Consultations

Consultation Details

Mid Sussex District Council has published the draft District Plan 2021-2039 for public consultation.

The District Plan 2021-2039 sets out the vision, strategy and policy framework for the district for the period to 2039. It is based on four principles:

• Protection of designated landscapes (such as AONB)
• Making effective use of land
• Growth at existing sustainable settlements where it continues to be sustainable to do so
• Opportunities for extensions to improve sustainability of existing settlements which are currently less sustainable

The consultation draft District Plan 2021-2039 includes:

• Allocation of land for three new Sustainable Communities, each delivering over 1,000+ new homes and on-site infrastructure to support growth, such as primary and secondary education, health facilities, community centres, retail, employment and open space.
• 21 housing allocations
• Updated and new planning policies including for climate change, sustainable design and construction, biodiversity, and electric vehicles.

The consultation is open from Monday 7^th November until 23:59 on Monday 19^th December 2022 and we would like to hear your views.

Consultation Details

Mid Sussex District Council is consulting on extending the existing Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO), in Burgess Hill, West Sussex to tackle the anti-social use of vehicle activity, also known as car cruising.

Mid Sussex District Council is also consulting on including two additional areas within the designated PSPO area.

Public Spaces Protection Orders are made under Section 59-75 of the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act.

The consultation and draft Order, including the areas proposed under the Order can be found here.

Consultation Details

This policy was first introduced during 2010 and was reviewed in 2016 and 2019. There have been no legislative changes to affect the policy since then and there are no amendments to the current policy.

Any comments on the Policy should be received by the Licensing Team no later than 31 May 2024.

Consultation Details

The draft policy is the sixth since the Licensing Act 2003 became law on 24th November 2005. A number of revisions have been made by the Government in the light of experience of the Act and suggestions from its practitioners. A final version will be written taking into account the results of the consultation exercise.

Consultation Details

The Council’s existing Animal Welfare Policy came into effect on 1 February 2020. Good practice suggests that the Policy is reviewed at least every 5 years, and at other times when considered necessary, for example, to reflect significant changes in relevant legislation or guidance.

Since the Policy was approved there has been no legislative changes that affect the Policy. The guidance documents have been updated by DEFRA, but there have been no substantive changes to the legislation. Officers have reviewed the current policy to ensure it provides clear guidance to future applicants and consider it remains fit for purpose. Whilst there is no statutory requirement for a policy, it is considered good practice. The review period is five years, in line with similar policy review periods such as those under the Licensing Act 2003.

A final version will be written taking into account the results of the consultation exercise.

The policy has been specifically prepared to take account of the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018.

Any comments on the Policy should be received by the Licensing Team no later than 29 September 2024.

Consultation Details

The policy is new to this council and has been specifically prepared to take account of the provisions of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2024 which make the Pavement Licence provisions in The Business and Planning Act 2020 permanent. A final version will be written taking into account the results of the consultation exercise.

The new legislation increases the duration of licences to 2 years and provides enforcement powers for local authorities.

It also gives the Authority the ability to charge up to £500 for new applications and £350 for renewal applications, but these fees can only be charged on a cost recovery basis.

Any comments on the Policy should be received by the Licensing Team no later than 29 September 2024.

Consultation Details

Mid Sussex District Council introduced a Taxi Licensing Policy on 1st October 2012. This was reviewed and readopted in May 2021.

Due to the revised Best Practice Guidance issued by the Department of Transport in November 2023, concerns surrounding the refusal and acceptance of electronic payments and the perceived lack of availability of Wheel Chair Accessible Licensed Vehicles the policy has been reviewed and some processes have been updated and amended.

The amendments are listed here as headings.

1. Updating Points based enforcement system for points to remain for 36 months.
2. Introduction of disability Awareness training for Operators who are not licensed drivers
3. Removal of roof signs from Private Hire vehicles
4. Remove the requirement for vehicles to carry a fire extinguisher
5. Measures to ensure drivers of Wheelchair Accessible vehicles have appropriate training in connection with the loading and unloading of disabled customers
6. Introduction of card readers to all licensed vehicles
7. Removal of cap on Hackney Carriage Vehicle licences with all new licenses issued to wheelchair accessible vehicles.

The amendments were reviewed by the Licensing Committee 29 July 2024.

The public consultation phase will run from the 5 August until the 29 September 2024.

Please find attached the Consultation Document for your information.

Thank you in advance for reading the amendments to the Policy.