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Neighbourhood PlanningNeighbourhood PlanningLearning from Cerne ValleyLearning from Cerne Valleythe West Dorset perspectivethe West Dorset perspective

David Evans – Environment DirectorDavid Evans – Environment DirectorWest Dorset District CouncilWest Dorset District Council

October 2011October 2011

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cil West DorsetWest Dorset

Rural district – 138 parishes – 6 town councils

– 38 parish councils, 24 grouped councils

– 8 parish meetings Covering

400 sq miles (1,000 km²)

Population of just under 100,000

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cil West DorsetWest Dorset

Environment vs. economy– 71% AONB

– World Heritage coastline

– 55 SSSIs and over 560 SNCIs

– SAMs – Cerne Giant, Maiden Castle...

– Low average wage level

– High land costs

– Poor communications

– Shortage of labour with relevant skills, and lack of affordable housing…

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cil Our Front RunnersOur Front Runners

Central Government invited councils to ‘bid’ to be a front-runner

Gauged interest through our WDP annual assembly – 13 volunteered

Through selection put forward:

– Cerne Valley (first wave)

– Sherborne (third wave)

As part of our bid we said we wanted to work on a new-style Local Plan

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cil What have we learned so far?What have we learned so far?

How the plan fits in the system

What it will cover

Who will prepare it

How long it will take

What resourcing it will need

What could trip us up?

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cil How the plan fits…How the plan fits…

Part of the development plan– cannot override strategic policies / growth targets

– S38(6) status – decide in accordance unless material considerations indicate otherwise

Working out our strategic policies in tandem…– how locally do we set housing targets?

– could this come too late? Local control vs. material considerations– asking for clarity on the neighbourhood

development order

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cil How the plan fits…How the plan fits…

Need to accord with EU and HR legislation– SEA / EIA requirements

– Right to be heard Who is responsible for the SEA/EIA?

– We don’t currently have an existing Sustainability Appraisal

– Local ownership / acceptance of options / vs. LPA or external expertise

How are consultation responses handled?

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cil What will it cover?What will it cover?

(subject to the tests) its up to them…

– Location of development / development boundaries / criteria

– A new housing / employment site

– What infrastructure you hope to fund

– Design standards

– Permitted development rights

Single issue - or - belt and braces?– When a plan is silent…

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cil Who will prepare it?Who will prepare it?

Parish Council LPA: hands-off approach Steering group established - ToR

– Defined membership – parish councillors and local people who “bring value to the project”, plus clerk and LPA link officer

– Declaration of personal interests

– Non-decision making

– Closed meetings but reporting regularly to the Parish Council

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Parish council / Neighbourhood Forum initiates process but the Borough / district council must agree the area to be covered

Local community develops plan Borough / district council has duty to support

Draft plan submitted to the council ‘Light touch’ public examination

checked against national and locally strategic policies, and EU legislation

Local referendum – if clear majority (51% of those that vote), the plan is adopted

How are they prepared?How are they prepared?

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Complete Stage

Jan 2011 Parish council agreed to pilot

Apr 2011 Parish council agreed steering group

Oct 2011 Process Planning

Jan 2012 Establishing needs, hopes and issues

April 2012 Developing solutions, finding consensus

July 2012 Drafting neighbourhood plan / NDO

Jan 2013 Consulting on the Neighbourhood plan

May 2013 Submission

?? Independent Examination

?? Referendum and adoption

How long will it take?How long will it take?

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cil What resourcing will it need?What resourcing will it need?

No direct funding for parish councils– £20k funding at LPA’s discretion – intended to

cover LPA’s costs (referendum, examination etc)

– Other sources?• sponsorship from a local businesses• fund-raising events • Parish council precept• Council grant scheme (discretionary)

Referendum costs may vary widely Parish budgets and precepts set in advance Concerns over ‘trust’ if developer-sponsored

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cil What resourcing will it need?What resourcing will it need?

Free advice / support through:– District Council– The Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment– Locality – Campaign to Protect Rural England – RTPI Planning Aid

Link officer time / resources– Resource-intensive initially – learning curve– Building trust between the council and the

community– Ability / knowledge to link with other council and

external support services

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cil What resourcing will it need?What resourcing will it need?

Princes Foundation– Helping us run a facilitated 3-day community

planning event later this year (but not Saturday…) Locality – for the next steps? CPRE – no tailored advice RTPI Planning Aid – not in a deprived area

Design Council – village walk around (free) Other – AMT daily rate ranges from £250 to £350

per day (excluding expenses)

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cil What could trip us up?What could trip us up?

Not explaining the relationship with thelocal plan and parish plans

Changes in elected councillors Momentum vs. volunteer time Full community engagement

(especially in larger settlements) Managing expectations

– Scope of plan, funding for infrastructure, viability Managing our resources

– 69% keen, only 6% said they had no interest in preparing a neighbourhood plan