This plan is based on the principles of sustainable development reflected in national planning guidance and the policies and proposals of the Oxfordshire Structure Plan. This section of the plan describes the general background to, and role of the Local Plan in helping to achieve sustainable development. It sets out the overall aim and objectives of the plan and contains a number of strategic policies.

Sustainable development is a broad concept. Essentially it seeks to secure higher living standards for everyone whilst protecting and enhancing the environment for present and future generations. The Government's approach to sustainable development is based on achieving and integrating the following broad concepts:

• the maintenance of high and stable levels of economic growth and employment
• social progress which recognises the needs of everyone
• effective protection of the environment
• the prudent use of natural resources.

It is increasingly recognised that society cannot continue to use the earth's resources and discharge waste without regard to the long-term economic and environmental consequences. It is also recognised that long-term damage is being inflicted on the environment from our current activities. The most obvious examples are emissions from industrial processes and from motor transport which are contributing to global warming and climate change. Our environmental assets are wide-ranging and include far more than the raw materials on which we base our industrial processes. They include our landscape and wildlife resources, our cultural and historic heritage in the built environment and historical sites, as well as air, water and soil quality. All these factors contribute to making up the human living environment which is central to our quality of life and general health.

However, sustainable development is not simply about the environment. It is also important that the needs of the community for housing, employment, education, health and leisure facilities are met and that the benefits of a good quality of life can be shared by all members of the community.

The plan has an important role to play in the move towards sustainability. Firstly, it allocates land, in accordance with the Structure Plan strategy, for further houses and jobs and provides the framework within which other forms of development can be assessed. It seeks to influence the pattern of future development by ensuring that different uses are grouped together to reduce the need to travel. It encourages more mixed uses where areas dominated by single uses would benefit from diversity; this is of particular importance in encouraging vibrant town centres, and in the layout of large new housing areas. The plan will help to ensure that the best use is made of previously-developed land and buildings, particularly in the larger towns and villages, and thus reducing the amount of greenfield land needed for development. It includes policies to protect and, where appropriate, enhance the many and varied assets of the district. This includes both the natural resources of the district and the built environment. The plan also seeks to improve the environment and quality of life in the district by promoting high standards in the quality of new development.

However, it must be recognised that the plan will only make a limited contribution to moving towards a sustainable pattern of development. The amount of new development that will occur in South Oxfordshire up to 2011 is marginal in relation to the existing amount of development in the district. South Oxfordshire has a very dispersed settlement pattern and access to services and adequate public transport is already a problem, particularly in the rural areas. Measures to overcome these issues will require far more than land-use planning policies and will involve significant changes in policy and investment decisions by this Council and other bodies.

Finally, it should not be forgotten that all residents of the district play a key role in moving towards sustainability through the lifestyle they adopt and by the sum of individual decisions they make on where to live, work, shop and travel.

The overall aim of the plan is:

To seek to improve the quality of life of present and future residents of South Oxfordshire and make provision for further development in accordance with the Oxfordshire Structure Plan, whilst protecting and enhancing the natural and built assets of the district.

From this overall aim, six key objectives, which form the basis of sections of the plan, have been developed as follows:

