Replacement Calderdale UDP : Adopted 25 August 2006 (as amended August 2009)

Replacement Calderdale UDP : Adopted 25 August 2006

• Foreword
• 1 Introduction
• 2 Calderdale in Context
• Strategic and Core Part One Policies
• 3 Guiding Principles and Key Themes
• 4 Employment, The Economy, Tourism and Regeneration
• 5 Housing
• 6 Retailing and Town Centres
• 7 Open Space, Sport and Recreation Facilities
• 8 The Built and Historic Environment
  • The Contribution of Design to the Quality of the Built Environment
  • Piecemeal Development
  • General Design Criteria
  • Privacy, Daylighting and Amenity Space in New Development
  • Landscaping of New Development
  • Safety and Security Considerations within New Developments
  • Design and Layout of Highways and Accesses in New Development
  • Provision of Safe Pedestrian Environments in New Development
  • CCTV and Area Lighting Schemes
  • Access and the Provision of Public Conveniences and Baby Changing Facilities in New Development
  • Art in Public Places
  • Telecommunications Development
  • Advertisements
  • The Historic Built Environment
• 9 Transport
• 10 Infrastructure, Education and Community Facilities
• 11 Natural Environment and the Countryside
• 12 Environmental Protection
• 13 Minerals
• 14 Waste Management
• 15 Monitoring and Review of the Plan
• Annex A Privacy, Daylighting and Amenity Space
• Annex B Trees On or Adjacent to Development Sites
• Appendix 1 National Planning Policy
• Appendix 2 National Minerals Policy
• Appendix 3 Supporting Published Documents
• Appendix 4 Glossary of Terms
• Appendix 5 Acronyms and Abbreviations
• Appendix 6 Policy Topic Index
• Appendix 7 Policy Number Comparison
• Appendix 8 Supplementary Maps

Advertisements

8.35 External signs and advertisements are important to commercial areas and can make a contribution to their character or appearance. However many advertisements affect the appearance of the building, structure or place where they are displayed and need to be carefully controlled to ensure that they do not harm amenity or endanger public safety. The Council will ensure that an advertisement harmonises with its surroundings and is not obtrusive by virtue of its size, siting, design, colouring and visibility.

Control of Advertisement Regulations

8.36 The advertisement control system in England consists of the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations 1992 (as amended 1994 and 1999), and encompasses nearly all outdoor advertisements. The Regulations divide advertisements into 3 groups for control purposes:-

1. Advertisements that are excluded from the local planning authority’s control provided certain conditions are fulfilled.
2. Advertisements for which the regulations give ‘deemed consent’ so that the local planning authority’s consent is not needed, provided they conform to the stated conditions and limitations for each category of advert.
3. An advertisement for which the local planning authority’s ‘express consent’ is always needed.

8.37 PPG19 ‘Outdoor Advertisement Control’ (1992) provides further advice on the application of the regulations and the DETR publication ‘Outdoor Advertisements and Signs: A Guide for Advertisers’ (2002) gives additional guidance.

The Consideration of Advertisements Requiring Consent

8.38 In assessing all advertisements that require ‘express consent’, the Council may only consider two issues, described in the regulations as the interests of amenity and public safety. However, the policies in the UDP may be taken into account as material factors in the determination of any matter of advertisement control.

8.39 In assessing an advertisement’s impact on ‘amenity’, regard will be had to its effect on the appearance of the building and on the visual amenity and character of the locality. The appearance of a building can easily be spoiled by a poorly designed or insensitively placed sign or advertisement, or by a choice of materials, colour, proportion or illumination that are alien to the building’s design or fabric. In addition, proposed signs, together with existing ones on the property, should not give rise to visual clutter which can seriously detract from the street scene and visual amenity. It is therefore important for visual amenity that advertisements are well related to the design and appearance of the building and the character of the surrounding area.

