Policy information sourced from the Maidstone Borough Council Local Plan 2021-2038
LPRSP11(B): Creating New Employment Opportunities.
Allocated Sites
- 1. The sites allocated under policies EMP1(1), EMP1(2), EMP1(4), RMX1(4), and LPRSA260 will deliver approximately 105,000m2 employment floorspace to help meet employment needs during the plan period. Development will be permitted provided the criteria for each site set out in the detailed site allocation policies are met.
Allocated Sites - Mixed Use
- 2. The sites allocated under policies RMX1(1), RMX1(3), LPRSA066, LPRSA078, LPRSA144, LPRSA145, LPRSA146, LPRSA147, LPRSA148, LPRSA149, LPRSA151, and LPRSA362 will deliver a mix of approximately 34,239m2 employment floorspace and 7,562m2 net retail floorspace, along with new homes to help meet the borough’s needs over the plan period. Development will be permitted provided the criteria for each site set out in the detailed site allocation policies are met.
Garden Settlements
- 3. Heathlands Garden Settlement is expected to provide approximately 19,110m2 of employment floorspace and 4,764m2 of retail floorspace to 2037. Lidsing Garden Settlement is expected to provide approximately 42,998m2 of employment floorspace and 1,055m2 of retail floorspace to 2037. Further details masterplans for each garden settlement.
- *This includes convenience retail, comparison retail, food/beverage, and non-retail services e.g. hair dressers, estate agents, travel agents etc.
Rest of Borough
- 4. On non-allocated sites within Maidstone Urban Area or the Rural Service Centres, permission will be granted for industrial or business development, recognising the specific locational requirements of different sectors, provided that the proposals would:
- a. Be of a type and scale of activity that does not harm the character, appearance or environments of the site or its surroundings or to the amenity of occupiers of nearby properties;
- b. Be readily accessible by public transport, wherever possible, and by bicycle and foot, or contribute towards provision of new sustainable transport infrastructure to serve the area, in order to make the development accessible by those modes; and
- c. Have a layout, access, parking, landscaping and facilities that areappropriate to the site and its surroundings.
- 5. Major development schemes will be required to demonstrate how they have considered and provided for employment opportunities for all of the Borough’s residents. There may be particular circumstances whereby there is a need for an emphasis on those residents living in Ringlestone, Parkwood so as to make a specific contribution to inclusive growth. Therefore, supporting statements evidencing this will be a requirement of major planning applications. Developers will be required to encapsulate their commitments by entering into Section 106 legal agreements in order to deliver labour opportunities for these residents in relation to the construction phase and post occupation phases of major new developments which necessitate a change in the use class.
For more information, please visit Maidstone’s Local Plan Maidstone Borough Council Local Plan 2021-2038