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- What is a neighbourhood plan?
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A Neighbourhood Plan puts in place local planning policies to guide future development.
It can be a powerful tool with real legal weight to shape the development of a neighbourhood.
Based on evidence, the Neighbourhood Plan can set out, for instance: where new homes, or business premises should be built; what those new buildings should look like (design, size, type, sustainability features etc); what local assets (like green spaces) should be protected.
It must have regard to national policy and conform to the district local plan.
Final adoption depends on a referendum of the Neighbourhood Area electorate, requiring a majority vote of at least 50% of the votes cast.
- What is the remit of a Neighbourhood Plan?
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The remit of a Neighbourhood Plan is focused on the use of land.
This relates mainly to physical features and facilities (like houses, offices, parks, climate change measures etc.), rather than local services like bin collections or community events.
A Neighbourhood Plan can also include lists of community projects towards which applicants for development seeking planning permission could be asked to make financial contributions.
Once the Neighbourhood Plan is in place, any new planning application submitted to the District Council for development within the Neighbourhood Plan boundary, will be assessed by the Council against the policies in the Neighbourhood Plan and against the higher level District Plan policies.
- Why do we need a Neighbourhood Plan?
- The Localism Act of 2011 offers our community a say in the future of our parish by allowing us to create policies to guide its development. We can do this by creating a Neighbourhood Plan (NP), which has legal status and carries weight when planning applications are decided. Our NP will help ensure that development matches our needs both now and in the future. It can also identify supporting infrastructure and facilities to maintain and improve our quality of life.
- Who creates the Plan?
- The residents create our Neighbourhood Plan. It is a community project and will explore what we value in the parish, what we dislike and how we see the parish changing and going forward in the future. We will be looking for views on housing, planning and design, landscape and the environment. We can also cover views on roads, history, community facilities, local businesses and anything else the community wants to explore. We need input from residents, businesses, landowners and community organisations.
- Are there limits to what a Neighbourhood Plan can do?
- The Neighbourhood Plan sits beneath the umbrella of the Uttlesford District Local Plan and it cannot stop development that is already proposed in that document nor can its policies conflict with the District Local Plan or National Policies. However, it can drill down and address policy on a local level and allow us to craft our own parish opportunities and address challenges.