The Suffolk Haven Gateway Employment Land Review (SHGELR) was commissioned by the Haven Gateway Partnership, on behalf of Ipswich Borough Council, Suffolk Coastal and Babergh District Councils, and Suffolk County Council, as part of the evidence base for the emerging Local Development Framework (LDF) in each local authority area.
The adopted East of England Plan identifies ambitious job growth targets for Suffolk Haven Gateway (Ipswich/Suffolk Coastal/Babergh) in Policy E1.
The authorities jointly commissioned consultants GVA Grimley to undertake the Employment Land Review and Strategic Sites Study for Suffolk Haven Gateway to look into providing the right amount and quality of employment land to meet the future job growth target of 30,000 in the sub-region.
The study followed national and regional guidance and involved the following stages:
Ipswich is the major economic centre of Suffolk Haven Gateway. The Borough shares a number of key employment drivers with neighbouring authorities, for example the Port of Felixstowe, Adastral Park and the A12/14 corridors.
The study concludes that, overall, Ipswich does not have sufficient land within the Borough boundaries to meet projected demand throughout the planning period and puts forward a total of ten recommendations for Ipswich.
It sets out how a coordinated planning approach and working with neighbouring local authorities could help achieve the right mix of quality and choice of employment land to meet the job targets. It also recommends maintaining the current planning policy of concentrating development on previously developed land.
The Suffolk Haven Gateway Employment Land Review documents are available to download below:
An interim draft report was part of the evidence base at the Proposed Submission Core Strategy and Policies consultation stage in September 2009. This document is available to download below:
Ipswich Borough Council,
Planning Policy,
3W Grafton House,
15-17 Russell Road,
Ipswich,
IP1 2DE
01473 432019
