Current status of the Parish Council Neighbourhood Plan
Latest information April 1st 2022
Please find here the draft Neighbourhood Plan as amended by AP Limited after the consultation for consideration at Thursday's meeting. We think it is a really impressive piece of work that preserves the key elements of our earlier draft but responds to the consultation including answering the significant technical challenges and comments made by key consultees. It is much more concise and readable than the earlier draft and in our view gives us a much more impressive technical defense of the policies to defend local facilities, the Local Green Space, the valued landscape and more. The flood and green infrastructure sections are now much more impressive too. The process did identify important gaps and risks too - including the out of date Landscape and Visual Appraisal and socio-economic profile and the need for maps of green infrastructure across the whole parish not just Leckhampton, a small shops map and also one of indicative walking and cycling routes which was a strongly supported theme in the consultation. This will require some more work by AP and ourselves but largely of a technical nature that won't affect the draft attached.
The updating of the professional LVA by Lepus Consulting because it is more than five years old is very important.
Historic information
The Parish Council approved the Neighbourhood Plan at 7th January 2020 meeting. The document, which is lengthy, contains detailed evidence and policy, primarily for consideration by CBC Planners and Government Inspectors. The Neighbourhood Plan will now move to a REG14 public examination and formal examination in public with a Planning Inspector. This Neighbourhood Plan has been in preparation for many years and progressed in unison with the Joint Core Strategy and the Cheltenham Local Plan, which was adopted in July 2020.
The Public Consultation started September 1st and has been extended to November 15th. Residents can respond to the questionnaire online by using https://haveyoursay.cheltenham.gov.uk/parish/neighbourhoodplan
or you can call the Clerk 07739719079 to ask for a paper copy to complete. You can also request a paper copy of the plan itself.
The Parish Council has organised 2 events. Do come along on either 2nd Oct between 10am and 2pm to the Brizen Young People's Centre, Up Hatherley Way or on 3rd Oct between 1:30pm and 5:30pm to the Glebe Church Rooms, Church Road, Leckhampton
There you can discuss the plan and your ideas, needs with Cllrs and complete the questionnaire. Remember you can also complete it on line https://haveyoursay.cheltenham.gov.uk/parish/neighbourhoodplan
What is a Neighbourhood Plan
A Neighbourhood Plan is a framework developed by a community for guiding the future development, regeneration and conservation of an area. It is about the use and development of land. It may contain a vision, aims, planning policies, proposals for improving the area, providing new facilities, or allocating key sites for specific kinds of development. It could also deal with a wide range of social, economic and environmental issues (such as housing, employment, heritage and transport) or it may focus on one or two issues only. Neighbourhood Plans can specify the design of buildings and protection of open space, development of schools, health, leisure and community facilities and infrastructure plans such as transport, walking and cycling provision and disabled access.
A Neighbourhood Plan could also include policies regarding design standards which take precedence over existing policies in the Local Plan for the neighbourhood – provided the NP policies do not conflict with the strategic policies in the Core Strategy. It can also include the protection and creation of open space, nature reserves, allotments, sports pitches, play areas, parks and garden and tree planting as well as the protection of important buildings and historic assets and promotion of renewable energy projects. This is for the community to decide.
A successful Neighbourhood Plan will be part of the statutory planning decisions for our Parish. Its legal status gives Neighbourhood Plans far more weight than some other local documents, such as Parish Plans. A Neighbourhood Plan must comply with European and National legislation, as well as generally conforming to existing strategic local planning policy. The Neighbourhood Plan can however specify policies and guidance on how new development should be designed, orientated and located.