Neighbourhood Planning – Early Stages Victoria Burvill Summer 2019
Neighbourhood Planning – Early Stages Victoria Burvill Summer 2019
This presentation and guidance is intended to help you understand the steps needed to get started once you have decided to prepare a neighbourhood plan. It is also relevant to a wider community planning process, if you choose to engage with the community before deciding. Key terms
• Qualifying body (QB) – the body responsible for preparing a Neighbourhood Plan. In Wiltshire this will almost always be the Parish or Town Council. • Development Plan – a suite of documents setting out the planning policy for the area. In Wiltshire – currently the Wiltshire Core Strategy + Neighbourhood Plans + Minerals and Waste Plans and the Chippenham Site Allocations Plan. • NPPF – National Planning Policy Framework • PPG – Planning Policy Guidance
Some key terms and links: (added in response to questions at the workshop) • ‘Qualifying body (QB)’ ‐ the body that has the responsibility for producing a neighbourhood plan – In an area that includes all or part of a parished area the parish or town council is the ‘qualifying body’. They may appoint a steering group, to prepare a neighbourhood plan on their behalf. • ‘Development’ – when planners talk about development we mean “the carrying out of building, engineering, mining or other operations in, on, over or under land, or the making of any material change in the use of any buildings or other land.” (Town and Country Planning Act 1990) In this country there is no automatic right to develop your property. Development must be given permission according to planning law. This happens through planning applications, or through other means such as a development order which gives prior approval. The ‘General Permitted Development Order’ gives prior consent (with restrictions and conditions) for development such as house extensions, installation of electric vehicle charge point or highway maintenance works. • The Development Plan or ‘Local Plan’ ‐ In Wiltshire, the Local Plan includes the Wiltshire Core Strategy incorporating saved policies from district local plans, Chippenham Site Allocations Plan, Minerals and Waste Plans and made Neighbourhood Plans. For more information please see: http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/planning‐policy. Planning applications have to be decided in line with the relevant local planning authority’s (LPA) development plan, unless there is a very good reason not to do so. National planning policies (see NPPF), Minerals Policy statements and circulars are material considerations as well as documents such as Village Design Statement or Conservation Area Statement. • The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) sets out the government's planning policies for England and how these are expected to be applied. The NPPF acts as guidance for Wiltshire Council both in drawing up plans and making decisions about planning applications. • To support the NPPF the government produced National Planning Practice Guidance (NPPG) which is published and regularly updated online. The NPPG adds further context to the NPPF and replaces thousands of pages of guidance that was previously published in separate documents. • The Planning Portal is a useful place for information on how planning works. https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200127/planning/102/about_the_planning_sys tem
2 Presentation outline... Part 1: What is Neighbourhood Planning? Part 2. Getting started, planning and communicating Part 3. The scoping stage. – Developing a shared vision – Gathering evidence & community engagement. – Consultation methods & approaches Part 4. Understanding Local Plan & policy context & Selecting the most appropriate approach Part 5. More about community engagement
This presentation includes an overview of the process. see our guidance note (PDF) online http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/planning‐neighbourhood‐what
We will also look at the thinking and the steps needed in the Scoping Stage.
3 Community planning can …
• Help the community to understand their needs and wishes now and into the future • Work out ways to become a more sustainable and resilient community / place • Gather a base of evidence that can inform response to planning application • Develop a shared vision for the future
4 Neighbourhood Plans … • set out a shared vision for development in the neighbourhood area • help the community to have a say in shaping development and growth of the area • include policies on the scale, location and design of new development, to enable the vision • are prepared with input and support of the local community • are evidence-based • respond proactively to identified need and community’s wishes for development • can grant planning permission for specific type of development • become part of the Development Plan on which planning decisions are based
5 Neighbourhood Plan – added benefits
• Increased level of CIL (25% instead of 15% of revenue arising in their area) • Paragraph 14 of NPPF – NP that allocates housing development can rely on a 3 year housing land supply, rather than 5 year supply. • Can identify wider community aspirations for action
6 Basic Conditions A neighbourhood plan must… • have regard to national policies and advice • contribute to the achievement of sustainable development • be in general conformity with the strategic policies contained in the development plan • not breach, and be otherwise compatible with, EU obligations • meet prescribed conditions and matters – not have a likely significant effect on a European site or a European offshore marine site • be compatible with Convention rights (Human Rights Act 1998) Additional conditions for Neighbourhood Development Orders
At this point it is worth mentioning the Basic Conditions, and being mindful of them as you draft the plan. A consultant will be able to help with this. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/neighbourhood‐planning‐‐2#basic‐conditions‐for‐ neighbourhood‐plan‐to‐referendum
A “Health Check” may be useful for some NPs before they submit the Plan to the local authority. https://www.rics.org/uk/footer/dispute‐resolution‐service/drs‐ services/neighbourhood‐planning‐independent‐examiner‐referral‐service/ https://neighbourhoodplanning.org/about/technical‐support/ Or some private practices offer a health check.
When you finally submit the plan to Wiltshire Council you will need to submit a Basic Conditions statement showing how these conditions are met. We will provide comments during the Regulation 14 consultation if we have any concerns in relation to these.
A consultant will be able to help advise on all the documents needed and how the information should be presented.
7 Wiltshire Council responsibilities
• Confirm the geographical area of neighbourhood plans • Duty to advise and assist qualifying bodies • Check that legal conditions have been met e.g. decide whether the Plan needs assessment under HRA or SEA legislation • Appoint an independent examiner with the input of the qualifying body • Pay for and undertake referendums • Bring neighbourhood plans into force
8 Part 2: Getting Started
9 The part of the process we are talking about in this section is the scoping stage.
This is quite an involved stage, but only a small part of the Regulations and legislation is given to it: In fact – only the area designation part, then nothing until Reg 14 (pre‐submission consultation)
The PPG does give more guidance on how to prepare a neighbourhood plan and how to involve the community. The Basic Conditions state that neighbourhood plans must have regard to national policy and advice. It is worth a good read through. The Locality guidance and our own guidance is also based on the PPG. Note that it was updated in May 2019. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/neighbourhood‐planning‐‐2
The following slides note some important steps in starting out on the neighbourhood planning process.
10 Key Statutory Stages
• Neighbourhood Area Designation • Plan preparation • SEA / HRA screening and assessment (if required) • Pre-submission consultation (Regulation 14) • Submission to Local Planning Authority (Regulation 15) • Publish plan (Regulation 16) •Examination • Referendum • Plan is ‘made’
• Neighbourhood Area Designation
• Pre‐submission consultation (Regulation 14) and Revision of drafts in response to consultation • Submission – once the neighbourhood plan (or NDO or CRTBO) is submitted, Wiltshire Council are responsible for coordinating the remaining steps of the process (6‐ week consultation (Reg 16), independent examination, referendum, making of the plan).
11 Plan preparation
• Plan preparation – Scoping issues – Confirm vision & objectives – Further research / evidence gathering to inform policies – Develop plan policies – Additional work to allocate sites, local green spaces, specific design requirements – SEA / HRA screening
Plan preparation includes looking into what a neighbourhood plan can do to best achieve its objectives. You may need to weigh up different options and approaches. This might mean researching a bit more about what other neighbourhood plans have done to tackle similar issues, look at the effectiveness of various approaches, consider how your options sit with the existing local and national policy and you may need to go back to get community input to help decide what approaches to take. So this is still an iterative cycle.
• Plan Preparation • Agree / confirm vision & objectives (further research may be needed to inform policies and approaches to delivering the objectives. e.g. Housing needs survey, landscape assessment etc – all part of the iterative evidence gathering and plan‐making process) • Develop plan policies • Additional work to select development sites, local green spaces, define heritage or design requirements, as applicable • Outline / screening draft • SEA / HRA screening & carry out appropriate assessment if required
At some point during this stage you will crystallise ideas and will be able to draft an outline plan. This is the time when you should submit a draft to Wiltshire Council for HRA and SEA Screening.
12 Funding & Consultants
• Grants remain available via Locality: www.neighbourhoodplanning.org
• Locality Guidance: https://neighbourhoodplanning.org/toolkits- and-guidance/commission-consultants-work-neighbourhood-plan/
• RTPI consultation search tool: https://www.rtpiconsultants.co.uk/
Grants remain available via Locality: www.neighbourhoodplanning.org
Locality Guidance: https://neighbourhoodplanning.org/toolkits‐and‐ guidance/commission‐consultants‐work‐neighbourhood‐plan/
RTPI consultation search tool: https://www.rtpiconsultants.co.uk/
13 Project Plan • Downloadable template https://neighbourhoodplanning.org • Include: – Statutory milestones – Other key milestones (e.g. community events) – Timescales – When you might involve a consultant – Key dates to take account of (e.g. holidays) • Feedback from link officer • Locality – Roadmap - https://neighbourhoodplanning.org/ • Funding – Locality
There is plenty of online guidance on project planning, the neighbourhood planning process and funding. See links in the slide.
