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Tees Valley green infrastructure strategy

The green infrastructure strategy for the Tees Valley was developed with the help of CABE’s enabler Nerys Jones. £3m has been secured over the next three years to fund implementation.

The Tees Valley was identified by the city regions development programme as a key area in which to stimulate growth. In order to attract industry and to stimulate the housing market the quality of the public realm needed to be improved. A strategic approach was taken to improving the environment through the development of a green infrastructure strategy. This feeds into the regional spatial strategy.

The regional development agency OneNorthEast have since provided funding for the strategy.

How CABE’s enabling helped

  • created a structure that reflected best practice in broad scale planning
  • separated out the strategic from the operational elements
  • provided assistance with developing an implementation plan
  • assisted with the development of an integrated business case
  • incorporated the wider economic imperatives to the strategy
  • enabled the group to turn a draft document into a strategy.

At the end of the project it was felt that the involvement of CABE’s enabler had helped to secure funding from OneNorthEast.

Background

Most of the Tees Valley is in the Tees Lowlands countryside character area. To the north is the Durham magnesian limestone plateau and to the south east lie the North York Moors and Cleveland Hills. Parts of the Tees Valley are affected by poor quality and low demand housing caused by rapid industrialisation, economic re-structuring and urban flight.

The Tees Valley Vision was commissioned by English Partnerships, One NorthEast and the Tees Valley city region development programme. It aims to transform economic performance and improve quality of life.

The main strategic elements of the vision are:

  • creating an environment to develop the financial and business services sector, knowledge based industry, the growth of tourism, and diversifying the economy
  • providing jobs close to areas of deprivation
  • creating attractive places which offer a wide range of leisure, cultural, shopping and learning opportunities
  • providing greater housing choice in the centres of the Tees Valley communities, and improving the quality of the built environment.

Need for a green infrastructure strategy

A steering group was established with five local authorities alongside Natural England, the North East Community Forest and the Environment Agency. It recognised that there were already a number of existing strategies, policies and guidance.

The primary purpose of the project was to improve the environment in a way that encourages people with the skills needed for regeneration to move into the area. A clear priority was to create a 21st century landscape to provide a new and attractive setting for development.

The green infrastructure strategy had to include:

  • planning policy statements and planning policy guidance
  • a new urban fringe for countryside in and around towns
  • submission of a draft regional spatial strategy for the North East
  • an integrated regional framework
  • a regional economic strategy
  • the Northern Way growth strategy
  • the Tees Valley structure plan
  • the Tees Forest plan
  • local biodiversity action plans.

The steering group drafted their initial strategy prior to the involvement of CABE’s enabler.

Enabling process

The steering group recognised the need to bring some experience into the process while drafting the initial green infrastructure strategy. CABE Space was approached for enabling assistance.

Nerys Jones, appointed lead enabler, had experience of major green infrastructure planning in the Thames Gateway and an understanding of regional issues. She joined the steering group and assisted in identifying:

  • the vision
  • the over-arching priorities
  • some spatial priorities
  • a strategic green infrastructure network.

She also developed a robust evidence base on which to formulate the strategy, built confidence in the team through “hand holding” and offered an independent view.

Creating the green infrastructure strategy

CABE’s enabler made a key contribution by establishing focus. With her help the group created the key elements of the green infrastructure strategy:

  • Landscape designations including countryside character areas, natural areas, heritage coast, national park, and historic landscapes
  • Biodiversity features including national nature reserve, local nature reserves, sites of special scientific interest and strategic wildlife corridors
  • Natural processes such as principal water courses, indicative tidal and fluvial flood plains
  • Major areas of derelict, vacant and unused land
  • Strategic open space, open areas, and recreational areas including green wedges, principal parks and gardens, country parks/countryside gateway sites, areas of woodland, and the North York Moors national park
  • Connectivity including strategic footpath routes and cycle routes.

Making the business case

All elements of the strategy deliver on the key drivers of economic regeneration and housing market renewal. Without the strategy to deliver improvements there would be difficulties in attracting business and required skills to the region.

The strategy’s success was shown by One NorthEast’s decision to fund the green infrastructure proposals over a period of three years.

Project Team

  • Malcolm Steele – Tees Valley Joint Strategy Unit
  • Ian Preston – NERDA (Northern Way)
  • Richard Hall - Natural England
  • Clive Davies - North East Community Forest
  • Michael McNulty - Environment Agency
  • Nerys Jones – CABE Space
  • Stockton Borough Council
  • Middlesbrough Council
  • Hartlepool Council
  • Darlington Council
  • Redcar & Cleveland Council