West Chiltington NP June 2015 02
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TIME TO HAVE YOUR SAY LOCALISM is a word you may have heard bandied about in the media. At its simplest, it means involving people in the decisions that affect their lives. The Localism Act of 2011 has empowered local communities to define what they really need rather than allowing the faceless politicians in Whitehall to do this for them. To this end, in July 2013 a group of parish councillors and residents began the process of developing a Neighbourhood Plan. The principal aim has been to protect the peaceful rural character of our village while recognising that government policy requires some ‘sustainable’ development. The plan has been based on the responses to the Housing Needs Survey and from feedback at public meetings and from questionnaires circulated at the Village Show. Of primary concern has been the need to prioritise housing to meet local requirements. So, to ensure we stay ‘a village with a past and a future’ we have been thinking about what we can do to attract younger families into the Parish and how to provide for older residents who want to downsize without moving away. Improving our transport and infrastructure while protecting the history and character of the village are also challenges which it has tried to address as our environment is increasingly threatened by nearby large scale development. The plan is now ready for you to have your say This is an eight-week pre-submission consultation stage when residents and the relevant statutory bodies are asked to consult and comment. At the end of this a final plan will be submitted to Horsham District Council and then to an independent examiner to decide whether it meets the requirements of the neighbourhood planning legislation. Finally, it will come back to back to you as residents, for formal acceptance by majority vote in a referendum and at that point it will be formally accepted as a legal planning document by both Horsham District Council and the Planning Inspectorate. Once the Neighbourhood Plan is in place it will be much easier to refuse any inappropriate planning applications. So do please use this opportunity to protect your village: read it carefully and submit your comments Thanks go to everyone who has contributed, but special thanks to the Neighbourhood Plan Council, chaired by Norman Kirby, who against the odds and with very limited resources have put this impressive document together. We owe them a huge debt of gratitude as this has been a massive undertaking of time and energy expended voluntarily for the benefit of all the residents of West Chiltington. What is now needed is your input as part of the wider community, so that in its final version the Neighbourhood Plan truly represents the views and aspirations of West Chiltington residents. Denis Wright Chairman, West Chiltington Parish Council ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS & COPYRIGHT INFORMATION Figs 1 & 2: HDC. Reproduced by permission of Ordnance Survey map on behalf of HMSO. © Crown copyright and database rights (2014). Ordnance Survey Licence 100023865. Fig. 3: HDC. Reproduced by permission of Ordnance Survey map on behalf of HMSO. © Crown copyright and database rights (2011). Ordnance Survey Licence 100023865. Fig. 5: Reproduced by permission of Environment Agency National Contact Centre. Fig. 6: HDC. Reproduced by permission of Ordnance Survey map on behalf of HMSO. © Crown copyright and database rights (2011). Ordnance Survey Licence 100018563. Fig. 9: HDC. Reproduced by permission of Ordnance Survey map on behalf of HMSO. © Crown copyright and database rights (2011). Ordnance Survey Licence 100023865. Cartoon on page 29 reproduced under licence from cartoonstock.com PAGE 1. INTRODUCTION 02 2. WEST CHILTINGTON TODAY 07 3. ISSUES AND OBJECTIVES 09 4. DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY 24 AND PROPOSAL MAPS 5. POLICIES 26 6. NON STATUTORY POLICIES 32 AND ACTION PLAN 7. MONITORING AND DELIVERY 44 APPENDICES 46 GLOSSARY 47 A BIT MORE ABOUT WEST CHILTINGTON 48 The West Chiltington Parish Neighbourhood Plan THIS is the pre-submission version of the West Chiltington Neighbourhood Plan (WCNP) that covers the whole of West Chiltington Parish Neighbourhood Area, as designated by the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 covering the period from June 2015 up to 31 December 2031. It sets out a framework to guide residents, local authorities and developers on how the community wishes to manage and control future development in the Neighbourhood Plan Area over the period to 2031, along with its facilities, services and environment. This document is therefore intended to be updated from time to time, and formally every five years. Compiled by residents, the WCNP seeks to set out issues, objectives, policies and actions in straightforward terms. As the plan must be adopted before its objectives can begin to be realised we have tried to ensure that the document is clear and easy to understand. It is, though, a technical document and does therefore need to