You are likely to need a consultant at some stage in the process. It will depend on what skills and resources you have among the local volunteers.
Please clarify with the neighbourhood planning team / link officer regarding the support we can offer, when we might meet, how we will communicate, and when we can provide feedback on draft documents or your project plans (e.g. community engagement strategy, project plan, scoping report) – incorporate this into your project plan – don’t forget we are there to help and provide constructive support along the way.
See https://neighbourhoodplanning.org/toolkits‐and‐guidance/ for “Project planning tool”, “How to create a Neighbourhood Plan: Your step by step roadmap guide” and advice on funding.
In fact Locality now have so many guidance notes on their website they have created a guidance note summarising their guidance notes! https://neighbourhoodplanning.org/wp‐content/uploads/Resources‐List‐JWFS‐ 190219‐1216.pdf
14 Engage & communicate
• First step – communicate • Awareness of the potential of a neighbourhood plan / community plan • Use existing groups and networks • Piggy back on existing events • Go to them – do not expect attendance at events. • Next steps – keep communicating
Communication and consultation strategy
Before asking the community about their interests or ideas, before the ‘scoping of issues’ really starts, there is a need to simply engage and communicate with the community.
This is preparing the ground and laying the foundations for future engagement, and finding out if there is the potential for the sort of community engagement that a neighbourhood plan requires.
Use existing groups, networks – e.g. schools, WI, gardening club, playgroup, ramblers, church, notice boards, parish magazines, e‐mail networks, facebook etc.
Don’t start with a detailed questionnaire – especially about housing. It is OK if you have done this or are planning to do it (many have taken this approach) – the results will still be useful, but be aware that it could be setting a particular context and sending you down a route and could cause unwanted or unforeseen reactions in the community. More about this later.
Make sure people know where they can find updates about the project (website, social media, parish council, village notice board) ‐ make sure there are different methods of communication to suit individuals needs / ability to access each method.
See https://neighbourhoodplanning.org/resources/– in particular “How to consult with your community How to use social media to engage your local community
15 Support from Wiltshire Council
In relation to the Scoping Stage, we can provide feedback on: • Your project plan • Your communication and / or consultation strategy • Your ideas / outline plans for consultation events or other community engagement • Your draft scoping report and thoughts on vision, objectives and even policy intentions • Your vision and objectives
Please keep us in the loop, e.g. share minutes of steering group meetings.
Please talk to your link officer or the Neighbourhood Planning team at Wiltshire Council if you need to clarify any of the information in these slides and notes.
During the scoping stage the NP team may be able to comment on: • Your project plan • Your communication and / or consultation strategy • Your ideas / outline plans for consultation events or other community engagement • Your draft scoping report and thoughts on vision, objectives and even policy intentions • Your vision and objectives
We cannot attend all meetings but please DO keep us updated, for example a quick phone call prior to, or following, a steering group meeting if there are any questions that the council can help with. Even if you are working with a consultant, as a minimum please send us regular updates and minutes of steering group meetings.
We are very happy to meet with you at our offices. We are also running ‘surgeries’ where you can book a slot and have your questions answered and discuss next steps.
The main thing is to keep an open dialogue going with Wiltshire Council throughout the process.
16 Part 3: The importance of scoping & good community engagement
17 This part of the presentation is about Stage 1 ‐ the scoping stage – it’s purpose is to help you determine your objectives and help determine the most appropriate approach. Once you’ve established a steering group the focus of the scoping stage is developing objectives for the neighbourhood plan and likely also community ‘actions’. These are the things the community are hoping to achieve. The Scoping Stage • Initiate the process – this can only be done by a ‘qualifying body’ – where this is a parished area it will be for the town and parish councils to determine if they wish to embark on the process of producing a neighbourhood plan. – The town or parish council might resolve to prepare a neighbourhood plan or to start preliminary work to find out whether a neighbourhood plan is an appropriate way forward. • Form a steering group with representatives from the local community and appropriate stakeholders •Prepare a project plan, and consultation & communication strategy. • It is then important to establish your ‘objectives’ or ‘actions’. This needs to take account of the requirement to be in general conformity with the councils planning policy and your own issues/challenges. This is quite a time‐consuming step, as you will be researching, engaging with the community and bringing it all together. There might be a few cycles of research and community engagement. • Finally the scoping stage finishes with selecting the most appropriate approach for your community. This might be a ‘neighbourhood plan’ or a completely different approach and we’ll explore these in more detail later on. •The parish or town council may then resolve to prepare a neighbourhood plan, and/or resolve to apply for a neighbourhood area to be designated (steps 5‐7 in the process). •It is likely that you’ll want to collect all the work and thinking in a ‘scoping report’ or ‘issues report’. •Before you start scoping the issues and looking at the objectives you will need to do a certain amount of project planning and preparing the ground. We will talk about that first.
18 Part 2
Presentation outline...
Part 3. The scoping stage. – Developing a shared vision – Gathering evidence & community engagement. – Consultation methods & approaches – Understanding Local Plan & policy context – Selecting the most appropriate approach
This second part of the presentation will start to look at the scoping stage. We will look at 1. Developing a shared vision and getting buy‐in from the community 2. Gathering evidence, and community engagement and involvement as part of that 3. We will look at various consultation methods and approaches
19 Scoping is: • EVIDENCE GATHERING – community input, other research • Asking the right questions at the right time • Using the right methods to ask the questions • Events, updates, surveys, volunteering, researching … • Identifying the key challenges, opportunities & options for the community • Developing a shared vision • Developing objectives that will help achieve the vision • Selection the most appropriate approach • For a Neighbourhood Plan – focus on development objectives
The way you frame questions is really important. And indeed the way you frame the whole project or process is also important.
This process should aim to help individuals and groups within the community to be part of shaping their community, in the short term and into the future. Ideally it will be a positive experience with a positive and proactive outcome. It will lead to a better understanding of the community and how it works, of how it became the way it is and what it is becoming.
If we initially come together to talk about an emotive issue that already has differing opinions, it is unlikely to resolve those issues. If we take a step back and leave the issues at the door and enter the process (or meeting room) with an open mind, we can work on developing a shared vision. There may be different opinions on how that vision may be achieved, but it can really help if you can get buy‐in to the process and agree a high‐level vision or set of principles at the start.
These ‘high‐level principles’ might be things that everyone can agree on e.g. a decent home for everyone, minimal exposure to harmful pollutants, opportunities to access employment, convenient transport options to get where you need to be, a shop in the village, a good sense of community, allowing people to live and let live (not negatively impacting other people’s opportunities or health) – through this we are starting to build a foundation of a shared vision. The rest of the process is about unpacking what these things really mean in this locality and then looking into the options and approaches that can help to achieve them. Also see: http://www.ourneighbourhoodplanning.org.uk/storage/resources/documents/Ho w_to_develop_a_vision_and_objectives.pdf
20 Developing a shared Vision vision What should this place be like in 2036? What does good look like?
There are many approaches to gathering community input and data to inform the vision and objectives, e.g.
1. Blank sheet of paper approach – sometimes useful in terms of giving complete control to the process and showing that all ideas can be gathered and used as a starting point. However ‘informed’ consultation is often more fruitful and participants sometimes respond better with a bit of structure and context.
2. Prompts to guide thinking about themes – Use a set of themes and consider what can be done within each theme. Choose whether to start very simply, or have ‘theme groups’ do some research first and then present the facts in order to provide context for considerations within each theme. (Our exercises / resource follow this second approach)
Key points: Steering group leads the process (on behalf of QB) and needs to be confident that they represent the community and are in a position to gather input from the community Community input is used TOGETHER with desk‐based research. All the evidence is used to form a vision, objectives and later, policies.
21 Visioning process How will we know we are there?
Where / What?
