Issue - meetings
Tower Hamlets Local Plan 2031: Managing Growth and Sharing the Benefits (Regulation 19 consultation)
Meeting: 23/05/2023 - Tower Hamlets Health and Wellbeing Board (Item 5)
5 Local Plan and Health Update PDF 153 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Board considered the main findings from the Spatial Planning and Health JSNA (2023) Air Quality JSNA (2023) and discussed the planning policy actions that should be taken to improve health and wellbeing in the Borough prior to the consultation Local Plan going live in the summer. The principal points of the debate are as follows:
The Board:
v Was reminded that in January the Health and Wellbeing Board, members had been informed that the Borough’s Local Plan is in the process of being updated, with plans for it to be adopted by autumn 2025.
v Noted that the new Local Plan will set out a vision, strategic priorities, and a planning policy framework to guide and manage development in the borough for the next 10 to 15 years, in line with the planning policy requirements set out by national and regional government.
v Agreed that the physical environment has a significant impact on health and wellbeing. With the greatest opportunity to influence how the built environment impacts on health being through the Local Plan. Therefore, to inform the new Local Plan, Tower Hamlets Public Health has reviewed the evidence to understand how planning policy can positively impact on residents’ health. This review will form the basis of the public health evidence for the emerging Local Plan health policies.
v Agreed that the benefit of a local plan that you can design a place in a way that can create homes for people and in a way that also supports health and well-being.
v Agreed that (i) every resident should be able to access safe, social spaces near their home to live healthy lives; and (ii) residents have the opportunities, connections, and local support to live healthy lives (e.g., any resident needing help knows where to get it and is supported to find the right help).
v Noted that in conjunction with the Council, Healthwatch’s Healthy Neighbourhoods project collected feedback from residents in Tower Hamlets to find out what services are important to them, and how well these services in different areas of the borough currently support local people. The feedback will then be used to formulate a plan to support the development of local neighbourhoods to improve people’s health and well-being.
v Noted that the feedback was collected through an online survey between October and December 2022. The survey was shared with local people through various community and voluntary organisations, Barts NHS Health Trust, and Tower Hamlets Council. In addition, the survey link was posted on Healthwatch Tower Hamlets’ social media channels and promoted at local events. In addition, the Healthwatch team had also conducted some street surveying in busy areas of the borough, such as the Whitechapel Market, and two focus groups that were hosted by Beyond Sight Loss – a community group of people with visual impairments – and the Tower Hamlets LGBT+ Forum.
v Agreed that having public open spaces to facilitate social interaction is really important for local residents, particularly for children as through ... view the full minutes text for item 5