Penns Place
East Hampshire District Council is one of three landowners at Penns Place, formerly Penns Farm.
It has set out its vision for Petersfield, in consultation with local stakeholders, in its Enhance East Hants programme.
• East Hampshire place making strategy - see pages 30-33 and 49-52
EHDC has its own sports evidence base, of which it must be mindful
Who owns Penns Place?
Petersfield Town Council, Churcher’s College and East Hampshire District Council own sections of land at Penns Place. The playing fields are also home to Petersfield Cricket Club, Petersfield Town Football Club and Petersfield Rugby Football Club.
Who decides what happens to Penns Place?
East Hampshire District Council (EHDC) can only change the use of the former council offices to something else if the planning authority agrees. The planning authority for Petersfield is South Downs National Park (SDNP).
EHDC must be mindful South Downs National Park planning policies including the Settlement Boundary, the presumption in favour of sustainable development, preservation of Tranquillity and the Dark Night Sky.
How long do changes take?
To change the use of the car park is a long process. It starts with EHDC letting the South Downs National Park know that the land is available for different uses (a short document called the ‘Land Availability Assessment’ or LAA). SDNP then visit all the sites that have been presented to it to decide if the land is contributes positively to the SDNP Local Plan. If it is, then SDNP will ask the local residents for their opinion, through a formal consultation process.
Petersfield Town Council is one of the main consultees SDNP will ask and has already set out its plans for Penns Farm playing pitches in the Petersfield Neighbourhood Plan.
If the results of the consultation suggest that the land is available it will be included in the SDNP Revised Local Plan, and at that point EHDC is able to apply for planning permission to change the use of that land.
This whole process will take many months.
What happens next?
East Hampshire District Council has submitted a Land Availability Assessment to the South Downs National Park Authority and is awaiting SDNP’s consideration of that submission.
A consultation of local stakeholders, if the land is deemed appropriate, will then take place but this may not be for several months.
If you have any questions, please contact placemaking@easthants.gov.uk.