Local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods - planning guidance: final impact assessment report update

Island Communities Impact Assessment - (ICIA) Report Update

Scottish Government Planning Guidance: Local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods

Introduction

The fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4), adopted by the Scottish Parliament on 13th February 2023, contains policy on local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods. NPF4 forms part of the statutory development plan.

The Scottish Government Planning Guidance: Local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods aims to support the implementation of the existing policy framework within NPF4. The preparation of NPF4 involved extensive consultation and parliamentary scrutiny as well as the development of a comprehensive Integrated Impact assessment. A Society and Equalities Impact Assessment, including a ICIA, was undertaken for NPF4 and this covered the policy framework, including content on Local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods (Policy 15).

This impact assessment report update relates only to the guidance, and not to new policy content. The guidance does not introduce any additional policy requirements or duties and is simply intended to provide additional details and clarifications of existing policy in order to support effective and efficient implementation.

The impact of the guidance is deemed to be covered by the NPF4 ICIA. However this report seeks to examine in more detail and supplement the NPF4 ICIA, in particular due to issues raised within the NPF4 process on the relationship of local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods in rural and island locations.

The Islands (Scotland) Act 2018 (the 2018 Act)

Section 7 of the Islands (Scotland) Act 2018 provides for a duty on the Scottish Ministers that they must have regard to island communities in exercising their functions and in the development of legislation.

Section 8 states that Scottish Ministers must prepare an ICIA in relation to a policy, strategy, or service, which, in the authority’s opinion, is likely to have an effect on an island community which is significantly different from its effect on other communities (including other island communities) in the area in which the authority exercises its functions. These provisions came into force on 23 December 2020. The relevant local authorities are Argyll & Bute Council, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, Highland Council, North Ayrshire Council, Orkney Islands Council and Shetland Islands Council.

The planning system has a role to play in the development and use of land in the long term public interest, including the future development of communities, and so has a relevance to each of the considerations listed above. Access to sufficient play opportunities links to several of the considerations listed above, in particular around health and wellbeing, environmental wellbeing, and education (in relation to outdoor learning).

Objectives and Intended Outcomes

The fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4) sets out a clear commitment to think differently about our places and contains policy on local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods. The Scottish Government Planning Guidance: Local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods aims to support the implementation of the existing policy framework within NPF4.

The document provides further details to support the NPF4 policy framework on local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods. It aims to encourage, promote, and facilitate the application of the Place Principle and create connected and compact neighbourhoods which prioritise environmental, social, and economic sustainability.

Local living can support our health and wellbeing, help tackle inequality, increase climate resilience and deliver vibrant local economies. Providing better access to more of the services and facilities people need on a daily basis can reduce the need to travel unsustainably, increase opportunities for social connections and help to build a positive sense of belonging and community resilience.

The guidance is intended to assist and support planning authorities, communities, businesses, and others who have key roles in helping to deliver local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods.

• planning authorities: It is expected to be of particular relevance in the preparation of LDPs, local place plans (LPPs) and to support planning decision making. Planning authorities are expected to consider how the guidance can be applied in a proportionate and place-based way and to use their discretion in deciding which components of the advice are relevant to their processes
• community planning partnerships: To support community planning partners / public sector organisations working together to plan and deliver public services in local authority areas, through locality plans and local outcome improvement plans
• community groups and councils / third sector / business: The guidance is also intended to support understanding of local living for organisations engaged in the planning system and in initiatives such as local place plans
• development proposers: Those involved in the preparation of development proposals and planning applications: Such as client organisations, housing, health, education and infrastructure providers and funders, developers, commercial and retail business, designers, and planners

The Scottish Parliament Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee report into draft NPF4 stated that:

‘There are undoubtedly, however, very significant challenges associated with delivering on 20 minute neighbourhoods. Whether it’s a new development, an existing urban setting or rural or island context, careful consideration will need to be given to how it can be applied in each context…. and in particular in rural and island areas where the challenges of creating 20 minute neighbourhoods would appear to be most pronounced’

Responding to this and to the general feedback received through the preparation of NPF4, and a public consultation on a draft guidance document, the Scottish Government Planning Guidance: Local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods guidance contains specific content highlighting issues related to rural and island communities.

