Open Space Strategies - Best Practice Guidance

The Mayor and CABE Space have published for consultation updated planning guidance aimed at ensuring best use of invaluable open spaces:

Draft BPG Open Space Strategies (September 2008) PDF
Draft BPG Open Space Strategies (September 2008) RTF

The Mayor's London Plan recognises the valuable contribution that open spaces play in providing a good quality environment. In order to fully understand the provision of open space and the demands and needs placed on them Policy 3D.12 of the London Plan states that the boroughs should produce an Open Space Strategy. The updated best practice guidance will assist this process.

The draft guidance provides advice on assessing the quantity and quality of open spaces and on identifying the needs of local communities and other users of open spaces. Drawing on the lessons learnt from 5 years of CABE Space strategic enabling support with local authorities across England, it updates earlier CABE Space guidance (Green space strategies: A good practice guide, 2004), and combines this with an update of the guidance for London - Mayor’s guide to preparing open space strategies; Best practice guidance of the London Plan, 2004 - to provide one comprehensive guide for England. It also suggests ways of promoting open space improvements, including funding, the use of planning obligations and how to effectively engage the local community and establish collaborative partnerships.

Many local authorities have already completed open space strategies and are now facing the challenges of implementing the strategy policies and actions. This update of the guidance is for those authorities embarking on the strategy process for the first time, those with strategies in progress and, those who are delivering the strategy, the section on implementation and delivery will be particularly relevant.

Consultation

Comments are invited on the consultation draft guidance, which should be referenced to the relevant pages in the draft. Responses must be received by 5pm Friday, 19 December 2008. They should be sent to:

Boris Johnson
Mayor of London
(Open Space Strategies)
Greater London Authority
FREEPOST 15799
London SE1 2BR

Or by email to mayor@london.gov.uk with ‘Open Space Strategies’ as the subject. If you send in a response by email it is not necessary to also send a hard copy.Please note that responses to this public consultation may be made available for public inspection.

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