How
Now
So what are we trying to find out in the scoping process? Also known as visioning. We want to end up with a shared vision and objectives for our plan. This can be a NDP (or could be a parish or community plan). In the end a NDP will need to have some refined development objectives, and eventually some development management policies that will help to achieve the objectives. For now, I want to keep a step back, while we are still looking at the early part of the scoping stage. The diagram illustrates a very general visioning process. It is always useful to keep this in mind and remember where you are in the process. • Where / what? – Where or what do we want to be? Remember that the goal is about working towards something that all of the community will be able to buy in to. There may be differing opinions on how to achieve it. The evidence will help you find out what the most appropriate options are. But it is important to develop a shared vision to start with. • Now - assessing Where are we now?, - identify what defines you as a place or community, highlight what is valued, identify any problem areas or challenges. • How – how are we going to get there? how will we achieve our goals? All of these components are informed by the evidence. E.g. Part of understanding where you want to be is about being really aspirational, but also realistic and having a good understanding of the future challenges / trends / patterns that will need to be addressed / responded to. It is really helpful to follow these steps: • Agree high–level principles (e.g. decent homes for everyone – see Sustainability Framework Themes and objectives) • Work on developing a shared vision that sits with these principles • Look in more detail about the local context, trends etc as well as challenges and opportunities to help refine the vision, and start to focus on the main issues (maybe prioritise) and develop objectives. It may not always be possible to maintain a completely positive experience at all times. There will be tensions and challenges. But it helps to remember that you are all in it together, and the shared vision is a really useful basis, that you can return to at different parts of the process, and ask yourselves, how does this [activity / policy / thinking / conversation] bring us closer to the vision?
22 Further notes on the visioning process
• Using a ‘grounding’ approach • Start by celebrating what is good about where you are • Don’t start by focusing on a single issue
Take a step back from the individual issues or problems that might be at the forefront of peoples minds as they enter the process. Start with the positive!
The Centre for Sustainable Energy has a useful approach, that looks at energy provision, but can be extended for the wider scoping process (or your scoping process might identify that you should look in more depth at energy and the CSE tools will be invaluable and are free and available online.) It looks at ‘energy futures’ – i.e. looking at how a community will make sure it is resilient in terms of energy supply and usage. - starts with a ‘grounding’ process - which is helpful for community planning and neighbourhood planning.
Looks at what has made the place the way it is – energy usage current, historic – but we could extend this to all themes – built development, education, travel, community social structures, health. It takes the focus away from the current pressure a community may feel in relation to a particular issue. It starts with facts but also a celebratory atmosphere and helps to highlight what makes this place unique and build some local identity. It will also foster a sense of belonging to the project, and buy-in to the methods, which should not be underestimated in this sort of project. https://www.cse.org.uk/projects/view/1343
23 Visioning cycle
Deliver the plan. Discover the best of Monitor. what IS and what makes it that way. ! NDP cannot Deliver Discover include delivery
Design Dream Design a plan to realise the vision, Dream what could based on evidence be the vision for the & best practice. future.
This is another way to represent the general steps in a visioning process. It is cyclical because you observe, plan, do and check and then do it all again (perhaps after some time!). – It is similar to a management cycle.
NB – the neighbourhood plan does not provide detail on how the vision and objective are delivered. The policies of the neighbourhood plan are put in place to support delivery. When it comes to reviewing the neighbourhood plan (perhaps after 5 years), there will need to be some new evidence gathering to show whether the policies are having their desired effect. So, try to identify ways that success or delivery can be recognised and monitored and feed this back in as new information / evidence in the ‘discovery’ stage next time round.
The scoping stage of neighbourhood or community planning is mainly concerned with the ‘discover’ and ‘dream’ steps.
24 What sort of place do What could we want to live in? What is special make it great? What does a resilient about this place community look like? now?
What are the What basic things should be challenges that this What will make the in place for us to be the sort community and residents and built fabric of place and community individual residents of the community be that we want to be? will face in the future? able to thrive and meet these challenges?
How can we do all this and ensure future How can we do all generations have the this within the limits same rights to of nature and the opportunities and environment? ability to thrive?
What does it mean to develop a vision?
The questions on the slide do not necessarily have to be asked outright. But they illustrate the sort of thinking that is required in a community visioning process.
What sort of place do we want to live in? What is special about this place now?
How can we get the answers to these questions by using sound science and facts, and through an open democratic process that involves the community?
25 Themes to consider
. Biodiversity . Land and Soil Resources . Water Resources and Flood Risk . Air quality and environmental pollution . Climatic Factors . Historic Environment . Landscapes . Population & Housing . Healthy Communities . Inclusive Communities . Education and skills . Transport . Economy and enterprise
So we have started the thinking about what we want our place to be like.
Now have a look at these themes. Just spend a moment looking down the list. We don’t need to write anything down.
Do they help to prompt your thinking about things that were not necessarily at the forefront of your minds (when thinking about the questions on the previous slide)? Or even on your radar?
[This is an example of visioning, using prompts, albeit with very little detail]
This is to illustrate that it is important how you frame the questions, and that an open book (blank canvas) approach (as per the previous slide) does not necessarily help us to look broadly to all the potential challenges and opportunities that are relevant to our communities or places and the way they are changing or evolving.
More on the detail of this later, in Part 3.
When looking at these issues or themes in the list, would you agree that it would be difficult to know the facts about the issues simply by talking as a group? You need to look to existing data and information as well to get a fuller picture of the issues and possibilities.
26 Establishing your challenges and actions...
• Important to identify the key issues of concern at an early stage in the process
• This will help determine the scope and detail to be addressed by any subsequent approach
• Important not to prejudge this stage – the most appropriate approach might be a ‘non-planning’ based solution
• As discussed we’ve talked about the importance of establishing key issues that are relevant at an early stage in the process • By looking at key issues and forming vision and objectives, This will help determine the scope and detail to be addressed by any subsequent approach • We encourage groups to not prejudge this stage – this is because the most appropriate approach might be a ‘non planning’ based solution
•The thing that helps us to know what is important in our community is EVIDENCE
27 Evidence Gathering
Community Data / Engagement Research
Evidence
Evidence – there are many types of evidence that help us to form a picture of the places we live, how they have been created historically – built form, social and cultural traditions, hopes. The evidence also helps us to think about what sort of place we want to create for the future. What are the challenges being faced? and what is the best way to respond to them?
Evidence ‐ is gathered through ‐ research of existing information, (which may be ‘desk‐based’) or new research, which will include community involvement.
It is important to remember that although a neighbourhood plan is ‘community‐ led’ there are other components of a plan. When a neighbourhood plan is submitted it must include a consultation statement showing that the community and other interested bodies have had plenty of opportunity to input to and comment on the plan. A neighbourhood plan also needs to be ‘evidence based’ – policies have to have a sound justification, which can be based on informed community input as well as other sources.
There needs to be a considerable amount of research. Research is used at the beginning to help inform consultation, and more research may be needed later to test ideas that have come out of community input, or thinking being done by the steering group.
Equally, ideas and objectives being developed by a smaller group (topic group or steering group or consultant) will need to be tested against the research and tested with the community. ‐ It is an iterative process.
28 Evidence sources Local Development Plan Assessment, Research surveys
Walking Research surveys
Community ideas
WCS evidence base, other studies. E.g. housing numbers & types Statistics
There are a number of different sources of information that can help us find out the answers, in addition to input from the community.
These resources can help us to corroborate ideas that have been raised through community consultation. They can help us identify issues, challenges or opportunities. They can also help us identify possible solutions. – options / actions.
Evidence should be proportionate. – Use existing (secondary) data where possible. Only conduct new surveys or studies if necessary. Sometimes this is necessary – e.g. carrying out a community landscape or character assessment, or asking a consultant to do a landscape appraisal – are examples of primary research being conducted to give more information about the current context or baseline. Rural Housing Needs Survey is an example of research that helps to identify the current issues and needs that a neighbourhood plan might address. Traffic survey – identifies issues. Site assessment process – is an example of researching options or solutions to address an issue (where housing need has been identified).
Understanding the policy context is also important at this early stage. – More slides on that to follow.
Community input is a key element for evidence gathering. – See section on Community Engagement.
29 Evidence – ‘desk-based’ research
• Robust • Proportionate • Iterative process • Use existing data where possible. • Further research – walking surveys, landscape assessment
Where to start: Some links to evidence sources:
Locality website ‐ https://neighbourhoodplanning.org/
Wiltshire Council evidence base: http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/strategic‐housing‐market‐assessment http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/planninganddevelopment/planningpolicy/planningpol icyevidencebase.htm Wiltshire Core Strategy (Local Development Plan) – essential to familiarise with this http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/planninganddevelopment/planningpolicy.htm Neighbourhood Planning Guidance https://www.gov.uk/guidance/neighbourhood‐planning‐‐2 Statistics – Wiltshire Intelligence Network https://www.wiltshireintelligence.org.uk/
Wiltshire Council – in‐house experts / teams – talk to link officer if you’d like any specific advice / data on topics. The link officer can put you in touch with relevant council officers and signpost you to additional guidance as well.