Data Gathering and stakeholder identification

As part of the development of the guidance, desk-top research and engagement was undertaken. Key research documents examined included Living Well Locally, 20 minute communities in the highlands and islands, commissioned by Sustrans / Hitrans. Part of this research examined comments on the NPF4 and in particular on the draft policy on 20 minute neighbourhoods. It set out key challenges for communities in island and rural settings, summarised as follows:

• The ability for highland and island communities to access daily needs within a 20 minute walk or cycle due to the dispersed nature of settlements and low density
• The conflict between the walkable nature of local living and requirements of rural and island communities to use a car to access services further afield
• The relative ability of small rural and island communities to sustain services
• Questions on the population size needed to sustain services and the type of core services that should be provided
• A risk of centralisation of services to rural and island communities with satellite villages cut off from access and opportunities
• Issues on sustaining public transport in island and rural communities
• Issues over terminology – ‘neighbourhood’ being linked to more urban situations

This research provided detailed and specific insight into the implications of local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods in island communities. As part of the development of the guidance on local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods, the research team were commissioned by Scottish Government to support the consideration of island and rural communities within the guidance.

Relevant documents used in the preparing of the guidance included:

• Improvement Service: Argyll and Bute Indicative Regional Spatial Strategy: a 20 Minute Neighbourhood Rapid Scoping Assessment
• RTPI Scotland - Implementing 20 Minute Neighbourhoods in Planning Policy and Practice
• Scottish Rural Action, Scottish Rural and Islands Transport Community, presentations to the SURF People in Place Practice Network( formerly the 20 Minute Neighbourhood Network) meeting 3, held on 20th January 2022: 20 MN through a rural and island lens - Presentation for SURF Network
• Scottish Rural Parliament: Session Report on 20 Minute Neighbourhoods
• Town and Country Planning Association: Guide to 20 minute neighbourhoods. SURF: People in Place Practice Network - SURF (formerly the 20 Minute Neighbourhood Network)
• Nick Wright Planning for Hitrans: Living Well Locally 20 Minute Communities in the Highlands and Islands

Engagement took place with organisations such as the South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE), Tiree Development Company. Hope Co-Housing, Orkney, SURF 20 minute neighbourhood Practice Network. All local authorities were invited to discuss the place-based activities and approaches being undertaken in their area, helping to inform the guidance and providing case studies. Comments from North Ayrshire Council, Aberdeenshire Council and Angus Council were particularly useful for the consideration of the implementation of local living in a rural setting.

The public consultation on the Local living and 20 minute neighbourhood: Draft Planning Guidance ran between 27 April and 20 July 2023 setting out 10 consultation questions. In total, 615 responses were received from 509 individuals and 106 organisations. A broad range of public and stakeholder views were gathered on each element of the guidance including on the impact assessment report update.

The consultation responses usefully enabled the identification of areas where clarity or more detail was sought and around issues related to the understanding of the principles of local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods and the implementation of the policy.

In brief, some of the issues raised across the consultation are summarised below;

• requests for more detail or examples to expand on the guidance and to help its use in practice, addressing the diverse nature of neighbourhoods and overcoming challenges in placemaking initiatives
• calls to address accessibility of the document through a simplification of language, removal of jargon and repetition, including clarity around who the guidance was intended to be used by
• the need for investment in robust infrastructure, particularly transport, healthcare, education, and leisure
• concerns around the resources and funding for delivery, particularly planning teams and teams supporting communities combined with pressurised local authority budgets
• the requirement for the guidance to detail a greater alignment with relevant policies, strategies, frameworks, and investments in order bolster local living

Additional data sources

National Plan for Scotland’s Islands^[3] was published in December 2019. It noted the following:

• Island communities face many different transport challenges when carrying out their daily lives compared to those living in less rural areas of the mainland and urban areas
• the importance of community was a key theme from the consultation and respondents provided a range of examples that highlighted the uniqueness of the islands and the strengths they provide for cultivating innovative initiatives and projects on a small scale
• many of the islanders said that they felt remote from where decisions were taken and expressed a desire for more considered decision-making which included them
• Island communities indicated that although the progress with broadband connectivity was a positive, further advancement was needed given the variation of both mobile and broadband connection between, and within, the islands of Scotland

Population demographics: National Records of Scotland Mid-Year Population Estimates Scotland, Mid-2020 (2021)^[4] indicates that:

• rural and island areas tend to have an older age profile
• in mid-2020, islands and mostly rural areas had some of the highest proportions of people aged 65 and over.

