Playing the game
Section 106 agreements can provide opportunities to secure funding through open space strategies linked to PPG17 and increased developer activity. How can these opportunities and contributions be maximised both on and off-site? Patrick Kilburn, Head of Parks and Open Spaces at Harrogate Borough Council, and Peter Wilkinson, Parks Service Manager at Bristol City Council, present examples of how Section 106 agreements have resulted in improved green space provision.
Whilst enhancement of existing facilities is one option, in some cases there is a need to provide new facilities and in these instances a more creative approach is required. This case study examines one such situation, known locally as Killinghall Moore Country Park, which started as far back as 1995.
This case relates to the provision of a new 14.6 hectare country park, including four senior and two junior football pitches with suitable changing facilities designed to meet the needs of people with disabilities, a meeting room and sufficient car parking. This need had been identified previously and an area allocated within the draft local plan.
The total cost for the scheme was estimated at £955,000 and approximately £50,000 worth of commuted sums from various developments was available. In addition HBC had agreed a further £180,000 capital, leaving a shortfall of £725,000.
At the same time an adjacent housing development was being proposed and through negotiations with the developers a sum of £40,000 was secured. In addition a further £113,000 of capital funding was secured from various sources giving a total of £383,000. The key here was to use this as ‘seed funding’ for a bid to Sport England. They agreed to a grant of £523,000, which meant that virtually all the finances required for the scheme were in place enabling HBC to start works. It was proposed to fund the shortfall through additional commuted sums generated over the project period.
The land was finally acquired, specialist design consultants and contractors were appointed and works started on site in 1997. With bad weather and ongoing site difficulties the whole scheme was not finished and ready for use until autumn 2000. During that time costs had increased to £1,000,000 but the shortfall had been bridged by further commuted sums from many different development sites. In total the project was funded by £166,000 of developer contributions. The site is now used by several clubs, many involving young people. In addition there are many visitors who walk through the parkland every year.
Prior to starting on site the local community was kept well informed of what was going on through newsletters, public meetings and displays. Initially they were very opposed to the proposals. Over the years, and with the support of HBC, they have organised themselves into the Killinghall Conservation Group who do a lot of excellent work improving and protecting the site.
You may think that the issue relating to commuted sums finished with the end of the project in 2000 but this is not the case. Since completion commuted sums have continued to be allocated to the site and these have enabled the group, in partnership with HBC, to fund various projects such as signage and new footpaths, which could not be done at the time. Again commuted sums were used to lever external funding. This has not only helped to further improve the area but also to cement the relationship between HBC and the local community.
In addition in 2004 the Football Association awarded the National Groundsman of the Year Award to the manager of the site as an outstanding example of a municipal football pitch facility.
For further information contact Patrick Kilburn at patrick.kilburn@harrogate.gov.uk or telephone 01423 556704.
The strategy will enable the council to comply with PPG17 and create a formal link between service improvement by Bristol Parks, our corporate Asset Management Plan, and the statutory planning system.
The strategy will create a local standard for green space provision (the Bristol Standard), to be adopted as a core council policy in the LDF and establish the quantity of green space to be delivered through the planning system. It will also set policy in terms of the quality thresholds we are seeking to achieve across a range of green space types.
Through the planning system, local authorities can seek planning obligations from developers where a deficiency of recreational provision exists or is likely to occur as a result of proposed development. The strategy will establish the justification, decision making framework and the strategic need for securing planning obligation monies.
The council formally adopted Supplementary Planning Document 4, (SPD4) Achieving Positive Planning through the use of Planning Obligations, in October 2005. The policy sets out a ‘tariff system’ that identifies the total contribution developers will be required to make prior to submitting for planning consent. The tariff will initially be based upon the cost of providing 24 square metres of open space per person based on the NPFA Standard. This figure will then be replaced by the Bristol Standard once the green space strategy and Green Space SPD are adopted.
SPD 4 will lead to a significant increase in the amount of money secured for the city’s green spaces from planning obligations.
Bristol Parks already receives S106 funding to offset the increased ‘load’ additional residents from a new development will impose on our parks and green spaces. However the system before SPD 4 was adopted has been ad hoc, and oriented mainly towards contributions of £500 per dwelling for play provision plus landscape mitigation; in the form of capital and commuted sums. Bristol Parks is holding £1.3m in our S106 reserve, but many of the sums secured over the past 10 years are small and do not relate well to strategic need.
Under the new S106 system, Bristol Parks can satisfy the additional demand by either increasing the quantity and/or improving the quality of different types of space based on our adopted ‘typology’ in the strategy.