• protecting and enhancing the natural and built environment. This includes the protection, and, where appropriate, the enhancement, of the landscape, the Oxford Green Belt, the historic environment, nature conservation and biodiversity, landscape features and agricultural land. Under this objective the Council also seeks to prevent pollution in all its forms, to protect water resources, to ensure any development on contaminated land is safe and to protect the district and its residents from hazardous substances. Reference is also made to minerals and waste under this objective.
• encouraging sustainable and high-quality development. Under this objective the Council will encourage high-quality, resource-efficient and energy-efficient development which has regard to the locally distinctive characteristics of the area, which meets certain operational standards, and which reduces impacts on the environment, whilst also mitigating impacts that are generated by proposals.
• meeting the social needs of the rural and urban communities. This objective includes policies which seek to ensure that adequate provision is made in appropriate locations for housing, for recreation and leisure facilities, and for the provision of local community facilities and services.
• supporting the local economy. Under this objective the Council seeks to provide for local employment needs, to assist in the maintenance of a viable and sustainable agricultural industry, and to encourage tourism-related developments which are based on the conservation and enjoyment of the district's landscape and heritage. This section of the plan also includes policies relating to telecommunications development and advertisements.
• supporting the vitality and viability of town centres. This objective recognises the importance of the district's four main towns in the contribution they make to the economic and social life of residents and to the objectives of sustainable development, through their ability to accommodate a mixture of uses.
• promoting a sustainable transport strategy. This objective acknowledges the role of transport in the quality of life of residents of the district, both in terms of the importance of access to facilities and services, and in terms of its impact on the environment. Promoting sustainable transport options and choices should improve quality of life in both these respects. This section of the plan includes policies relating to the transport requirements for new developments, public transport and interchanges, cycling and walking, car parks, service areas and lorry and freight distribution depots.

The following strategic policies set out the general approach to development throughout the district in accordance with the Oxfordshire Structure Plan.

The strategic framework for development in the district is set out in the Oxfordshire Structure Plan and has been referred to in Section 1 of this plan. Policy G1 will ensure that all proposals are considered against this framework. This policy also reflects the overall aim of the plan to provide development to meet the needs of the district in a way that is sustainable. The Council will also try to ensure that the district has clean air and water, that land is not polluted and that the need to conserve energy is taken into account in planning decisions.

This reflects the Council's aim to balance the protection and enhancement of the district's resources, whilst meeting development needs in accordance with Policy G1 and the Structure Plan requirement.

It is commonly recognised that there is a strong link between land use and transport and this is consistently referred to in Government policy advice concerning the location of new development. In South Oxfordshire, apart from the Structure Plan proposals to concentrate significant further development in Didcot, the amount of new development in the rest of the district is expected to be relatively limited. This will inevitably restrict the ability of the Local Plan to influence people's choice of travel mode and car use through the location of new development. However, it will be important to ensure that any new development which gives rise to traffic generation, is in locations where there is less need to travel by car and where the use of public transport, walking and cycling can be encouraged. This will mean that new development should not generally be permitted in isolated rural locations but should be concentrated in the towns and larger villages. The operational and locational needs of agriculture will, however, be taken into account. This policy will be particularly relevant when considering housing, employment, retail, and larger-scale recreation and tourism proposals.

This policy seeks to prevent development in the countryside, ribbon development on roads extending away from settlements and unplanned expansion of settlements beyond their existing built-up area. This policy also reflects the Government's overall aim in PPS7 which is to protect the countryside for the sake of its intrinsic character and beauty, the diversity of its landscapes, heritage and wildlife, the wealth of its natural resources and so it may be enjoyed by all. When considering proposals for development the Council will give high priority to retaining the open and rural character of the area, and the countryside generally. In the period to 2011 the strategic development requirements in South Oxfordshire can be met in an acceptable way by the policies and proposals in this plan. The Council considers that in accordance with PPG3 there is therefore no need to contemplate urban expansions or development in the countryside, other than in the agreed case of Didcot.

In line with PPS1, PPG3 and the Structure Plan, this policy seeks to ensure that the best use is made of sites within built-up areas in order to reduce the need to release greenfield sites, and that priority is given to releasing sites in the most sustainable locations. In applying this policy, the Council will also have regard to the important contribution that open spaces within settlements make to the social and cultural life of residents. This policy is amplified in Sections 3, 4 and 5.

In accordance with PPS1, this policy seeks to ensure that all development in the district is of a high quality and inclusive design, that it has regard to the distinctive characteristics of the local area and that the development is appropriate in terms of its type and its scale. This policy is explained further in Section 4 of the plan and in the South Oxfordshire Design Guide and the Chilterns Buildings Design Guide.