30 THEME OBJECTIVE Biodiversity • Protect and enhance all biodiversity and geological features and avoid irreversible loss
Land and soil resources • Ensure efficient and effective use of land and the use of suitably located previously developed land and buildings. • Promote sustainable waste management solutions that encourage the reduction, re-use and recycling of waste. Water resources and • Use and manage water resources in a sustainable manner. flood risk • Protect people and property from the risk of flooding. Air quality and • Improve air quality throughout Wiltshire and minimise all sources of environmental pollution. environmental pollution Climatic factors • Minimise our impacts on climate change and reduce our vulnerability to future climate change effects. Historic environment • Protect, maintain and enhance the historic environment. Landscapes • Protect, maintain and enhance the historic environment. Population and housing • Provide everyone with the opportunity to live in good quality, affordable housing, and ensure an appropriate mix of dwellings sizes, types and tenures. Healthy communities • Provide a safe and healthy environment in which to live. Inclusive communities • Reduce poverty and deprivation and promote more inclusive and self-contained communities. • Improve equality of access to, and engagement in local, high-quality community services and facilities. Education and skills • Raise educational attainment levels across the authority and provide opportunities for people to improve their workplace skills. Transport • Reduce the need to travel and promote more sustainable transport choices. Economy and enterprise • Encourage a vibrant and diversified economy and provide for long-term sustainable economic growth.
Themes for consideration in neighbourhood planning. – these are a starting point. We do not expect that you will include all of these in your neighbourhood plan. But it is useful to consider how activities, development and people in your parish contribute to these objectives. All of these are not necessarily suitable to be included in neighbourhood planning policies, and also – you may find elements within each of these that are important in your parish, but you may need to prioritise those that you want the neighbourhood plan to address within this plan period.
31 Themes for Issues For each theme, consider : Scoping . Biodiversity • How could the community / . Land and Soil Resources NDP contribute to this theme? . Water Resources and Flood Risk • What would be ideal? . Air quality and environmental pollution • What is the current situation? . Climatic Factors . Historic Environment • What is needed to maximise the . Landscapes contribution to this theme? . Population & Housing . Healthy Communities • Any negative impacts on this . Inclusive Communities theme? - If so, how they can be mitigated? . Education and skills . Transport • What are the opportunities? . Economy and enterprise
In order to answer the questions on where we are, where we want to be, and how we are going to get there, we have to break it down. – Gather evidence on each theme, in order to answer the questions.
We can use consultation methods, research and other ways of gathering evidence and establishing the facts, gaining local knowledge and gauging opinion.
Asking the right questions:
If you start the neighbourhood planning process by asking “do you think there should be a new housing development in the village, how many homes?” “Should it be modern or older‐style properties?” you will only focus people on these issues and potentially get a defensive response. It may start the whole process off on the wrong foot.
You need to take a step back and look at your community as a whole and think about how it will develop. Consider a BROAD range of themes to start with. You can narrow down later. And also later you can look at which issues are related to development, and which might be actions for a wider community plan, or presented in a neighbourhood plan as ‘community actions’ for the parish council to take forward.
Most communities break it down into themes (illustrated on the slide). You need to avoid narrowing down too early, because you could miss opportunities.
Many neighbourhood planning groups have found it helpful to set up Topic or Theme Groups, each researching one theme, to find out about the existing evidence and perhaps carry out new studies or surveys. They sometimes go on to produce individual Topic Papers about that theme. (Others may compile a Scoping Report or Issues Report that describe all that has been found out about each theme, and aspirations for the theme and how that may develop into objective and even some thoughts on policy. – See Chirton & Connock.)
32 These are the questions that can be asked for each Theme.
We have produced a worksheet that reflects these questions. Your steering group can use it as a working document to prompt, gather and record ideas throughout the scoping stage.
(Handout: Worksheet 1. – To be used electronically. – Add in rows for each theme, and complete as you go along.)
Any questions / feedback on Worksheet template? Many groups start with a very blank canvas. Here we are introducing an approach that has a few more prompts to steer how you could think about each theme.
This sort of approach is used in broad visioning processes, whereby a community is looking at its development in the broadest sense. It is helpful to think of a funnel and start broad, then narrowing down as you go, ending up with a focussed set of objectives. This applies to any community planning process, and neighbourhood development planning can make use this process.
Essentially it is a type of SWOT analysis – which look at ‘Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats’. We have adjusted the prompts to be more specific to community planning.
You could use these as they are or build these considerations into your own version of a SWOT analysis. Or just do a simple SWOT analysis but try to keep these questions in mind. – The way you frame the questions really does make a difference.
Either way, it is recommended that you go through the process using a similar set of questions or considerations for each theme, rather than asking generally what are the strengths, and weaknesses of our village or town overall.
33 • • ongoing activities). How has you your communities this step will involve bringing together exist What defines it? What are the positives and negatives? Find out within the scope of a neighbourho • would need to be involved. also ask people to think these. In a community event, you should • in relation to each theme? some of the issues/problems f so what are your communities best – neighbourhood plan could provid planning policy to see whether it already covers the necessary in partnership with other bodies. Within this process you will • • again consider what would be optimal under each theme. ‐ • resilient, healthy etc) We have talked about the sort of 10 minutes to discuss handout Worksheet template 1 ‐ Exploring a theme in depth – This part is about finding out what this means in practice and ‐ Aspirations ‐ Trends Follow up will be to look at all the actions and options and id Note down the a If you have time ‐ Can you identify the Assets‐ Each group will look at one theme for this exercise.
h is part of the exercise is about The first Biodiversity THEME What are the trends and challenges looking into the future? Objective irreversible loss irreversible and avoidfeatures geological and biodiversity enhance all and Protect What would you like your town ‐ challenges or opportunities biodiversity? weimpact do How internationally? nationally/ interest wider and the localcommunity is to area of value your Prompt: What‘asset’ in positive impacts / Assets now? we are we Where to theme? this do contribute already already How we have? do this What to relation theme: In r community become the way it i e more detailed policy or fill a place we want to be in a gener od plan, or are actions for th ctions or options that may hel taking stock or village to be like? In 2036 – rns(past, constraints future), issues, challenges, present, Trends future? the and in face we have that and those place this that shaped / trends changes the are this What to relation theme: In htfc orcmuiis‐you know that face your communities ‐ of your community and place. – entify whether they fall be able to look at the existing ing knowledge, research, actions, or whether a e wider community perhaps how to achieve it? gap. about historic trends. (In al way (sustainable, about and note who s? p to address or achieve GOALS In oepositive the in future? contribution a make more resilient we could How relation? a What in community live? good makes goal? to a place our makes What is What eaint hstheme: this to relation cn orlclarea, acing your local and beyond? 34 explore how. Once you have identified where you want to get to, this workshe Exploring a theme in depth –
Biodiversity THEME Objective irreversible loss irreversible and avoidfeatures geological and biodiversity enhance all and Protect biodiversity? weimpact do How internationally? nationally/ interest wider and the localcommunity is to area of value your Prompt: What‘asset’ in OPTIONS / OPPORTUNITIES implemented? solution couldbe What possible to beachieved? enable thisgoal What would this to relation theme: In okhe epae2‐handout Worksheet template 2 ‐ CONSIDERATIONS DEVELOPMENT / / options your opportunities of aspirations each for the for development are implications What this to relation theme: In OIYOPTIONS POLICY DEVELOPMENT do? Plan policy Neighbourhood What coulda address this? alreadypolicy Core Strategy Does Wiltshire In eaint hstheme: this to relation et helps you to 35 Questions for group discussion
1. Based on your local knowledge, your experience, or ideas from your Community Plan – what are the Assets, Trends and Aspirations in your local area – note them in the pro-forma
2. Think about Challenges and Opportunities that follow from the assets, trends and aspirations. – note them down in the relevant columns of the pro-forma.
3. End by writing down a challenge and its actions on post it notes.
1. Based on your local knowledge, your experience, or ideas from your Community Plan please write down the assets, trends and aspirations in your local area on the pro‐forma – based on the ‘Issues and options’ slide. Anything you like ‐ as broad or specific as you wish.
2. Think about challenges and opportunities that follow from the assets, trends and aspirations you have thought about. – note them down in the relevant columns of the table. (there might not be enough space because of the prompts that have been included – just use the other side of the paper)
3. End by writing down a challenge and its actions on post it notes.
Refer to slide 36 “Issues & options scoping exercise” for “Assets, Trends and Aspirations”
36 Scoping steps 1
Kick off event / information – ‘Grounding’. Agree high-level principles / vision Input initial research Test it. Get agreement. Endorsement.
