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PLANNING ADVICE NOTE: PAN 73: RURAL DIVERSIFICATION
Encouraging Sustainable Diversification
24. Rural diversification helps make our rural areas more sustainable. It allows individuals to continue to live in rural areas, close to their places of work, without needing to commute to towns or cities. In some cases businesses can be brought closer to their suppliers and markets. Successful diversification also attracts new skills and new people to rural areas benefiting existing businesses and helping to retain essential services, sustaining local communities and maintaining their quality of life. In fragile areas this influx of new businesses and new people may make the difference between decline and growth. As well as supporting the rural economy, diversification can help bring brownfield sites or otherwise redundant buildings back into use, and deliver environmental enhancements or much needed community benefits.
Community Renewable Energy, Unst, Shetland
RURAL DIVERSIFICATION ENCOURAGING SUSTAINABLE DIVERSIFICATION
25. However, rural diversification can also raise fundamental questions. The siting of businesses in rural areas, particularly in the open countryside, can encourage unsustainable traffic generation or commuting patterns. There may be impacts on an area's natural or cultural heritage or other environmental factors to consider. There are also conflicting views about the role of housing in relation to diversification. Question marks can surround a business' economic viability or longevity. An apparently successful business could potentially have an adverse impact on a nearby village or town.
26. Planners will be mindful of these sustainability issues in the preparation of plans or when considering a planning application, but applying these matters of principle to individual circumstances requires careful consideration of all the economic and social, as well as environmental, factors.
Case Study 4: Cream O' Galloway: Recreation, Habitat Creation and Ice Cream
In 1993 the Finlays applied for planning permission to convert a disused farm building at Rainton Farm near Gatehouse of Fleet. The Cream O' Galloway Dairy Company began making ice cream in 1994 and now supplies ice cream to major supermarkets and stores throughout the UK. Visitor facilities have been developed and environmental improvements undertaken. The farm now attracts 60,000 visitors a year and in 2003 received a Thistle Award for excellence and quality in their work with tourism and the environment.
Rainton Farm is on the edge of a National Scenic Area and consideration of visual impacts was to the fore as the farm expanded its processing facility to accommodate offices, storage and distribution areas. The new premises are sympathetic to their surroundings but also designed to meet stringent environmental health and fire regulations. Several alterations to the original design were required to ensure that farm activities, ice cream production and visitor attractions were physically separated from each other.
Rainton Farm has undertaken an environmental audit and is committed to a programme of actions to improve the biodiversity of the farm over the coming years. Through habitat creation and conservation they aim to increase numbers of rare species on the farm such as red squirrel, otter and water vole, and attract other species that are key targets in the Dumfries and Galloway Local Biodiversity Action Plan. With assistance from SNH and the Forestry Commission 30,000 native trees have already been planted and 50 acres of farmland converted into amenity woodland. In addition, two large ponds have been created to provide valuable habitat for aquatic wildlife. Four miles of nature trails have been laid which help to raise awareness of the wider environment whilst at the same time offering an enjoyable visitor experience.
Housing and Diversification
27. House-building, in itself, is not diversification but there are circumstances where, in relation to a business, new housing may be acceptable as a complementary part of a development. It should also be recognised that new housing in rural areas can play an important part in wider economic regeneration and environmental renewal especially in remote areas. The provision of appropriately located, well designed homes, suitable for a range of incomes can help to stem depopulation, keep young people and skills in the area and help to attract new people and entrepreneurs.
28. Occasionally, new housing is proposed as a mechanism to cross-fund a business proposal. In some instances, after considering the proposal against planning policies, this may be acceptable. Where such housing is proposed it should still be located in sustainable locations. The housing need not be on the same site and it may be possible to direct new housing to existing settlements.
Case Study 5: New Housing at Netherton Delivers New Businesses
Previously disused steadings on the Fetternear Estate are now home to the Netherton business centre and 45 new jobs. This development near Kemnay in Aberdeenshire occurred in three phases providing 19 business units for companies involved in activities ranging from geophysical surveying to document scanning.
The first phase of development involved the conversion of a listed barn but was also accompanied by the construction of three houses. These new-build houses, on a separate site, provided essential cross funding for road infrastructure and drainage improvements and were necessary to deliver two further phases of steading conversions. In turn, the business presence at Netherton has been instrumental in accelerating the introduction of broadband services to the village of Kemnay.