Under SDP4, S106 monies can be used to improve the a) provision, b) condition and c) maintenance of facilities in the vicinity (within one mile) of the development site from which it was secured, and/or strategic city-wide facilities.
The funding to provide local facilities will be allocated to the Local Need Area (LNA; as adopted methodology from PPG17 guidance) where the development happened, or in an immediately adjacent LNA if local residents use these spaces as well or instead.
A proportion of all Section 106 money can be spent on strategic sites to which users will expect to travel outside their local area. The strategic sites have been identified as:
The cost of providing the improved services is based on our PPG17 compliant but bespoke typology:
a) Formal (ornamental) green space
b) Informal green space
c) Children’s and young people’s space
d) Natural green space
e) Active sports space, seasonal and fixed
The cost build up for providing a square metre of each typology type for a fifteen year period is further divided into:
a) Provision: cost of providing the facility/major upgrading.
b) Condition: more major repair work and cyclic replacements.
c) Maintenance: annual maintenance.
The number of additional dwellings is multiplied by a ward profile of the average number of persons per dwelling. This determines the level of contribution.
Included in the cost of the green space provision there is an allowance for management and administration. This is in additional to any design and other professional fees in delivering a particular improvement.
Based on the NPFA standard adopted in the interim under SPD4 and the complex cost model developed by Bristol Parks, the allocations would work out as follows:
Bristol City Council’s Supplementary Planning Document 4 is available to download from www.green-space.org.uk. For further information, contact Peter Wilkinson at peter_wilkinson@bristol-city.gov.uk or telephone 0117 922 3535.
Killinghall Moore Country Park
Over the past 14 years, Harrogate Borough Council’s (HBC) Open Spaces Policy, which underpins payment of commuted sums, has generated £3,096,000 capital for the development and enhancement of many open spaces across the district and £421,000 revenue for maintenance. Each commuted sum payment is calculated against a set of criteria, one of which is Youth & Adult for sports pitches and the like, and is allocated to a site prior to planning approval. This ensures transparency. Consequently, many sites have commuted sums allocated to them, which are often used to enhance existing facilities on those sites. For larger developments the funds are usually agreed through negotiations and are bound by the signing of a Section106 agreement, with smaller developers usually agreeing to pay commuted sums as part of the planning agreement. This speeds up the process and avoids considerable legal costs.Whilst enhancement of existing facilities is one option, in some cases there is a need to provide new facilities and in these instances a more creative approach is required. This case study examines one such situation, known locally as Killinghall Moore Country Park, which started as far back as 1995.
This case relates to the provision of a new 14.6 hectare country park, including four senior and two junior football pitches with suitable changing facilities designed to meet the needs of people with disabilities, a meeting room and sufficient car parking. This need had been identified previously and an area allocated within the draft local plan.
The total cost for the scheme was estimated at £955,000 and approximately £50,000 worth of commuted sums from various developments was available. In addition HBC had agreed a further £180,000 capital, leaving a shortfall of £725,000.
At the same time an adjacent housing development was being proposed and through negotiations with the developers a sum of £40,000 was secured. In addition a further £113,000 of capital funding was secured from various sources giving a total of £383,000. The key here was to use this as ‘seed funding’ for a bid to Sport England. They agreed to a grant of £523,000, which meant that virtually all the finances required for the scheme were in place enabling HBC to start works. It was proposed to fund the shortfall through additional commuted sums generated over the project period.
The land was finally acquired, specialist design consultants and contractors were appointed and works started on site in 1997. With bad weather and ongoing site difficulties the whole scheme was not finished and ready for use until autumn 2000. During that time costs had increased to £1,000,000 but the shortfall had been bridged by further commuted sums from many different development sites. In total the project was funded by £166,000 of developer contributions. The site is now used by several clubs, many involving young people. In addition there are many visitors who walk through the parkland every year.
Prior to starting on site the local community was kept well informed of what was going on through newsletters, public meetings and displays. Initially they were very opposed to the proposals. Over the years, and with the support of HBC, they have organised themselves into the Killinghall Conservation Group who do a lot of excellent work improving and protecting the site.
You may think that the issue relating to commuted sums finished with the end of the project in 2000 but this is not the case. Since completion commuted sums have continued to be allocated to the site and these have enabled the group, in partnership with HBC, to fund various projects such as signage and new footpaths, which could not be done at the time. Again commuted sums were used to lever external funding. This has not only helped to further improve the area but also to cement the relationship between HBC and the local community.
In addition in 2004 the Football Association awarded the National Groundsman of the Year Award to the manager of the site as an outstanding example of a municipal football pitch facility.
