Castlethorpe News March 2021
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
www.castlethorpe-pc.gov.uk No 79: March 2021 MKC rejects appeal over our Neighbourhood Plan Milton Keynes Council has rejected an appeal by the Parish Council against its decision to remove the designa�on of By Philip Ayles Gobbeys Field as a Local Green Space (LGS) in the new Chairman of Modifed Castlethorpe Neighbourhood Plan. Villagers will be aware that our Modified Neighbourhood Castlethorpe Parish Council Plan included the designa�on of Gobbeys Field as an LGS which would protect it for the informal recrea�onal ac�vi�es that characterise its use alongside grazing. Unfortunately, we failed to convince councillors of the However, the independent Examiner, in our view wrongly, failures of the examina�on and so the original decision ruled that it did not meet the condi�ons for designa�on. MKC stands. MKC will arrange a referendum in the summer. supported his view despite strenuous efforts by the We urge you to support this, even without Gobbeys as Neighbourhood Plan Steering group to convince them an LGS, as it refreshes our Neighbourhood Plan and gives otherwise. it more authority in planning decisions giving protec�on MKC took a formal decision to remove Gobbeys as an LGS to all our boundaries including Gobbeys for at least on 9 March and, at the request of the Parish Council, two another two years. Ward Councillors, Andrew Geary and Bill Green, "called it in" Some residents led by Leo Dunwoodie are considering to appeal the decision. a Judicial Review of the decision and are taking legal A�er a failed Media�on Mee�ng on 25 March, a formal advice. Funding this, above some ini�al money, is appeal mee�ng, called "Scru�ny" was held on 31 March beyond the powers of the Parish Council so the costs will which can be viewed on YouTube atwww.youtube.com/ have to be borne by interested residents and anyone watch?v=gWM3vIA5Jbc interested in suppor�ng this ac�on should contact Leo. What the Plan means to Castlethorpe A Neighbourhood Plan is part of a set of planning policies buildings and extensions must have to be consistent with which help the Local Planning Authority (LPA), in our case neighbouring proper�es. Milton Keynes Council, decide whether to allow, refuse or We also designated Castle Field, the Recrea�on Ground place condi�ons on planning applica�ons. and the South Street Paddock as Local Green Spaces, The Neighbourhood Plan Policies fit alongside, though in which protects them for the village. more detail, the “Local Plan” which all LPAs have to provide. Basically, planning applica�ons have to comply with all In MK, the Local Plan is called Plan:MK. Finally, there is a set three sets of planning policies; the na�onal NPPF of na�onal policies, called the Na�onal Planning Policy guidelines, the borough-wide Plan:MK and Neighbour- Framework (NPPF). hood Plans like ours. The decision is made by MKC but Castlethorpe’s Neighbourhood Plan says where land can be they have to consult with the relevant parish. If planning used for housing – and the original Plan from 2017 applicants are unhappy that a decision has been refused designated the field we call Mal�ngs 2 (opposite Paddock by MKC, they can appeal to a Planning Inspector. Close) for about 30 houses – and what Design Code new If you have followed the Parish Council in the last year as we have broadcast our mee�ngs on Facebook and YouTube, you will have Annual Parish Meeting on 12 April seen us frequently object to The 2021 Annual Parish Mee�ng will be Council and the police, as well as one of applica�ons which we think would be held online by Zoom on Monday 12 April, our MKC ward councillors have been out of place but we have to quote the followed by the monthly Parish Council invited to speak at the mee�ng and applicable Castlethorpe or MKC mee�ng immediately a�erwards. answer any ques�ons you may have, so The mee�ng is your chance to see what's make a date to watch– and maybe join Planning Policy. We can’t just say we going on in the Castlethorpe area. Repres- in– either on the Village Facebook page don’t like it. By the way, mostly, our of all the village organisa�ons, the Parish or YouTube. objec�ons have been upheld by MKC. Con�nued on Page 2 2 Why we are fighting for the plan From Page 1 As it happens, MKC is now mee�ng listed buildings and one Grade 1 We made our first Neighbourhood its housing targets comfortably so (the Church) in Castlethorpe; Plan in 2017. It took several years there is no immediate pressure on us • To �ghten the Design Code; because we were a “front-runner” to update our Neighbourhood Plan to • To designate Gobbeys Field as a and ini�ally no-one could tell us what keep it less than two years old.But we Local Green Space (LGS) to weneededtodo!ThisPlanremainsin need to be ready and there can protect its recrea�onal use. force un�l 2030 and is used to decide always be unexpected decisions from You may remember that we whether we want to object or place Planning Inspectors. a�empted to designate Gobbeys as condi�ons on planning applica�ons. The Modified Neighbourhood Plan an LGS in the original Neighbourhood However, there is a clause in the In any case, a couple of years ago, Plan but the Examiner didn’t allow it NPPF which says that, if the Local we decided to update our Plan by as he said we had produced no Planning Authority doesn’t meet “modifying” it. The main changes evidence that it was “demonstrably certain condi�ons about providing were: special” to the community as enough land for housing and • To bring it in line with Plan:MK, required by the NPPF. We did a village delivering enough new houses, then which was made since we did our survey on usage and gave this to a some of its policies are deemed to be original Neighbourhood Plan; second Examiner but she dismissed non-applicable and par�cularly the • To protect some of our historic the survey as “anecdotal” and, at this policy about not developing outside buildings which are not “listed” point, we felt we had no choice but to se�lement boundaries. by Heritage England. We called ask you to vote for the Neighbour- This is what happened at Hanslope them “Buildings of Local Int- hood Plan in a referendum without and why they got the new estates on erest”. These are mostly the Gobbeys so we got protec�on against Castlethorpe Road and Long Street – Edwardian terraces in Bullington unwanted development. about 410 houses. For comparison, End Road, North Street, South When we came to modify the Castlethorpe has a total of 470 Street, School Lane, New Road Neighbourhood Plan, we were given houses so Hanslope is expanding by and Sta�on Road but also some access to some CCTV recordings almost the size of Castlethorpe. individual buildings. Independ- which showed the bo�om part of the A further “however” is that, ently, there is a revision of the field without iden�fying individuals. providing MKC meets a lower housing Conserva�on Area and all the We checked it was lawful to use this delivery target and the Neighbour- Buildings of Local Interest except with the CCTV Commissioner and hood Plan is less than two years old, the row in Sta�on Road and the then produced a table of usage. the Neighbourhood Plan policies are Water Tower are in the new It was important to show the whole s�ll applicable even if the Plan:MK Conserva�on Area. By the way, field was in use (ball games, dog ones aren’t. there are already 20 Grade 2 Con�nued on Page 3 3 MKC may face legal challenge From Page 2 them to explain why the CCTV “called in” the Decision to be reviewed exercising etc) and not just the public evidence didn’t meet the standard by a Scru�ny Commi�ee. footpath which runs across the field. for being “demonstrably special to Despite a number of clear failures to MKC and our consultant both said the community”. follow the Regula�ons, Scru�ny upheld that, in their opinion, Gobbeys Eventually, this went to a Delegated the decision, although it is now be too qualified as an LGS. Decision by Councillor Marland. I late to go to referendum on 6 May and However, the Examiner of the spoke as did Leo Dunwoodie, who is will have to wait for a later date, Modified Neighbourhood Plan said on the Steering Group and our expert probably in the summer. that it did not meet the condi�ons on Gobbeys, and Councillor Andrew You might ask why we have done this and recommended that it was Geary. if the decision is unlikely to be removed from the Modified Despite our request to defer the changed? We want to show the failure Neighbourhood Plan. decision, Councillor Marland decided to follow the Regula�ons and we have We tried to engage with MKC to that the Neighbourhood Plan should asked for some correspondence and discuss this and were basically given go to referendum on 6 May without legal advice under Freedom of the runaround for six months. We had Gobbeys designated as an LGS. As a Informa�on and this could be used to two video calls but we couldn’t get result, Councillors Geary and Green take legal ac�on against MKC to force them to designate Gobbeys.