employ some technical terminology. It must be stressed that not having a plan does not mean there will be no future development. It would mean, however, that residents would have far less influence over what development does take place within the Neighbourhood Plan Area. What is a Neighbourhood Plan? NEIGHBOURHOOD PLANS were introduced by the Localism Act which came into force in November 2011. According to the National Planning Policy Framework: “Neighbourhood planning provides a powerful set of tools for local people to ensure that they get the right types of development for their community. The ambition of the neighbourhood should be aligned with the strategic needs and priorities of the wider local area. Neighbourhood plans must be in general conformity with the strategic policies of the Local Plan. To facilitate this, local planning authorities should set out clearly their strategic policies for the area and ensure that an up-to-date Local Plan is in place as quickly as possible. Neighbourhood plans should reflect these policies and neighbourhoods should plan positively to support them. Neighbourhood plans and orders should not promote less development than set out in the Local Plan or undermine its strategic policies.” A Neighbourhood Plan relates to the use and development of land. It is “…a plan that can set out where development will go and what development could look like in a particular area [and] allows communities to create a vision and planning policies for the use and development of land within a defined geographical area. This is an opportunity for local people to be fully engaged in the future of their communities in a way that has not previously been possible.” (HDC: Neighbourhood Planning) The West Chiltington Parish Neighbourhood Plan The Neighbourhood Plan Area THE WCNP covers the entirety of West Chiltington Parish, following its adoption as a ‘Neighbourhood Area’ by Horsham District Council and the South Downs National Park on 24 February 2014. West Chiltington Parish is a long-established, well-recognised and defined area where the great majority of residents live in one village that has a clear physical and social identity. The ‘Neighbourhood Plan Area’ covers a large geographical area. An extremely small part of this area lying to the south is located in the South Downs National Park. Planning Context THE National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) requires Neighbourhood Plans to be in general conformity with the strategic policies of the Planning Framework of the Local Planning Authority. “Once a Neighbourhood Plan has demonstrated its general conformity with the strategic policies of the Local Plan and is brought into force, the policies it contains take precedence over existing non-strategic policies in the Local Plan for that neighbourhood, where they are in conflict.” (Extract Para.185 NPPF 2012.) Horsham District Council is the primary Local Planning Authority (LPA) within which the West Chiltington Neighbourhood Plan Area is located. It has published the Horsham District Planning Framework (HDPF) for the period to 2031 and the WCNP will need to comply with that Framework’s policies, once formally adopted. Should the HDPF not be adopted, the WCNP would need to be revised to conform to Horsham’s existing Core Strategy. Fig 1. The Neighbourhood Plan area This approach has been agreed with Horsham District Council and these policies have therefore been used in framing the WCNP. Once the WCNP has been adopted as part of the statutory development plan for the West Chiltington Neighbourhood Plan Area, it will be a primary consideration when determining planning applications within that area. In cases where a decision is sought on the basis of material considerations not covered by the WCNP, applicants and appellants must demonstrate that their proposals are nonetheless in accordance with the WCNP’s stated principles and provisions. The secondary Local Planning Authority is the South Downs National Park Authority (SDNPA), established in April 2011, which describes its role as a Planning Authority thus: “…to control and influence the development of land and buildings within its boundaries. To do this effectively the SDNPA has to balance the statutory duties and purposes of the National Park, safeguarding the natural environment and existing built heritage, with the needs of individuals, the local population supporting rural communities and local businesses.” The West Chiltington Parish Neighbourhood Plan SDNPA is in the process of consulting on its National Park Local Plan. The pre-submission version was published in May 2015. Note, however, that very little of the Neighbourhood Area falls within the national park and none of the very small area is developable. Its policies are therefore unlikely to be particularly significant for the WCNP. Exploratory drilling for gas is being planned or undertaken at Broadford Bridge within the Neighbourhood Plan Area. These activities are the responsibility of West Sussex County Council: its Minerals Local Plan will define the applicable policies.