Rochford District Council (RDC) acknowledges that Southend Borough Council’s existing and emerging evidence suggests it is unlikely to be able to accommodate its identified housing and employment needs in full within its authority boundary. RDC would support further work to identify the capacity of Southend Borough’s urban areas, and wider authority area, to accommodate sustainable growth. It is recognised, however, that Options 1 and 2 are unlikely to be sufficient to accommodate the majority of Southend Borough’s identified housing needs. RDC would support a programme of further collaborative work in support of local plan-making and the South Essex Joint Strategic Plan to explore the opportunities set out in Option 3, i.e. to establish the capacity of South East Essex, and more widely South Essex, for strategic-scale growth, building on the findings of the South East Essex Strategic Growth Locations Assessment. RDC acknowledges the potential advantages of strategic-scale growth, in terms of being able to fund meaningful infrastructure improvements and providing a “critical mass” of population for the sustainable provision of services for a new community.

The findings of emerging and future evidence (including the Green Belt and Landscape Character Studies being jointly prepared for both authorities) will need to ascertain the feasibility, scope and capacity for strategic scale development within South East Essex, including any land falling within Rochford District. RDC would encourage Southend Borough Council to continue to engage positively as part of the Association of South Essex Local Authorities (ASELA) in order to jointly explore opportunities for sustainable growth, such as garden communities, through the Joint Strategic Plan and respective local plan-making processes.