Policy information sourced from Three Rivers Core Strategy

CP8 Infrastructure and Planning Obligations

Development will provide, or make adequate contribution towards, infrastructure and services to:

  • Make a positive contribution to safeguarding or creating sustainable, linked communities
  • Offset the loss of any infrastructure through compensatory provision
  • Meet ongoing maintenance costs where appropriate.

In relation to utilities infrastructure (water supply, waste water capacity, electricity supply and gas supply), developers will be required to demonstrate that:

  • Either adequate capacity exists on and off sites to serve development and that development would not lead to problems for existing users, or
  • Extra capacity can be provided in time to serve the development which will ensure that the environment and the amenities of local residents are not adversely affected. This may require developers to fund appropriate improvements where there are capacity problems and no improvements are programmed by the statutory undertaker. These should be completed before occupation of the development.

Infrastructure provision will take full account of the Council’s priorities for infrastructure, services and facilities, including those identified in the Infrastructure Delivery Plan and Infrastructure Delivery Schedule. This will contribute to the infrastructure necessary to support growth in the area.

We will continue to work in partnership with the County Council and other Districts to develop a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL). In the meantime and in the event that CIL is not progressed the Council will continue to use existing procedures and arrangements in relation to developer contributions. These include standard charges and formulae to calculate indicative contributions and to seek on-site provision of the required facilities each time a dwelling or commercial site is developed.

Detailed charges and formulae are set out in the Council’s supplementary planning documents (for example ‘Open Space, Amenity and Children’s Play Facilities, 2007) and other guidance documents as appropriate including Hertfordshire County Council’s ‘Planning Obligations Guidance – Toolkit for Hertfordshire’ (2008). Further guidance will also be set out in future Infrastructure and Obligations Supplementary Planning Document and Green Infrastructure and Landscape Supplementary Planning Document.

Applications for development will be considered on a case-by-case basis to allow individual site circumstances to be reflected where appropriate.

For more information please see the Three Rivers Core Strategy