Site address:           Government Building, Floyds Row, Oxford, OX1 1SS

Proposal:                Change of use from job centre (sui generis) to emergency hostel accommodation together with associated communal facilities and services and a daytime assessment hub (sui generis) for a temporary period of five years.           

Recommendation:

The West Area Planning Committee is recommended to:

1.     approve the application for the reasons given in the report and subject to the required planning conditions set out in section 12 of the report and grant planning permission; and

2.     agree to delegate authority to the Acting Head of Planning Services to:

a.     consider and deal with any new material planning considerations that may be raised through public consultation up to 13 March 2019 including deciding whether it is necessary to refer the application back to the committee prior to issuing the permission;

b.     finalise the recommended conditions as set out in the report including such refinements, amendments, additions and/or deletions as the Acting Head of Planning Services considers reasonably necessary; and

c.     issue the planning permission.

The Committee considered an application (19/00128/CT3) for planning permission for the change of use from job centre (sui generis) to emergency hostel accommodation together with associated communal facilities and services and a daytime assessment hub (sui generis) for a temporary period of five years.

The Planning Officer presented the report and advised the Committee that Thames Valley Police had submitted some comments on the application which had been received after the agenda was published.  The comments related to suggested improvements to the site security and internal access and as such were not a material planning matter.  The comments had, however, been forwarded to the applicant to consider. 

Polly McKinley, Senior Commissioning Officer Housing Services, Oxford City Council spoke in support of the application.

The Committee endorsed the conclusions presented in the officer report that although the proposal did not fully align with local plan policies relating to employment uses, it was for a temporary period and there was an acute need for the facility to provide services for homeless people in the city and these two material planning considerations weighed in favour of the change of use.

The Committee noted that the final arrangements for car and cycle parking would be secured by conditions 3 and 6 and would be based on known operational need. Nevertheless, the Committee encouraged the applicant to provide sufficient secure cycle parking for residents, employees and visitors and to aim to reduce the car parking provision to single figures.

The Committee welcomed the application as it would provide a much needed facility to address the housing and homelessness situation in the city.

After debate and on being proposed, seconded and put to the vote, the Committee agreed with the officer’s recommendation to approve the application.

The West Area Planning Committee resolved to:

1.     approve the application for the reasons given in the report and subject to the required planning conditions set out in section 12 of the report and grant planning permission; and

2.     delegate authority to the Acting Head of Planning Services to:

a.     consider and deal with any new material planning considerations that may be raised through public consultation up to 13 March 2019 including deciding whether it is necessary to refer the application back to the committee prior to issuing the permission;

b.     finalise the recommended conditions as set out in the report including such refinements, amendments, additions and/or deletions as the Acting Head of Planning Services considers reasonably necessary; and

c.     issue the planning permission.