QB / SG has the remit to research the detail of the vision / principles and how to achieve it. Think about NDP approaches.
Organised evidence gathering - Research. Topic Groups. Development Plan. Constraints. Studies. Surveys. Updates Further evidence gathering
So putting it all together,
The following steps are an example of how the scoping process may be carried out. It is not prescriptive, but it may help you to achieve what you need to get out of this stage.
• Kick off event / information ‐ Agree high‐level principles / vision • Test it. Get agreement. • Endorsement gives the QB / SG the remit to research the detail of the vision / principles and how to achieve it • Research. Topic Groups. Development Plan. Constraints. Studies. Surveys.
At the very early stages (after initial communication and gauging community interest in preparing a plan), you might hold a Kick off event / which could be mostly informative, but could also be used to work on developing a set of principles / or basic vision that everyone can agree on. ‐ Evidence: you will need to have the basic facts to hand. This might include knowledge about the policy context, constraints, historical growth, likely future change, population growth etc. ‐ ‐ likely to be looking at existing / primary data. Once agreed ‐ Endorsement gives the QB / SG the remit to research the detail of the vision / principles and how to achieve it. A more in‐depth look at the existing data, as well as perhaps looking at new studies, surveys or questionnaires that need to be undertaken. ‐ Research. Topic Groups. Development Plan. Constraints. Studies. Surveys. – This stage of research might involve desk‐based studies, community input and new surveys or appraisals led by the community, or done by a consultant.
37 Scoping steps 2
Vision Day – confirm / refine vision. Bring research together. Organise by themes – look in more depth at each theme. Community input, Inform on assets, trends, aspirations. Identify challenges, informed by opportunities, options. facts
SG – develop results into a vision and objectives. Gap analysis – need for further research? Research options.
Test with the community. – Take it to groups for discussion. Select approach. Agreeing vision, objectives. Discussing options / approaches.
Visioning Day – confirm / refine vision. Bring together all that has been happening. (see RTPI video) Organise the event by themes – look in more depth at each theme. Inform on assets, trends, aspirations. Identify challenges, opportunities, options. SG – develop results into a vision and objectives. Have a break (a few weeks) for some thinking time. Test these with the community. – Take it to groups for discussion. …….
• Visioning Day – At an event the evidence gathering is focussed on community input.
The Steering Group may then wish to focus a session on developing the vision:
• SG – develop results into a vision and objectives. – In this step, the SG may do a gap analysis of the evidence gathered to date. There may be need to look more closely at some data – to corroborate what the community has said. Or issues raised by the community may need further research.
38 Part 3: Scoping – Understanding the Local Plan & policy context & Selecting the most appropriate approach
39 Vision to Objectives Vision What should this place be like in 2036? •WHAT What does good look like?
Objectives •HOW What needs to happen for us to achieve the vision?
Key points to remember: Steering group leads (on behalf of QB) and needs to be confident that they represent the community and are in a position to gather input from the community Community input is used TOGETHER with desk‐based research. All the evidence is used to form a picture of the vision, objectives and how they can be achieved, and what policies might help to deliver the objectives.
40 Local Plan policy...
Local Plan policy and requirements – ‘general conformity’
• Core Strategy – not just the written policies (policies map) • Area strategies for each community area in Wiltshire • Identifies the locations where sustainable development will take place and relative scales of growth • Outlines housing requirements for Principal Settlements, Market Towns and Service Centres in the South • Identifies land use constraints
In developing objectives for a neighbourhood plan it will be necessary to have an understanding of the local planning policy context. – If the Local Plan already addresses it, it does not need to be duplicated in a neighbourhood plan. However, you may still want to include a related objective.
When looking at the options for achieving the objective you need to take account of whether the Local Plan already does the job well enough. Policies should not be duplicated ‐ neighbourhood plan policies should add detail and be locally specific.
So let’s talk about the local plan policy requirements...
41 Basic Condition A neighbourhood plan must… be in general conformity with the strategic policies contained in the development plan
42 Establishing your objectives...
Local Plan policy and requirements
1. Principal Settlements 2. Market Towns 3. Local Service Centres 4. Large Villages 5. Small Villages 6. Everywhere else
• If you are not already familiar with the requirements and policies set within the core strategy for your area, please have a look at the Wiltshire Core Strategy http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/planning‐policy
•Don’t forget to look at the relevant ‘Community Area Strategy’ for your area. (Hint: use Ctrl+F in the PDF of the Core Strategy to search for the name of your settlement, parish or community area.) •Currently the Wiltshire Core Strategy is being reviewed and a revised Local Plan is being produced. For updates please see: http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/planning‐ policy‐local‐plan‐review
• All settlements and areas throughout Wiltshire fall into one of the following classifications 1. Principal Settlements 2. Market Towns 3. Local Service Centres 4. Large Villages 5. Small Villages 6. Everywhere else •So what we would like to do is run through very succinctly and quickly what the core strategy says for your settlement
43 Current Local Policy : Core Policy 1 and 2
• Housing permitted within Limits of Development (Local Service Centres and Large Villages)
• Only infill within the built up area of small villages
• Development at Large and Small Villages will be limited to that needed to help meet the housing needs
• Local Service Centres will provide for modest levels of development in order to safeguard their role and to deliver affordable housing
Existing housing policy Limits of Development (from Wiltshire Core Strategy) Within the limits of development (or ‘Settlement Boundary’) , as defined on the policies map, there is a presumption in favour of sustainable development at the Principal Settlements, Market Towns, Local Service Centres and Large Villages Other than in circumstances as permitted by other policies within this plan …. development will not be permitted outside the limits of development ... The limits of development may only be altered through the identification of sites for development through subsequent Site Allocations Development Plan Documents and neighbourhood plans. Local Service Centres Local Service Centres will provide for modest levels of development in order to safeguard their role and to deliver affordable housing. The Local Service Centres are: Pewsey, Market Lavington, Cricklade, Tisbury, Mere, Downton and Wilton. Large and Small Villages Development at Large and Small Villages will be limited to that needed to help meet the housing needs of settlements and to improve employment opportunities, services and facilities. Small Villages
At the Small Villages development will be limited to infill within the existing built area. Proposals for development at the Small Villages will be supported where they seek to meet housing needs of settlements or provide employment, services and facilities provided that the development: i) Respects the existing character and form of the settlement ii) Does not elongate the village or impose development in sensitive landscape areas iii) Does not consolidate an existing sporadic loose knit areas of development related to the settlement.
44 Principal Settlements
• Chippenham, Trowbridge and Salisbury • Specific housing requirements • Detailed housing and employment allocations • Defined limits of development • Presumption in favour of sustainable development • Development beyond the limits of development only through a neighbourhood plan or subsequent development plan document
Principal settlements...
45 Market Towns
• Bradford on Avon, Warminster and Westbury etc. • Specific housing requirements • Some have housing and (or) employment allocations • Defined limits of development • Presumption in favour of sustainable development • Development beyond the limits of development only through a neighbourhood plan or subsequent development plan document
Market Towns...
• Very similar approach to Principal Settlements – however, although all market towns have a housing requirement they do not all have specific allocations to deliver the requirement
46 Local Service Centres
• Downton, Tisbury and Wilton etc. • Defined limits of development • Presumption in favour of sustainable development • Overall community area requirement – not specific to the settlement • Requirement to deliver modest levels of development to safeguard their role and to deliver affordable housing • Development beyond the limits of development only through a neighbourhood plan or subsequent development plan document
Local Service Centres...
• No specific housing requirement or allocations but an expectation to deliver modest levels of growth.
47 Large Villages • Box, Colerne, Upavon, Dinton and Hindon etc. • Defined limits of development • Presumption in favour of sustainable development • Overall community area requirement – not specific to the settlement • Development limited to that needed to help meet the housing needs of settlements and to improve employment opportunities, services and facilities • Development beyond the limits of development only through a neighbourhood plan or subsequent development plan document
•I'm sure you are all probably familiar with the requirements and policies set within the core strategy for your area • All settlements and areas throughout Wiltshire fall into one of the following classifications • You can look in the Wiltshire Core Strategy for what is set out for your settlement and community area.
For example Large Villages...
• Again no specific housing requirement or allocations...
•Ideally villages will take a positive and proactive approach to growth and development – looking at local needs (identified in the scoping process) and how they might be addressed. This applies to housing as well as any other development needs.
48 Small Villages
• Biddestone, Minety, Chilmark and Teffont etc. • Very limited development – only infill / generally one dwelling • Overall community area requirement – not specific to the settlement • Development limited to that needed to help meet the housing needs of settlements and to improve employment opportunities, services and facilities • Development beyond infill only through a neighbourhood plan or subsequent development plan document
Small Villages...