Transport and Travel in Scotland Results from the Scottish Household Survey 2020 Telephone Survey (2022)^[5] indicates that:

• A little over half of people surveyed (55%) had travelled the day before their survey interview; and
• Fewer people travelled in the oldest age groups, with 45% of those over 70 and just 22% of the over 80s travelling the previous day.

Settlements data: National Records of Scotland - Population Estimates for Settlements and Localities in Scotland, Mid-2020 (2022)^[6] states that:

• Nah Eileanan Siar had the lowest proportion of people living in settlements (29.4%); and
• Both Orkney and Shetland are the other areas with the proportion of people living in settlements below 50%.

Connected Nations Scotland Report (2019)^[7] for internet uses notes that:

• Island communities have older populations, and that internet use is less in older age groups than younger ones
• there is a gap between premises in the islands able to access superfast and fibre broadband when compared to premises in other parts of rural Scotland

The National Islands Plan Survey Final Report (2021)^[8] notes:

• Island residents agree that the air quality is good (98%), they see a lot of wildlife (91%) and there are green or blue spaces within a 5-minute walk of their home
• 46% of island residents agree that there are services available to help people find and keep jobs
• only 30% of island residents agree that parents have access to childcare services that suit their work hours
• less than a third of islanders use buses more than once a year, with greatest use in Arran, Bute and the Cumbraes (50%), and significantly less use in Shetland Outer Isles (12%) and Uist and Barra (12%)
• most island residents (80%) say they can access a bus within walking distance of their home
• overall, ferries to and from the Scottish mainland are the most frequently used form of transport for islanders
• a quarter of island residents agree that their local roads and paths are safe for cycling, and safe and accessible for wheelchairs and prams
• less than half of island residents agree that there is a variety of housing types, sizes and tenures to meet people’s needs
• most island residents agreed that they could easily access a hospital, with notable differences between Orkney Mainland (95%) and Orkney Outer Isles (62%), Shetland Mainland (92%) and Shetland Outer Isles (62%). A similar pattern is evident with respect to dentists and pharmacies
• a quarter of islanders agree that they could easily access mental health services. Levels of agreement significantly differed between the highest level in Lewis and Harris (32%), and the lowest in Shetland Outer Isles (18%)
• the most popular forms of cultural participation for islanders are the cinema (including mobile), with 41% of islanders attending more than once a year, culturally specific festivals (39%), historic places (38%) and live music events (37%)
• 86% of island residents agree that there are places where they can go to take part in sports and physical exercise
• less than half of islanders agreed that, if they wanted to, they could access professional training while living on the islands (online or in person)

Young People and the Highlands and Islands Maximising Opportunities (2018)^[9] report notes:

• young people in the Highlands and Islands have a very positive perception of their local town or community. They feel it is a safe place, with a good quality of life, a good place to bring up a family and to live as a young person, and somewhere they feel included
• since the 2015 survey, there has been a sharp decline in the proportion of young people agreeing that their community is a place where young peoples’ needs are being met (from 54% to 37%), with this being lowest in Caithness and Sutherland (19%)

Analysis of responses to Draft NPF4 (2022)^[10] notes that:

• around 20 respondents made a comment on the partial ICIA. It was suggested that there needs to be more proactive engagement with island communities about planning
• respondents highlighted a range of issues that affect island communities, including housing, childcare provision, lack of stable employment, fragility, and isolation
• there is the potential that in locations with more scattered and / or older communities, there may be difficulties in interested members of the public getting involved
• given a more scattered population and the availability of, and reliance upon, public transport, may mean island populations may be less able to access their daily needs within a walk, wheel or cycle of their home

Assessment

The assessment process requires that the Scottish Government must determine whether in its opinion the policy, strategy or service is likely to have an effect on an island community which is significantly different from its effect on other communities (including other island communities).

Feedback from the NPF4 consultation process highlighted that the policy on 20 minute neighbourhoods, (where the majority of daily needs can be met within a 10 minute walk of home), contained in the draft NPF4 may be more problematic to deliver in some island or rural locations.

Responses from island authorities included questions on how the 20 minute neighbourhoods concept would apply, or not, in a rural or island context.

