The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Future Parks Project, in partnership with Fenland District Council, have developed a toolkit to demonstrate the steps needed and lessons learnt to setting open space standards using benchmark standards that were set in an Open Space Standards Mapping Report produced by Jon Sheaff & Associates. The toolkit, developed by LUC, sets out the recommended steps to be taken by Local Authorities when developing their local open space standards, these compromise the following standards:

• Quantity – accessible open space available per person in the give area
• Accessibility – distance travelled to reach accessible open space
• Quality and value – level of facilities expected

This toolkit was developed alongside a pilot project testing and adjusting the baseline standards set out in the Open Spaces Standards Mapping Report for Fenland District Council’s Local Plan for Open Space. The work records and builds on the lessons learned during this process, developing the baseline open space standards across the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough area. By setting out the 5 main steps to develop open space standards, including the key lessons learned such as:

1. Prep

Timeline for completing the work should be realistic and with good preparation, including having a clear scope and purpose, understood by all key stakeholders and partners.

 

2. Understand the local context

There is no one size fits all approach to developing open space standards, therefore having a good understanding of local context will ensure the open space standards are appropriate and reflect the value and importance of open space in the local area.

 

3. Understand supply

Similar to step one it is important to allow sufficient time to collate and sense check all the available open space data, this is in order to create a robust dataset used to set the open space standards.

 

4. Understand demand and need

By understanding demand and need provide key evidence to support the development of open space standards, this step will be required to scrutinise and test the proposed standards (see next step)

 

5. Set and test standards

This fifth and final step involves bringing all previous steps together, using the available evidence to make and inform recommendations.

Open space standards will need to be incorporated into policies to be applied as part of development, therefore an understanding of additional guidance such as local policy frameworks and planning process will assist in the development of open space standards.

This toolkit is for planners, parks and open space professionals, consultants / advisors and geographic Information Systems (GIS) professionals. It is intended that the toolkit could be used by local authorities across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. However, the key steps would also apply nationally.

Follow this link to download a full copy of the Open Space Standards Toolkit.