Project Description

Client:  Derbyshire Fire & Rescue
Location:  Derbyshire/East Midlands
Local Authority:  Various
Sector:  Public Sector
Project Status:  Complete

 

For the past 10 years DPDS have been Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service’s (DFRS) retained consultants in respect of their landholdings throughout Derbyshire. DPDS have advised DFRS on a number of matters including the promotion of sites for the development of new community fire stations. This has enabled DFRS to ensure that it is well placed to respond to evolving service requirements arising from planned developments over the next 15-20 years which often place increasing demands upon the Service in times of often diminishing resources.

We prepared a ‘Strategic Land Management Plan’ which seeks to ensure that DFRS’s land portfolio and its ability to release value through development can be accurately realised. This process required DPD

S to quickly gain an understanding of the constraints and opportunities provided by some 32 land holdings and also to achieve the ‘buy in’ of 10 Local Planning Authorities within whose administrative area the 32 sites lie.

For each site our work included:

  • Site Visits;
  • Planning History Review;
  • Planning Policy Review;
  • Environmental Constraints Review;
  • Opportunities and Constraints Assessment;
  • Recommendations for future use/development;
  • Presentation of recommendation to each of the 10 relevant LPA’s to obtain their agreement in principle;

The presentation of findings and recommendation to the relevant local Authorities gave a level of comfort to DFRS that the proposals would be acceptable should they decide to implement them and also ensured that the Local Planning Authorities were fully engaged in our work and that any subsequent planning applications would be expected and subsequently supported.

We have recently undertaken an update of the Strategic Land Management Plan, ensuring that the complex and ever changing planning landscape in Derbyshire is fully understood and opportunities can be maximised by DFRS.

 

Alongside the update of the Strategic Land Management Plan, we also undertook detailed site appraisals

of two additional large surplus sites to assess their suitability for a range of development options.

This included the following tasks:

Generic Fire Engine, Project Example, DPDS

  • Site visits;
  • Planning history review
  • Desk top appraisal of planning policy, environmental, physical and other likely constraints;
  • Review of appropriate uses;
  • Review of market intelligence and developer interest for various uses; and
  • Preparation and submission of representations through the Local Plan Review process.

DPDS continues to support DFRS in respect of these sites, monitoring the progress of the Local Plan, making recommendations for further actions at the relevant times and assisting with DFRS’s ultimate disposal strategy.