The assessment stated that island and coastal communities will need a bespoke approach to building networks of 20 minute neighbourhoods to further strengthen their long term resilience and self reliance. To facilitate this bespoke approach, local development plans should apply the concept of 20 minute neighbourhoods in the spatial strategy through site briefs or development proposals with the concept applying differently in rural and urban areas. Island and coastal communities will need a bespoke and flexible approach to the concept of 20 minute neighbourhoods, for example by identifying service hubs in key locations with good public transport links.

Key issues that were identified include:

• the dispersed nature of rural and island settlements and low density as a barrier to supporting access to the majority of daily needs within a 20 minute walk, wheel or cycle of from home
• the relative ability of small rural and island communities to sustain services
• questions on the population size needed to sustain services and the type of core services that should be provided
• a risk of centralisation of services to rural and island communities with satellite villages cut off from access and opportunities
• issues on sustaining public transport in island and rural communities
• issues over terminology – ‘neighbourhood’ being linked to more urban situations

In considering the above issues, and those contained within the consultation responses and impact assessment as part of finalising the NPF4 the policy shifted from a focus on 20 minute neighbourhoods to local living. This provided flexibility and the policy states that development proposals will contribute to local living including, where relevant, 20 minute neighbourhoods. It also states that, in order to establish this, consideration will be given to existing settlement pattern, and the level and quality of interconnectivity of the proposed development. It also states that the approach should take into account the local context. This is intended to recognise the diversity of Scotland’s places, including the characteristics of island communities.

The policy states an intent to support people to meet the majority of their daily needs within a reasonable distance of their home. NPF4 promotes a contextual approach and in this regard a reasonable distance will vary due to circumstances, however the principle of supporting local living for all local communities is still relevant and important.

Consultation on the guidance

Some of the issues noted above were included in the consultation responses for the draft guidance. Additional points made included:

• local living, if driven by meaningful community engagement, could be a useful mechanism in bringing together the various aspects of communities that need to collaborate to create thriving, liveable and resilient communities
• respondents welcomed the acknowledgement of different approaches applying in different places, however there were calls for the guidance to offer greater emphasis on the need for flexibility of approach when considering local living in rural and semi-rural areas
• the concept was considered by some to be too urban-centric, coupled with an ask for separate guidance for rural places or a greater focus on application in rural areas
• that local communities were best placed to determine approaches based on their local population needs and access to facilities
• Exploring habitability indicators for viable Island communities developed in the Shetland islands for creating local place plans
• Concern around centralisation of services linked to financial constraints
• that the guidance should note that quantitative data collected should include measurable and quantifiable data about the relevant community and place, including large datasets detailing nuance and subdivision within community data

In response to the issues raised through the development of the NPF4, through the consultation on the draft guidance and through subsequent research and engagement, the final guidance contains significant references to the application of local living within rural and island contexts.

It states that how people’s daily needs are met in dispersed, rural and island communities, small towns, or larger towns, or cities, is likely to look quite different depending on the context. In all situations, local input and participation is a key component in shaping what local living looks like and in finding the right solutions that offer climate conscious and sustainable approaches. In rural and island areas, distances and densities mean that flexible and innovative approaches are required to support living well locally. Local input and participation of the local communities help the understanding of pressures and opportunities and can help the development of approaches to local living that are appropriate and that help to maximise the benefits for local people and the environment.

The final guidance emphasises that the diverse nature of Scotland’s urban and rural geographies and communities requires that a flexible approach is taken to local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods. It clarifies that this flexibility is driven by a full understanding of the context and characteristics of a place and that the local communities must be involved at the outset in determining what is best for them in their specific context.

Updated Conclusion

The Scottish Government Planning Guidance: Local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods does not introduce any additional policy requirements or duties. However it provides significant content on the application of existing policy on local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods within island and rural contexts.

The updated conclusion is that the guidance will not alter the original NPF4 ICIA outcomes that it does not have an impact on island communities which is significantly different from its effect on other communities.

In the final guidance, we have aimed to respond to comments on equality issues received through the consultation process, including any issues raised in relation to impact on island communities.

Signed:

Date: 5^th April 2024

Minister’s Name: Joe Fitzpatrick MSP

Minister’s title: Minister for Local Government, Empowerment and Planning

Scottish Government Contact Point: Ashley Mullen, Planning Architecture and Regeneration Division