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NEIGHBOURHOOD PLAN FOR BARFORD AND WRAMPLINGHAM
A Steering Group is being formed for the exploration, and if considered appropriate after local consultation, the development and delivery of a Neighbourhood Plan for Barford and Wramplingham.
It is the intention of the Barford and Wramplingham Parish Council to set up a Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group to explore, develop and deliver a Neighbourhood Plan for Barford and Wramplingham.
What is a Neighbourhood Plan?
When local communities are empowered to lead and influence decision-making, it makes a real difference to their area. People with passion and enthusiasm can use neighbourhood planning as a means to changing their neighbourhoods for the better.
A neighbourhood plan puts in place planning policy for a neighbourhood area to guide future development. A neighbourhood plan is about the use and development of land and may contain a vision, aims, planning policies, proposals for improving the area or providing new facilities, or allocation of key sites for specific kinds of development. It may deal with a wide range of social, economic and environmental issues (such as housing, employment, design, heritage and transport) or it may focus on one or two issues only.
If successful at referendum, a neighbourhood plan will become part of the statutory development plan for the area. This statutory status gives neighbourhood plans far more weight than some other local documents, such as parish plans, community plans and village design statements.
A neighbourhood plan offers several advantages over relying solely on the local plan (produced by the local planning authority) or on more informal plans, like community plans or parish plans.
Community-led
Neighbourhood plans are led by authorised local community organisations, known as qualifying bodies (referred to as neighbourhood planning bodies in this guide), including parish or town councils (often through steering groups) or neighbourhood forums, rather than the local council’s planning department. This means that community representatives lead the plan, often with support from their preferred consultants.
Neighbourhood forums or parish and town councils preparing neighbourhood plans have the opportunity to engage with the wider community right from the beginning of the plan-preparation process, to make sure it genuinely represents the range of wants and needs in the local area.
Site allocations and Local Plan Green Space Designations
Depending on the level of detail in the local plan, the neighbourhood plan allows the community to develop criteria and methodology to choose sites to be allocated for different kinds of development. At the same time, there is the option to identify and designate green spaces valued by the community as Local Green Space, which should be protected from inappropriate development. So a neighbourhood plan provides the opportunity to decide where growth does and does not occur (see later section on Site allocations and designations).
Leading the production of a neighbourhood plan will require a range of skills and members of the community are asked to consider how they can bring their local knowledge, skills or experience to bear for the benefit of the community. Please do volunteer.
More information can be found on Neighbourhood Plans generally at https://neighbourhoodplanning.org/toolkits-and-guidance/create-neighbourhood-plan-step-by-step-roadmap-guide/
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If you are interested in volunteering to join as a member of the Steering Committee (draft terms of reference are available on request) please email the clerk to the Parish Council at: barfordpc@gmail.com.
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NB This was researched, written and published before the Localism Act and so does not possess the legal powers of a Neighbourhood Plan