8.40 Advertisements need to be carefully designed and located so as not to lead to problems of public safety. Careful consideration needs to be given to the effects of advertisements upon the safe use and operation of any form of traffic and transport (including the safety of pedestrians). In particular, regard should be had to whether the advertisement; is likely to obstruct or distract attention; could be confused with traffic signs; would obstruct or impair sight-lines; would effectively leave insufficient clearance above any part of a highway; and where illuminated, the means of illumination is directly visible from any part of the road thus causing dazzle, glare or distraction to road users.

Appropriate Locations for Advertisements

8.41 It is important to strike the right balance between the need to promote commerce and the need to protect the character and appearance of the surrounding environment. Within commercial areas, or in conjunction with business premises, it is reasonable to allow a degree of advertising where this is related to the scale of the surrounding buildings and does not detract from the building to which they are attached. Within predominantly residential areas, general advertising is an unnecessary and unreasonable encroachment on the amenity of residents. Only signs needed to identify business premises within predominantly residential areas will be appropriate.

The Illumination of Advertisements

8.42 The illumination of advertisements on buildings can contribute to the night-time environment and street scene. They need to be well designed and located if they are not to lead to problems for local amenity and highway safety. The method and level of illumination of an advertisement should not harm the amenities of the area and of local occupiers of property or endanger public safety. In general, if the principle of illumination is considered acceptable for any particular proposal, the use of external floodlighting or the individual lighting of letters, rather than full internal illumination of the whole sign will be preferred. Further guidance on external lighting can be found in paragraphs 12.10 - 12.13 and in Policy EP 5 ‘Control of External Lighting’.

Advertisements within Sensitive Areas

8.43 Special attention should be given to advertisements in areas of particular environmental or historic sensitivity, so that they do not detract from the integrity of the building’s design, historical character or structure, and do not spoil or compromise its setting. This will include locations on, within, or adjacent to Listed Buildings and Scheduled Ancient Monuments, Conservation Areas, historic parks and gardens, public open spaces and other green areas, and within rural areas. Advertisements within Conservation Areas need to pay special attention to preserving or enhancing its character or appearance. In rural areas it is important to protect against inappropriate advertisements in order to preserve the special interests and character of such areas. Therefore, proposals for advertisement consent will be considered against the criteria set out below:-

Advertisement Hoardings

8.44 Large-scale advertisement hoardings (also referred to as poster-panels) can have a significant impact on the surroundings and are not appropriate in areas where they would be clearly out of scale, or where they would be directly overlooked by dwellings. Hoardings can also impact upon public safety and the safe use and operation of traffic and transport. In the interest of amenity, advertisement hoardings will not normally be acceptable in or adjacent to predominantly residential areas or in the open countryside. Within commercial and industrial areas they will only be allowed if they are:-

• in scale with adjacent buildings and surroundings;
• screen unsightly land or buildings;
• are not overwhelming upon pedestrians in the area;
• respect the symmetry and architectural features of their location, and;
• maintain and, where necessary, enhance the character and appearance of the local environment.

8.45 Where an advertisement hoarding would screen an unsightly or derelict site the Council may give a temporary consent and condition the consent requiring that the advert is removed at the end of a specified period so as not to prejudice the site’s redevelopment.

Discontinuance Action

8.46 The Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations (1992) enable the Council to take discontinuance action to stop any advertisement, or the use of any advertisement site, which normally has the benefit of any of the categories of deemed consent, or express consent after a period of five years of granting consent.. The discretionary power to serve a ‘discontinuance notice’ may only be used where the Council consider that an advertisement, or the use of an advertisement site, is causing substantial injury to amenity or endangering public safety.

8.47 The Council may use these powers where required and will take steps to secure the removal of advertisements, and in particular hoardings, which cause serious detriment to visual amenity or constitute a danger to public safety. The Council will assess each advertisement on its merits, but common situations where a discontinuance notice may be served are for inappropriate advertisements and hoardings located in residential areas, Conservation Areas, the open countryside, or along main road corridors and major approach routes to towns.

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