What is a Neighbourhood Plan?

How is it different from other Plans?

• It is the local plan about the use and development of Land and Buildings in the area

• It provides an opportunity for the local population to specify its growth and development plans for the next 15 to 25 years

• Its preparation is entirely community led

• Once it has been approved, it sits alongside the District Plan and the District Council has a statutory duty to take account of it in its decision making

• This will be the first time that very local views will carry statutory weight in the planning process

However, a Neighbourhood Plan cannot:

• Block all development

• Be inconsistent with the Government's National Planning Framework (NPPF)

• Propose less growth than specified in the District Plan

• Be prepared without input or support from the local communities

• Deal with Suffolk County Council matters such as Minerals, Waste or major Infrastructure

Benefits to the community

• An opportunity to produce a local vision for the community which once independently examined and through a successful referendum, becomes part of the adopted planning policy framework

• Greater control of the spatial development of the communities through local policies including where development occurs, the type/style of development and materials used

• Community engagement and direct involvement in plans for the community

• Once Neighbourhood Plan has been approved, 25% of Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) receipts from development in the parish goes directly to the parish to spend on supporting growth

Potential Disbenefits

• There will be some cost to the Parish, though expense can be mitigated through grant support

• To succeed the community must make a significant time commitment over a period typically 18-24 months.

Risks in developing a Neighbourhood Plan

• It is possible that a proposed Neighbourhood Plan could fail at the “examination” or public referendum stages - this risk can be mitigated through full engagement of the communities in setting out a collectively agreed view of what people want.

Risks in not having a Neighbourhood Plan

Communities that do not have a Neighbourhood Plan can be seriously disadvantaged.

• Development can much more easily be imposed from above on those communities that do not have a Neighbourhood Plan

• Local people will have limited say and influence on where development takes place, on how much development (i.e. number of houses) is brought forward

• Communities will be less able to inform speculative applications from developers looking for sites to bring forward sustainable development

Examples of matters that a Neighbourhood Plan can address
(not an exclusive list)