet the needs of the elderly, disabled, young or vulnerable adults, and may include some elements of care and support for everyone who lives there.
Proposals for specialist housing provision are allocated on the Proposals Map and will be permitted within development boundaries providing that all the following criteria are met:
- a) Everyday services that users would expect to access, such as shops, should be available on site or should be located close by and be able to be accessed by a range of transport modes;
- b) Health services should be available on site or in close proximity and have capacity to accommodate the additional services required from residents, or proposals should provide appropriate mitigation;
- c) Parking should be provided in line with the Council’s adopted standards;
- d) There is an appropriate level of private amenity space to meet the needs of residents.
Minor extensions to, or the expansion of existing specialist housing in the countryside may be acceptable if, in addition to the criteria a; b; c and d above, all the following criteria are met:
- The scale, siting and design of proposals is sympathetic to the landscape character and host property;
- The Council will have regard to the cumulative impact of extensions on the original character of the property and its surroundings;
- A travel plan should be provided, which sets out how additional staff, visitors and residents will access the site and ways to minimise the number of journeys by private vehicle.
New specialist housing on unallocated sites in the countryside will not be supported.
On sites allocated for specialist housing, general needs housing will not be permitted.
For more information, please visit Braintree District Council’s Local Plan here.