29. Both SPP3 and SPP15 recognise that conversions which allow buildings to be retained contribute to local character and provide distinctive assets to the local environment. Proposals that involve both residential and business uses should be considered sympathetically where they involve sensitive re-use, conversion or rehabilitation of buildings that can be accessed safely and readily serviced. Limited new build along with converted or rehabilitated buildings may be acceptable where it results in a cohesive grouping well related to its landscape setting. It is also important to consider whether the proposed business use is compatible with the residential element (for example if it generates noise or smells). Housing proposals that displace an existing economic use will also require particular scrutiny.
30. Home-working is becoming more and more common, and provided it does not employ more than one member of the household and does not use more than one room it will not normally require planning permission. Home-working should be encouraged and associated small scale development will sometimes be required. Suitable sites for home-work units can be identified through development plans.
31. In some instances new housing is justified because of the economic benefits of a combined business element. Such proposals will be considered against normal planning policies and in particular the SPPs for housing, economic development and planning for rural development. Where the economic benefit of the proposal becomes a determining issue it can be useful to ask the following questions:
- Has adequate supporting information, such as a business plan, been provided to establish that the proposal is genuine and viable?
- Is there demand for what is proposed and will the development bring needed skills or services to the area?
- Will the business encourage healthy competition or is it likely to displace existing businesses?
- Does the business proposed have the support of and reflect the aspirations of the local community?
32. New housing is sometimes provided by businesses as worker accommodation. The provision of 'tied' housing for agricultural workers has long been recognised, but worker accommodation attached to other businesses may be equally as justified, for example for hotel workers. The use of occupancy conditions may be appropriate.
Case Study 6: Isle of Eriska Hotel, Argyll & Bute
Beautiful surroundings and a sense of isolation have contributed to the Isle of Eriska Hotel's success but they also posed challenges for the expansion of the hotel. The Hotel sits on its own island in the middle of Loch Creran, a candidate Special Area of Conservation (SAC), and also in the heart of the Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area.
In the last 10 years the hotel has developed a swimming pool and spa facility, a 9-hole golf course and new guest apartments. Maintaining close contact with SNH has ensured that the new facilities are sympathetic to the surrounding landscape, habitats and species. Development of the golf course was accompanied by an environmental audit, which has informed a grounds management regime. The swimming pool is not chlorinated but instead treated by ozone and discharges are carefully controlled and monitored.
The relative remoteness of the island had often made finding local affordable accommodation for staff difficult, and as a consequence the hotel has provided purpose-built staff housing. The expanded facilities have enabled the hotel to respond to changes in the tourism market and remain open all year round. Staying open over the winter season has made it easier to retain staff and the hotel now employs 45 people, 20 more than 10 years ago.
Rural Brownfield
33. Development Plan policies should encourage rehabilitation of brownfield sites in rural areas and in appropriate locations allow for their re-development. Brownfield sites are broadly defined as sites that have previously been developed. In rural areas this usually means sites that are occupied by redundant or unused buildings or where the land has been significantly degraded by a former activity.
Brownfield Site, Ballinluig
Case Study 7: The Ice Factor at Kinlochleven
In 1994, after 90 years of operation, Alcan Smelting and Power (UK) Ltd announced that they would be closing their outdated aluminium smelter in Kinlochleven. A 10-point enhancement strategy was prepared and the Kinlochleven Land Development Trust in partnership with the Highlands and Islands Network, Highland Council and the local community spearheaded a 12 million programme of investment in the area. An area of 1.5ha was cleared and comprehensively decontaminated by Alcan. Land transfers handed a number of sites over to the development trust on a long lease. Following remediation works, the smelter's category B-listed carbon bunkers and laboratory were structurally restored. Four new business units were constructed and the laboratory was converted into a bunkhouse. In June 1999 planning permission was granted to convert one of the carbon bunkers into a microbrewery.
It was always envisaged that the smelter building could house an outdoor activities centre and December 2003 saw the opening of the Ice Factor (Ionad Sreip Lochabair) the biggest indoor ice climbing facility in the UK. In addition to ice climbing the facility contains a host of regular climbing walls, a bouldering area, changing facilities, sauna and steam rooms, a specialist outdoor equipment shop and a cafeteria and restaurant. The main hall is capable of hosting lectures and is used as a teaching facility for climbing and medical courses. The Ice factor is recognised by the Mountaineering Council for Scotland as both a regional and national centre, employs 29 people, and had over 30,000 visitors in its first six months.
Redevelopment of the smelter site was accompanied by built and natural heritage audits, which in turn have informed a range of environmental improvements in the area. As part of the wider enhancement strategy for the regeneration of Kinlochleven, over 8 kms of the path network have been improved and townscape improvements have provided new amenity areas, additional parking and new stone walls for houses.
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