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YORKSHIRE AND HUMBER ASSEMBLY NEWS

An e-news update on our work
July 2008

Transport Schemes

Members of the Assembly’s Transport Board have backed four new schemes worth more than £26m aimed at meeting business and commuter travel needs within the region, covering areas including Leeds, Wakefield, Castleford and Rotherham.

Following the Regional Transport Board meeting, which reviewed progress on the Yorkshire and Humber regional transport funding allocations (RFA), the Board’s endorsement for the schemes will be presented to Ministers, who will progress each project with local authorities and other parties involved in sponsoring individual proposals.

Schemes endorsed by the Board (total RFA support figures in millions) are:

• Leeds City Region Rail Growth, £14.3m
• A636 Denby Dale Road Exceptional Maintenance Scheme, Wakefield, £3.347m
• A639 Colorado Way Exceptional Maintenance Scheme, Castleford, £4.030m
• A630 Centenary Way Exceptional Maintenance Scheme, Rotherham, £4,783m

In addition, Bradford Council has been invited to further develop its Connecting Airedale scheme and re submit it with a revised business case for support in the Full Review of Regional Funding Allocations which will take place later this year.

The interim review was carried out to fill emerging gaps in the early to mid years of the RFA programme. A total of 24 schemes with a combined value of £333.4m were originally submitted. Independent analysis of each scheme was then carried out, providing an assessment of policy, value for money and deliverability for each scheme. Following this analysis, the Transport Board then approved 10 schemes worth more than £130m at their April meeting. The recent Board meeting has now approved the further schemes listed.

For more information contact Mike Padgett on 01924 331575; email mike.padgett@yhassembly.gov.uk

2009 Update of the Yorkshire and Humber Plan

The Assembly has now finished consulting on the draft Project Plan for the partial review of the Yorkshire and Humber Plan (the Regional Spatial Strategy) 2009 Update. Approximately 25 responses have been received.

The Regional Planning Board considered changes to the Project Plan at their meeting on 29 July 2008. The Project Plan will now be finalised and submitted to Government Office for approval from Government. The final Project Plan will be made available on the Assembly's website.

In response to the Call for Evidence, the Assembly received around 90 submissions. The Assembly will analyse and critically examine all of the proposals that have been submitted in response to the Call for Evidence, as later stages of the process will subject them to rigorous testing. Together with the other studies and projects the Assembly is undertaking, this analysis will inform the next stage which will be the generation and testing of spatial options for accommodating growth in the region.

Consultation and engagement on the Spatial Options will take place in November and December 2008. Tenders are now being invited for the Sustainability Appraisal, Strategic Environmental Assessment and Habitats Regulations Assessment of the 2009 Update, including the evaluation of spatial options.

The project brief and draft contract are available from Hannah Madajewski on 01924 331 592; email hannah.madajewski@yhassembly.gov.uk. For more information regarding the RSS 2009 Update please visit the Assembly's website (www.yhassembly.gov.uk) or contact Harriet Fisher on 01924 331 597; email harriet.fisher@yhassembly.gov.uk.

Scrutiny of Investment Planning

The Scrutiny Board is set to embark on the Assembly’s fourteenth scrutiny review in September 2008, and the topic is Investment Planning. Investment Planning is the process which Yorkshire Forward and its partners use to determine, and support, a number of activities and projects that will meet local economic and social needs. The purpose of the Investment Plans is to identify all of the different funding streams available that will fund each activity, such as Yorkshire Forward’s Single Pot monies, European funding and financial contributions from organisations like the Learning and Skills Council and Local Authorities.

Work has already begun on the collection of data on the development and delivery of the four Sub-regional Investment Plans, and this information will help the Scrutiny Board to determine the Lines of Enquiry for the review. The Assembly’s website (www.yhassembly.gov.uk) will be constantly updated throughout the review, with the Scrutiny Board’s progress and emerging findings.

There will be ample opportunity between now and December 2008 for organisations and individuals to participate in the review. One way in which you can do this is by attending the all-day Public Discussion event at Cathedral Hall in Leeds on 21 October 2008. If you would like to attend this lively event, please contact the Scrutiny Team at the Assembly.

Another way in which you can contribute to the review is by sending any comments, supporting documents and questions to the Scrutiny Board at the Assembly offices in Wakefield, or by emailing them to scrutiny@yhassembly.gov.uk. In these early stages of the review, we would particularly welcome your thoughts on the following questions:

• How have you been involved in the Investment Planning process?
• How effective has Investment Planning been in allowing different funding streams and partner resources to be pooled?
• How effective has Investment Planning been in meeting the needs of your community?

In the meantime, following its approval at the Assembly’s AGM on 26 June, the scrutiny report on Meeting the Climate Challenge will be published in August. Copies of the report will be automatically distributed to those who contributed to the review, but if you would like to receive a copy of the report, email the Scrutiny Team at scrutiny@yhassembly.gov.uk

Housing Intelligence Report

A new housing report has been prepared by the Assembly which sets out some of the current challenges facing the housing market.

The Housing Intelligence Report – June 2008 has been put together in response to a request by the Regional Housing Board (RHB) for more information on how the market in the region is currently operating from both a housing association and private sector perspective.

The report, which reviews national policy and its impacts on the region and discusses regional housing issues and the effect of the credit crunch, makes it clear that the market conditions are fundamentally different from those which prevailed when the current Regional Housing Strategy was written and from when the current investment plan was agreed.

The current market conditions and the findings in the report have led to the RHB starting to develop a regional risk assessment and action plan to inform the Board’s future decisions around strategy and investment.

For more information contact Fay McCulloch on 01924 331586; email fay.mcculloch@yhassembly.gov.uk

Strategic Planning Applications and Development Plan Documents

As part of its role as a statutory consultee on strategic planning applications, the Assembly is asked by the region's local authorities to comment on specific developments and how they fit in with the Regional Spatial Strategy.

Link to applications commented on this month

The Assembly also comments on Development Plan Documents that are being prepared across the region.

Link to Development Plan Documents the Assembly has received for consultation this month.

For more details on the role of the Assembly in commenting on applications and Development Plan Documents contact Andy Haigh on 01924 331601; email andy.haigh@yhassembly.gov.uk

Dates for the Diary

7 August – Sustainable Development Board Meeting, Yorkshire and Humber Assembly Offices