At the Small Villages development will be limited to infill within the existing built area. Proposals for development at the small villages will be supported where they seek to meet local housing needs of settlements and/or employment, services and facilities provided that the development accords with all policies of the development plan and: i) respects the existing character and form of the settlement ii) the proposal does not elongate the village or impose development in sensitive landscape areas, and iii) does not consolidate an existing sporadic loose knit areas of development related to the settlement.
Development proposals which do not accord to the delivery strategy are deemed unsustainable and as such will only be permitted in exceptional circumstances as set out within the succeeding core policies.
The WCS is flexible and the position (in line with the NPPF) is that growth at large and small villages should not be limited unnecessarily. A community can determine, through a neighbourhood plan, whether modest development should be encouraged in order to respond to local needs and contribute to the vitality of rural communities. Proposals for development outside the built area of small villages would only be supported if it meets the needs of the community (in alignment with Core Policy 1 and 2) and comes forward through a neighbourhood plan. In such circumstances small villages may be able to become more sustainable and their status may change to that of ‘Large Villages’ in a subsequent review of the local plan. WCS para 4.16 and 4.17
49 Everywhere else
• Development will only be permitted in exceptional circumstances including – Rural exceptions sites – Supporting rural life – Specialist accommodation provision • Development beyond infill only through a neighbourhood plan or subsequent development plan document
Everywhere else...
Neighbourhood plans or strategic development plan documents can allocate sites for development outside the limits to development, or explore opportunities that would not be considered as infill (paragraph 4.17 and 4.34, and Core Policy 2 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy). Exceptions – set out in paragraph 4.25 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy.
50 Current Local Policy: Some Exceptions
• Rural exception sites (Core Policy 44)
• Supporting rural life (Core Policy 48)
Specialist accommodation (nursing accommodation, residential homes, extra-care facilities.) restricted to within or adjacent to Principal Settlements or Market Towns
Exceptions Sites At settlements defined as Local Service Centres, Large and Small Villages (Core Policy 1), and those not identified within the settlement strategy, a proactive approach to the provision of affordable housing will be sought in conjunction with parish councils and working with local communities and other parties. This exception to policy allows housing for local need to be permitted, solely for affordable housing (subject to criteria) One or two stand out ‐ i. the proposal has clear support from the local community ii. the housing is being delivered to meet an identified and genuine local need iii. the proposal is within, adjoining or well related to the existing settlement iv. environmental and landscape considerations will not be compromised v. the proposal consists of 10 dwellings or fewer vi. employment and services are accessible from the site vii. its scale and type is appropriate to the nature of the settlement and will respect the character and setting of that settlement viii. the affordable housing provided under this policy will always be available for defined local needs, both initially and on subsequent change of occupant. Cross subsidy with market housing OK subject to viability and affordable housing remaining the dominant type. Dwellings required to meet the employment needs of rural areas Outside the defined limits of development of the Principal Settlements, Market Towns, Local Service Centres and Large Villages, and outside the existing built areas of Small Villages, proposals for residential development will be supported where these meet the accommodation needs required to enable workers to live at or in the immediate vicinity of their place of work in the interests of agriculture or forestry or other employment essential to the countryside. Proposals for accommodation to meet the needs of employment essential to the countryside should be supported by functional and financial evidence.
51 Policies map...
•As well as the area strategies, and the settlement strategy, the WCS has policy on many other areas such as design and historic environment. •NDPs can add value to the WCS by including a design policy – which can have more detail and is more locally specific than the core strategy. •Here is a simplified policies map for a settlement in Wiltshire – the actual policies maps are a lot more detailed • Conservation area – these still remain in place so alterations, demolitions and works to trees generally still require planning permission • AONB ‐ great weight will be afforded to conserving and enhancing its landscape and scenic beauty • Flood zone – these are generally not appropriate for development – whether in or outside of the settlement boundary • Settlement boundary – it is generally considered that appropriate development can take place within the boundary • The detailed policies maps are all available on our website and cab be reached from the Wiltshire Core Strategy page – follow the link to the ‘Interactive Policy Map’ http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/planning‐policy‐core‐strategy Or directly http://wiltscouncil.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=8175cb711fd94b 338e2b9f748c4e91f2 • This information should be considered from the outset to understand what the core strategy means for your community •You will look at it in more detail when you have identified some actions or objectives, and you will want to check whether the WCS already covers it.
52 Other constraints...
•AONB – Great weight afforded to conserving and enhancing landscape and scenic beauty • Historic environment – Designated heritage assets and their settings will be conserved • Conservation areas – Alterations, trees and demolition
• Alongside your settlement classification it is important to consider other constraints and local policy considerations – these include AONB, Historic environment etc
• This local policy position should help inform whether you require further policy through a neighbourhood plan to deliver your identified objectives
•There are core policies covering how development and these constraints relate. In the first instance see the interactive policies map on the website (http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/planning‐policy‐core‐strategy) to identify any sensitive areas within the parish, then look at the wording of the relevant policy to see how development would be managed. If more detail or local specific information or requirements are needed, this may be something a neighbourhood plan can help to address – depending on your objectives.
53 Considering future growth strategies
• Local Plan Review has tabled some alternative strategies. – Likely that NPs will have a stronger role in look at location for growth. • Consider adopted policy, assets and constraints, consider historical growth patterns and future challenges – identify potential areas for development or growth. • You may wish to identify specific sites for specific types of development, based on your evidence and need.
54 Emerging Local Plan
PPG says: Where a neighbourhood plan is brought forward before an up-to- date local plan is in place the qualifying body and the local planning authority should discuss and aim to agree the relationship between policies in: • the emerging neighbourhood plan • the emerging local plan (or spatial development strategy) • the adopted development plan with appropriate regard to national policy and guidance.
Most NPs now are going for a plan period to 2036.
Neighbourhood Plans currently being prepared will be prepared in accordance with the Wiltshire Core Strategy 2016‐2026 (adopted January 2015). The neighbourhood plan should be reviewed as soon as possible after adopted of the Local Plan (submission to Secretary of State is planned for Autumn 2020), to ensure continued conformity with strategic policies. As such, we would suggest that the plan refers to the potential need to review the neighbourhood plan following adoption of the revised local plan.
See section 3 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national‐planning‐policy‐ framework‐‐2
55 Selecting the most appropriate approach...
• Important to distinguish between aspirational and deliverable actions
• Potential benefits to the area in question
• Resource implications vs. available resources - both financial and in terms of volunteer time
• Consideration of whether alternative courses of action may be a better use of time and resources
• Have you got the community buy-in to negotiate the neighbourhood planning journey?
• Once you have identified some local issues and opportunities, challenges and actions and come to a view on whether they might be addressed through a neighbourhood plan, and • Once you’ve familiarised yourself with the local plan policy ‐ and identified the objectives which are potentially appropriate to a planning related solution – you can hopefully determine the most appropriate approach
• Before we look at the different options, the slide sets out some of the factors which will also be part of choosing which approach you take
56 What are the options...
Village Design Parish Plan / Neighbourhood Local Plan (Core Statement Community Development Strategy) Policy Plan / Action Plan Plan
• The options include... • We will very briefly go through these in turn...
57 Village design statement...
• Form of planning guidance to inform the design of new development
• Can contribute to retaining a sense of place by identifying, describing and analysing local distinctiveness and character
• Village design statement can be adopted by the council as material consideration
Village design statement...
We have a team that can help with the preparation of a VDS. Council endorsement for preparing a VDS would need to be sought it if it is to be adopted as an SPD. – This is a different process to before, when all the VDSs were adopted as SPG. This is not necessarily a process we are pursuing currently.
Essentially, the preparation of a VDS should follow a similar process to a neighbourhood plan, with a substantial element of community engagement. The end product is a document that is used as a material consideration in planning decisions, whereas for a similar amount of effort a neighbourhood plan, once ‘made’, becomes part of the Development Plan and has more weight in planning decisions, as well as potentially covering a wider set of objectives.
Planning decisions must be made according to the Development Plan, unless material considerations indicate otherwise. A Village Design Statement would be a material consideration.
It is also worth noting that if a community want to respond to a specific planning application, neighbourhood planning or community planning products are not the way to achieve that, partly because of the length of time it takes to prepare them. A community may respond jointly to individual planning applications. If a neighbourhood plan or community plan is being prepared, the community may wish to draw on evidence gathered in its neighbourhood planning process to support its response to a particular planning application.
