NPG Minutes April 2018
Scopwick and Kirkby Green Parish Council Neighbourhood Planning Group
Minutes of the first Neighbourhood Planning Meeting, 17th April 2018, Scopwick Village Hall
1/2018 Opening
On behalf of the Parish Council Cllr Woodward welcomed those attending. He then introduced Janet Clark from Community Lincs. Janet’s post is funded by North Kesteven District Council (NKDC) to provide initial support for groups making a Neighbourhood Plan.
Attending:
Cllr John Woodward, Cllr Alistair Brackenbury and Cllr Janet Flett.
10 members of the public.
Officer: Jill Moran (Parish Clerk).
2/2018 Janet Clark
Cllr Woodward handed over to Janet Clark to explain how a Neighbourhood Plan is made.
She said that the Neighbourhood Plan is a powerful new planning tool providing a way for people to influence planning in their communities. It can be used to develop a shared vision for their neighbourhood and set planning policies for the development and use of land. The Neighbourhood Plan has force of law, it must be taken into account by the local authority when considering planning applications for the area. It works with the Local Plan, which came into effect last year, to set housing policy for at least the next 18 years. A Neighbourhood Plan must conform generally with the Local Plan and it must be about the use and development of land and buildings. It can set out how much, what type and where development should take place. It can also set certain standards for how buildings should look in terms of their design. It cannot be used to prevent development that has been identified as being needed in the Local Plan. For example, Scopwick and Kirkby Green are classed in the Local plan as small villages subject to a cap on the number of new dwellings. The Neighbourhood Plan cannot further restrict the number of dwellings but if the Plan identified a need for more homes it could increase the number.
There are a number of finished Neighbourhood Plans in Lincolnshire. Coleby, Dunston, Welbourn, Bassingham, Glentworth and Saxilby are a few examples and their plans are available to view online. Janet recommended that the Group talk to members of other Parish Councils that have been through the process. She then gave a brief overview of the process of making the plan:
1. Determine the area to be covered. This is generally the parish boundary and it is then up to the Parish Council to submit a formal request to the Local Authority to designate the area.
2. Gather evidence by consulting with the community. The Neighbourhood Planning Group are there to represent the whole community.
3. Analyse the evidence, identifying key issues and developing a vision and a plan.
4. Consulting on the Plan and finally submitting it to the Local Planning Authority. The Planning Authority send the Plan for independent examination.
5. Finally a referendum is held in the community and if over 50% of those who vote, vote ‘yes’ the plan will be implemented.
The whole process should take between 12 and 18 months and cost around £10,000. There is no time limit. Government funding is available for up to £9,000 and application can be made for lottery funding specifically for consultation and community engagement. The Local Authority cover the costs of the consultation, examination by independent consultant and referendum. The funding is there for publicity to ensure community involvement and to employ a planning consultant to ensure that the Plan is fit for purpose before submitting to the Local Authority.
The working or steering group is key to the process. The Parish Council have to approve the Plan and hold any funding received. Although the Parish Council oversee the process, the working group will be responsible for collecting the evidence and writing the plan. Ideally the group will have 5-10 members taking on the key roles of Chairperson, deputy Chairperson and Secretary together with specialist roles such as marketing. The first job of the group is to decide on their terms of reference. Janet will assist with all the initial work up to and including the application for funding. She will provide information including the ‘parish profile’, based on the 2011 census with the 2013 update. Help is also available on line on the Locality Website which includes worksheets for each stage of the process.
3/2018 Next Meeting
All those interested in forming a working group will be invited to a meeting on Tuesday 22nd May 2018 at 7pm in the Royal Oak Scopwick. At this meeting roles will be assigned, the skills of the working group and other people who wish to help on an occasional basis will be recognised and recorded and next steps decided upon. This information will be recorded in a written terms of reference for the group. Before the meeting Janet agreed to provide examples of useful documents including a skills checklist, example terms of reference and a template project plan. These documents will be circulated by the Parish Clerk prior to the meeting to the 29 households that expressed an interest in helping with the process.
Minutes submitted by:
Jill Moran, Parish Clerk. Dorset House, Vicarage Lane, Scopwick. Tel: 07512 234965.
Email: clerkscopwick@gmail.com