Policy information sourced from the Richmond Upon Thames Local Plan

Policy 21 Protecting the Local Economy (Strategic Policy)

A. The Council will seek to retain and attract investment from existing and emerging sectors to support the existing business base and create a diverse and enterprising local economy. New development proposals will be supported which:

  1. Protect existing employment floorspace for office use, with a no net loss approach. Take an employment-led approach to any redevelopment for industrial use to meet local economic needs through intensification of the existing employment floorspace.
  2. Direct major new employment development to the designated Key Business Areas and Locally Important Industrial Land and Business Parks and to the town centres, as identified on the Policies Map. Other employment floorspace of an appropriate scale may be located elsewhere.
  3. Any major new development should explore the opportunity to create ground floor industrial provision to address local needs, particularly in town centres and other locations with high accessibility (PTALs 3-6).
  4. Provide a range of commercial unit types, that are flexible and adaptable to changing needs, suitable for subdivision and configuration for new economic uses and activities for a range of occupiers;
  5. Ensure there is a supply of affordable workspace that is well-designed, flexible and adaptable, to support small and medium sized enterprises or the voluntary and community sector in the borough, as identified in Policy 25 ‘Affordable, Flexible and Managed Workspace’; and
  6. Strengthen the pathways through education and learning into jobs and careers for residents, supporting employment and training skills to maximise local employment opportunities, as identified in Policy 50 ‘Education and Training (Strategic Policy)’.

For more information please see the Richmond Upon Thames Local Plan