For further information contact Patrick Kilburn at patrick.kilburn@harrogate.gov.uk or telephone 01423 556704.
Positive green space planning in Bristol
Green space is a major contributor to the health and well-being of local communities. In Bristol, the Parks and Green Space Strategy and allied Green Space Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) will enable the authority to protect and enhance its green space resources. This is in the context of the new Local Development Framework (LDF) to be adopted this year which seeks to allocate land for at least 27,000 new homes, whilst at the same time creating more ‘balanced and sustainable communities’ across the city.The strategy will enable the council to comply with PPG17 and create a formal link between service improvement by Bristol Parks, our corporate Asset Management Plan, and the statutory planning system.
The strategy will create a local standard for green space provision (the Bristol Standard), to be adopted as a core council policy in the LDF and establish the quantity of green space to be delivered through the planning system. It will also set policy in terms of the quality thresholds we are seeking to achieve across a range of green space types.
Through the planning system, local authorities can seek planning obligations from developers where a deficiency of recreational provision exists or is likely to occur as a result of proposed development. The strategy will establish the justification, decision making framework and the strategic need for securing planning obligation monies.
The council formally adopted Supplementary Planning Document 4, (SPD4) Achieving Positive Planning through the use of Planning Obligations, in October 2005. The policy sets out a ‘tariff system’ that identifies the total contribution developers will be required to make prior to submitting for planning consent. The tariff will initially be based upon the cost of providing 24 square metres of open space per person based on the NPFA Standard. This figure will then be replaced by the Bristol Standard once the green space strategy and Green Space SPD are adopted.
SPD 4 will lead to a significant increase in the amount of money secured for the city’s green spaces from planning obligations.
Bristol Parks already receives S106 funding to offset the increased ‘load’ additional residents from a new development will impose on our parks and green spaces. However the system before SPD 4 was adopted has been ad hoc, and oriented mainly towards contributions of £500 per dwelling for play provision plus landscape mitigation; in the form of capital and commuted sums. Bristol Parks is holding £1.3m in our S106 reserve, but many of the sums secured over the past 10 years are small and do not relate well to strategic need.
Under the new S106 system, Bristol Parks can satisfy the additional demand by either increasing the quantity and/or improving the quality of different types of space based on our adopted ‘typology’ in the strategy.
Under SDP4, S106 monies can be used to improve the a) provision, b) condition and c) maintenance of facilities in the vicinity (within one mile) of the development site from which it was secured, and/or strategic city-wide facilities.
The funding to provide local facilities will be allocated to the Local Need Area (LNA; as adopted methodology from PPG17 guidance) where the development happened, or in an immediately adjacent LNA if local residents use these spaces as well or instead.
A proportion of all Section 106 money can be spent on strategic sites to which users will expect to travel outside their local area. The strategic sites have been identified as:
- City-wide destination parks: Destination parks offer the visitor an experience that may not be available in their local area. We consider that Ashton Court, Blaise Castle and Kingsweston Estates, Oldbury Court Estate, The Downs, Hengrove Park (including Hengrove Play Park) constitute our destination sites.
- Active Sports Spaces: The Active Sports contribution will be pooled as city-wide budget to be spent on strategic facilities across the city as they offer a variety of sporting and wider visitor experiences that would not be expected to be located in each Local Need Area. This funding will managed to deliver policy and priorities in our adopted Playing Pitch Strategy which acts as a sub strategy to the green space strategy.
The cost of providing the improved services is based on our PPG17 compliant but bespoke typology:
a) Formal (ornamental) green space
b) Informal green space
c) Children’s and young people’s space
d) Natural green space
e) Active sports space, seasonal and fixed
The cost build up for providing a square metre of each typology type for a fifteen year period is further divided into:
a) Provision: cost of providing the facility/major upgrading.
b) Condition: more major repair work and cyclic replacements.
c) Maintenance: annual maintenance.
The number of additional dwellings is multiplied by a ward profile of the average number of persons per dwelling. This determines the level of contribution.
Included in the cost of the green space provision there is an allowance for management and administration. This is in additional to any design and other professional fees in delivering a particular improvement.
Based on the NPFA standard adopted in the interim under SPD4 and the complex cost model developed by Bristol Parks, the allocations would work out as follows:
- 56 % Local Need Area (or adjacent LNA)
- 36 % Active Sport Space
- 3 % Destination Parks
- 5% Administration
Bristol City Council’s Supplementary Planning Document 4 is available to download from www.green-space.org.uk. For further information, contact Peter Wilkinson at peter_wilkinson@bristol-city.gov.uk or telephone 0117 922 3535.