Technical Notes 2025, Issue 176 - Forthcoming Open Space Audit Consultation

The purpose of this technical note is to inform Elected Members of the forthcoming Open Space Audit consultation  

• Under the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019, a planning authority must prepare and publish an Open Space Strategy and set out a strategic framework of the authority’s policies and proposals as to the development, maintenance, and use of green infrastructure in their district, including open spaces and green networks
• The Act states that the Open Space Strategy must contain an audit of existing open space provision. An audit of East Dunbartonshire’s open spaces was last conducted by Ethos Consulting in 2020. The audit identified 312 open spaces covering a mixture of private and public ownership which were assessed against the Open Space Standards for quantity, quality and accessibility, as set out in the East Dunbartonshire Open Space Audit 2020
• As part of the preparation of the forthcoming Greenspace Strategy (which will meet the planning act requirements on Open Space Strategies, and also incorporate further information on green spaces such as nature networks), the Council has instructed consultants to undertake a refresh of the Open Space Audit in 2025. 

This has involved:

• A re-evaluation of the quality and accessibility of those sites included in the 2020 audit, as well as any new sites with open spaces of 0.2+ hectares arising from new development.
• A re-assessment of the quantity of open space available in each settlement to identify areas with an under provision or over-concentration of open space
• Updating the quality criteria to identify the potential for our open spaces to contribute to functional nature networks as defined in National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4), Scottish Biodiversity Strategy and Nature Networks Policy Framework
• Updating the biodiversity criteria developed by Ethos to incorporate nature networks
• Updating the accessibility criteria to include wheeling and cycling to assess the suitability of open spaces for individuals with disabilities, as well as to determine the suitability of the network for walking, wheeling and cycling to open spaces by safe and direct routes.
  
  
• Two targeted engagement events will be held with community councils and local groups in Milngavie and Kirkintilloch in early November. Both events will be led by the consultant carrying out the audit and Council officers will also attend
• The purpose of the consultation events is to enable the consultant to test initial outputs of the audit with community stakeholders and make amendments before issuing a final report and recommendations to the Council which will be used to inform the draft OSA due to be reported to Committee later in the financial year
• Full public consultation on the OSA, and the proposed response and actions in the forthcoming Greenspace Strategy, will be carried out early next year subject to Committee agreement and will ensure that all local stakeholders have the opportunity to comment on matters relating to open space
• For additional information, please contact development.plan@eastdunbarton.gov.uk