58 Community planning...
• Statement of how a local community sees itself developing in the future
• The aim of a community plan is to identify what actions the community would like to take, who has responsibility for them and when they could realistically be achieved
• If you already have a community plan you may wish to consider its planning related aspirations when considering neighbourhood planning
• For the purposes of this summary a Parish or community Plan are seen as the same option. (Previously Community Strategies, Parish Plans, Local Agenda 21 have been community planning processes, but were not themselves ‘development plans’, though some of the priorities identified within them may have informed development plans or planning policies.)
• Community planning – can start exactly the same way we have outlined in relation to the Scoping stage of neighbourhood planning. You may wish to create a community plan, and then use a NDP to help deliver any actions that are related to development.
•Conversely the neighbourhood plan can also present ‘community actions’ that have been identified through the neighbourhood planning process, without there having to be a separate community plan. These are likely to be actions or objectives that are complementary to the development policies in the neighbourhood plan.
•A Parish Plan involves the community in developing a local vision, objectives and actions. They could be seen as a predecessor to neighbourhood plans. The parish planning approach can be a basis for the scoping stage in neighbourhood planning. They offer a structure through which the community considers and plans for its future. They are not specifically focussed on the built environment / development but they should contain some ideas about design of development and the facilities and assets that are valued locally and include actions or management objectives. If a town or parish council already has a Parish Plan it can be used as part of the evidence base in neighbourhood planning.
59 Neighbourhood development plan...
• It must be primarily about the use and development of land and buildings
• To decide where and what type of development should happen in the neighbourhood
• A Neighbourhood Plan carries more weight in the decision making process than VDS or Community Plan approach
Neighbourhood development plan... Contain specific policies to direct the location and type of development.
Also Neighbourhood Development Orders (NDO) and Community Right to Build Orders (CRTBO) follow the same process as a neighbourhood plan in that they are prepared through substantial evidence gathering and community involvement and need to go through statutory consultation stages, and independent examination and a referendum prior to being ‘made’. Also similar to a neighbourhood plan, they must also conform to national planning policy, local strategic planning policy and other relevant legal requirements. Once made, a NDO gives prior approval to a specific type of development in a specific location. A CRTBO is a type of NDO and gives prior approval to a development being led by the community such as a rebuild of a village hall or a community‐led housing development. (The community may or may not carry out the building project themselves). NDO or CRTBO can be done in tandem with a broader neighbourhood plan process or separately. There are also alternative ways to achieve the outcome of a NDO – e.g. neighbourhood plan + normal planning application, or just a regular planning application (depending on the whether it would be supported by policy in the absence of a neighbourhood plan, NDO or CRTBO).
60 Local Plan policy...
• Consider whether your concerns and aspirations for the future of your area are already being addressed by the Core Strategy policies
• If you are happy with the Core Strategy policies, you may decide that there is no need to prepare a Neighbourhood Plan
Local Plan policy... Do nothing scenario
Your process may have identified a vision and objectives, but on further inspection these objectives are already being covered by the existing Development Plan.
At the moment we are going through a Local Plan Review so some communities may conclude that they would still like a neighbourhood plan to give strength to the key objectives and policies that would be important to the community, while the Local Plan is being reshaped. However, until a new Local Plan is adopted, the existing Development Plan policies still stand. – It is business as usual until a new Local Plan or Neighbourhood Plan is made.
Normally a neighbourhood plan is not supposed to duplicate policies that are already in the Local Plan.
61 Vision to objectives
Community input + Desk-based research
Issues
Vision More research – What are the Community Vision solutions / options? (Parish Plan) What does the community think?
Community Objectives Vision for development
Other approaches (VDS, Village NP Objectives Green, CAA) (NDP, NDO, CRTBO)
We have seen that we can use a broad approach to identifying issues and options and if a neighbourhood plan is the selected approach, at some point we need to pick out and develop the development management objectives. – The planning matters. – the things that can be done through the development and planning process to help achieve the vision.
Diagram shows a number of approaches, and different routes that end up with neighbourhood planning objectives. Any of them are valid routes.
Link officer can comment on draft objectives Once you get to the stage of refining your development objectives and thinking about policies, this is a good time to talk to your link officer.
Neighbourhood plans ‐ have different ways of developing the vision and objectives and presenting them. E.g.
Bartestree (Herefordshire) – it sets out an overarching vision for the community (page 2), followed by development objectives (page 8). Staunton on Wye – Vision is all about development, followed by development objectives. Dorstone – Sets out an overarching vision for the community, followed by broad objectives (could be part of the vision), then narrows down to NDP objectives. (Page 5)
Whatever steps you go through to develop the vision and define objectives, you need to end up with clear objectives for development – the Plan Objectives. How you present it is up to you but make sure the vision and objectives are clear. You will need to use them at different stages of the plan‐making and ultimately you can measure success of the plan against them as time goes on.
62 Scoping Report
At the end of the Scoping Stage you should have: • A steering group which has a broad representation of interests • Community engagement and buy-in • An evidence base • Familiarity with the Local Development Plan • Identified key issues, challenges and opportunities • Identified actions / options for addressing these • Developed draft vision and objectives • An idea about the most appropriate approach
Talk to your link officer and plan the next stage
Bringing it all together...
On deciding the most appropriate approach – once you have gone through a scoping process and have documented the key outputs, talk to your link officer, present the documents and plan the next steps. You have the basis of a plan (whether that be a neighbourhood plan or other plan) The link officer will then help you look at what your objectives are and what your community is trying to achieve. You will discuss how a neighbourhood plan (or similar) might help you achieve the objectives, and start to think about how specific policies can be used.
•Most importantly if you decide to explore the neighbourhood planning process try not to enter with a predetermined idea about whether a plan is needed or not.
63 Part 5. Focus on community engagement
64 Consultation & Communication
• Continuous communication & updates • Choose appropriate method. • Know the reason for the engagement or communication • Know what you want to find out • Know what information is being provided • Questionnaires – do’s and don’ts • Use information as context for the questions • Use open-ended questions at the start of NP process • More specific at later stages - Testing ideas • Numbers of common responses are NOT always important
Top tips for consultation and communication strategy
Each approach may be used at different times, for different purposes. The diagram on the previous slide shows some examples. If you know what you want to find out, and have clear objectives for the engagement exercise, this will help inform the right methods to achieve those things.
• A consultant may be used if you don’t feel you have the skills among the steering group or other volunteers. • Use open questions as often as possible. • Closed / focussed questions may be appropriate to find out about a specific topic – but may be more appropriate later on in the process when you have some information or ideas and want to test them with the community. • Numbers of common responses are NOT always important. – just because only one person has raised an issue, it does not mean it is not valid. – Research further and see if it correlates with other forms of evidence. Likewise, just because no-one in the community raises an issue, it is the responsibility of the steering group (and theme groups if applicable) to consider the issues and opportunities broadly and objectively and use available evidence. (e.g. many communities do not automatically raise the issue of climate change and energy efficiency. – This does not mean it is not an issue, or that the neighbourhood plan or other parish actions cannot do anything about it.)
65 What the Regulations say… … about consultation
Neighbourhood plans are community-led – A qualifying body should be inclusive and open in the preparation of its neighbourhood plan or Order and ensure that the wider community: • is kept fully informed of what is being proposed • is able to make their views known throughout the process • has opportunities to be actively involved in shaping the emerging neighbourhood plan or Order • is made aware of how their views have informed the draft neighbourhood plan or Order.
Where a parish or town council chooses to produce a neighbourhood plan or Order it should work with other members of the community who are interested in, or affected by, the neighbourhood planning proposals to allow them to play an active role in preparing a neighbourhood plan or Order. PPG Paragraph: 015 Reference ID: 41‐015‐20160211
See also: Paragraph: 047 Reference ID: 41‐047‐20140306 ‐ 'What is the role of the wider community in neighbourhood planning? (as per slide)
Should other public bodies, landowners and the development industry be involved in preparing a draft neighbourhood plan or Order? A qualifying body must consult any of the consultation bodies whose interest it considers may be affected by the draft neighbourhood plan or Order proposal. The consultation bodies are set out in Schedule 1 to the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 (as amended). Other public bodies, landowners and the development industry should be involved in preparing a draft neighbourhood plan or Order. By doing this qualifying bodies will be better placed to produce plans that provide for sustainable development which benefits the local community whilst avoiding placing unrealistic pressures on the cost and deliverability of that development. Paragraph: 048 Reference ID: 41‐048‐20140306
At later stages, there are formal requirements for who to consult (e.g. at Regulation 14) What are the pre‐submission publicity and consultation requirements for neighbourhood planning? A qualifying body must publicise the draft neighbourhood plan or Order for at least 6 weeks and consult any of the consultation bodies whose interests it considers may be affected by the draft plan or order proposal (see regulation 14 and regulation 21 of the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012) (as amended). The consultation bodies are set out in Schedule 1 to the Regulations. Paragraph: 050 Reference ID: 41‐050‐20140306
66 Evidence gathering is an iterative process
Key points to remember: Steering group leads (on behalf of QB) and needs to be confident that they represent the community and are in a position to gather input from the community Community input is used TOGETHER with other data, research and assessment. All the evidence is used to form a picture of the vision, objectives and how they can be achieved, and what policies might help to deliver the objectives.
