To receive a presentation about Neighbourhood Planning from Sarah Hughes, Senior Planning Officer.
Minutes:
The Board received a presentation from Sarah Hughes, Senior Planning Officer, on Neighbourhood Planning.
The Localism Act, was centred around the ‘bottom up’ approach, meaning that people in communities should be empowered to make decisions on issues which affect them.
Decisions on where new developments will take place could be devolved to local communities who had produced a Neighbourhood Plan. In the Wiltshire Core Strategy these documents would carry weight in the consideration of planning applications.
Neighbourhood planning can:
· Identify specific sites as being preferred for development by the local community
· Encourage development
· Include policies - design standards, renewable energy
Neighbourhood planning cannot:
· Conflict with council’s development plan
· Be used to prevent development
· Be prepared by a body other than a ‘qualifying body’
Producing a Neighbourhood Plan
Stage 1
1. Form a Steering Group & be assigned a Link Officer
2. Develop Objectives and Vision through Community Engagement
3. Select the most appropriate approach for you
4. Designate a Neighbourhood Area
Stage 2
5. Develop a Draft Plan and engage with the community
6. Submit the plan for examination
7. Referendum
To view a copy of the Neighbourhood Planning Guide, click on the link:
Questions and Comments received included:
· Several of the Parishes within the community area had already produced and submitted a Village Design Statement (VDS), however there was no current policy for adopting the VDS’s, how would they feed in to the scheme? Answer: There was currently an Officer who was working on the VDS’s to ensure that they would be put to a committee for endorsement. The VDS is a material consideration which has been produced by local communities, the profile of these documents would be raised. VDSs would no longer have the weight of Supplementary Planning Documents.
· How much does it cost the community to produce a Neighbourhood Plan (NP)? Answer: The cost varies depending on certain factors, such as the size of the neighbourhood area and the issues that they face. The cost was more likely to be thousands rather than hundreds of pounds.
· How many NHP’s had been produced so far? Answer: There had been 5 – 6 expressions of interest at present.
· If Laverstock & Ford produced a NP and asked for certain sites to be protected from future development, what treatment would the NHP be given once the Core Strategy came into force? Answer: The neighbourhood plan could not conflict with the Core Strategy, but if local communities have the evidence to support the protection of certain sites, then as the NP has the same weight as the Core Strategy, the sites will be protected. It is unclear yet as to what the mechanisms will be for reviewing NP when Core Strategies are reviewed
· If we have a ‘bottom up’ strategy, why doesn’t the Core Strategy leave it to Parishes to decide on where planning occurs. Answer: When the Core Strategy was originally envisaged, we were working to a ‘top down’ strategy, and now we are working the other way, with a ‘bottom up’ planning approach, over time we may see a change in that housing figures may not be allocated by the core strategy.
· Are there any workshops planned for Parish Councils? Answer: Not at present, but I will feedback your interest for consideration by the team.
Action: Sarah Hughes