‘Community‐led’ means that it is the parish council or neighbourhood form that lead the process of plan‐making, rather than the Local Planning Authority (in this case Wiltshire Council). It does not mean that the neighbourhood plan is solely based on opinions raised by the community. ‘Community‐led’ and using input from the community are two key parts of the process but they are not the same thing.
67 Consultation strategy: Who will we engage? How will we do it?
Questions: • What consultation methods do you think will work well in your community to find help find out the answers to some of these questions?
• Which groups / networks / communication channels do you have in your community?
• What will your first steps be?
Towards a consultation strategy…
Just before we break it might be useful to take a few minutes to talk about your thoughts on involving the community in scoping, and how to get the answers to the visioning and scoping questions. I would like you to think about… ‘What consultation methods do you think will work well in your community to find help find out the answers to some of these questions? Which groups / networks / communication channels do you have in your community? What will your first steps be?
Think about Who will you need to engage / communicate with? How will you do it? – what existing networks, groups, channels, places, events can you use? What might you set up specifically for community planning? (website, regular page in parish newsletter, Twitter, FB, flyer, newsletter, noticeboard)
Will you have a kick off event?
3 minutes. Write it down, and stick notes up on the way out. You can have a look at each others as you go. If this raises a question in your mind – write it down and stick on the questions board. (If there is time – pick a few to note / discuss)
Remember – a Consultation Statement must be submitted with the neighbourhood plan, so any community engagement activity and consultations must be recorded as you go along.
68 Use existing Consultation & groups / networks communication Parish Involve a newsletter, professional website, social media
Community Sessions Engagement Questionnaires, with local leaflets groups
Word of Competitions, Mouth Desk-based / discussion additional boards research
An important role of the steering group is to represent the community, to fact find and to find out community views Community engagement can be: • Awareness raising – publicising, informing, signposting. Or simply providing regular info and update. • Consultation – using a variety of techniques to gather opinions or feedback on a draft document, • Direct involvement – using public participation events and face-to-face meetings to consult with the community. Generally an opportunity for people to discuss consultation documents or proposals face to face. A questionnaire -is not necessarily the first thing that you can or should do. If you do – make sure it does not narrow the focus on particular issues at the outset. - neighbourhood plans are not single issue. – A plan may end up with a certain focus or priority, but the process should start with a broad range of considerations. This approach will help support your ‘Basic Conditions Statement’ – showing how you have considered a broad range of themes under the banner of sustainable development and can demonstrate what the plan contributes to achieving it. More examples: Initial information flyers. Invitation to an event. Chirton & Conock - Cheese & wine event etc. visit existing groups and just start talking about it. – ask people if they’d like to be part of it / kept updated – find out the best way to keep in touch and let that inform your Consultation Strategy. Postcards from the future. – What sort of place do we want this to be in 2036? Photograph competition. – showing positive and negative aspects of the locality. Visioning event. – RTPI video. https://www.ourneighbourhoodplanning.org.uk/resources/videos Evidence gathering should be proportionate – use of primary and secondary data See: https://www.ourneighbourhoodplanning.org.uk/resources/documents – “How to use and gather evidence” and “Sources of data and statistics”
69 Summary
• Community engagement tips for the scoping stage • Ask the right questions, at the right time, using the right methods • Use existing data where possible • Consider a wide range of themes, before focussing • Organise research according to themes / topics • Community input + research = evidence base • Log all community involvement, material & outputs.
70 Simple vision questions
• What makes this place special? • What changes made this place the way it is now?
• What sort of place would you like your community / area to be? • What would be its main attributes?
• What is stopping us being the community / place we want? • What could help it improve? • Who needs to be involved to make things happen?
These simpler questions can be used with the community. Whilst the steering group have an overview of the more detailed considerations that these will feed into. (see Sustainability Framework worksheets)
SWOT ‐ Think of exploring Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats. – Frame the questions in a way that will suit your audience.
71 Evidence Gathering
Community Data / Engagement Research
Evidence
After doing the exercise (asking vision questions) as an individual or small group – you can probably see that you can start to get quite a good picture of your community and place from a discussion in a small group.
By opening it out to more participants in the community you will perhaps get some more ideas that people haven’t thought of here, you will get a sense of which ideas are shared, or whether there are new ideas or tensions that need a bit more thinking about or a bit more research to get to the bottom of what is actually happening, or get to the heart of what needs to happen in the future. This is where the further research can help.
E.g. – Transport. – a village thought they needed a by pass to relieve traffic congestion. There was no existing information or studies on the situation so volunteers went out and observed. By going outside and observing the situation it turned out that the cause of the traffic congestion was in fact the crossing guard (lollipop person) spending quite a long time on the crossing. By explaining the situation and giving the crossing guard a stop watch and limiting crossing times to 30 seconds instead of a minute the congestion was eased and there was no need for a multi million pound by pass. (This is presented on a video on https://www.ourneighbourhoodplanning.org.uk/resources “UpFront video: Tackling transport issues in a neighbourhood plan”)
It is an iterative process. Community input and other research work together to provide the answers in the scoping process.
72 Evidence – asking the right questions
1. ‘Grounding’ - Assets / current context. What defines this place and community? What do we value? What could be improved? 1. Environmental 2. Social 3. Economic 4. Or use themes from the Sustainability Framework
2. Local issues – What are our challenges - current & future? – Vision – what would ‘good’ look like for 2036?
3. Options: What can help us to achieve the vision?
4. Does the data support the issues / options raised by the community?
It is by asking the right questions that we make sure we are finding out the relevant information. (See worksheets for unpacking the detail)
•An early look at the available evidence should include getting to know the planning policy context, your local constraints, your assets, issues. You need to research the local statistics and data as the basis for any community engagement. •This can be input into the ‘grounding’ stage where you looking at the current context. – How this place ‘became’. This is part of carrying out informed community engagement.
•The next step goes deeper into looking to identify issues, challenges and opportunities, with community input. – This might be part of research done by topic groups, followed by further community input at something like a Vision Day / Event.
•The questions can partly be answered through a community event, and putting heads together. But it will also require some additional research, looking at stats, studies, policy etc. – You may need to go back and forth between the different methods to get to the answers.
73 Vision Event
• After initial information and data gathering (e.g. by themed working groups) • Invite community to help shape the area for the future • Look at ‘assets’ – what do we value? What makes this place special? Understand the current situation & past changes. • Present themed information, facts – participants add their knowledge • Look to the future – ‘what sort of place do we want?’ • Start to identify challenges, goals, solutions
One idea for a community event is a Vision Day / Workshop.
This is a focussed community event and needs to be carefully planned. More information is contained in the Wiltshire Council briefing note on Visioning. (to come)
74 Community Events The following considerations will help you to plan your event: • Informal but Structured – keep simple; form the event around the key things you want to achieve. • Purpose – information / awareness; consultation; involvement? • Objectives - be clear about what you want to get out of the event, and how you are going to use the information. • Personalities – focus input; designated tasks. • Space for people to feel listened to • Manage expectations – what the event is and isn’t • Feedback – at the event, and follow-up afterwards • Explain next steps
Discuss the different types of community events, for different purposes.
75 Techniques for community involvement
• Post-it notes & Flip charts! – record as you go along. • Groups – divide into smaller groups • Maps / display boards – participants add post-its, dots. • Photos – bring a photo to display (Favourite places / opportunities for improvement) • Postcards from the future – (input to vision) • Question board – ‘park’ questions to answer later • Walking survey
Visit nearby parish or town events, and copy ideas you’d like for your event!
Tips for chairs – attend facilitation training? (Community First?) As you invite comments from the room – repeat what has been said – time for someone to record it, make sure you have understood it, reframe it if necessary – for the rapporteur. Divide and conquer – small groups – focus the discussion, allow shy people to contribute, avoid one person taking over, easier for chair / facilitator to handle. Make sure they all record their discussion. Ask for feedback if there is time – this can help transparency, and can help focus the next part of the session.
Post‐it notes & Flip charts! – record as you go along. – Display. Write‐up afterwards. – Transparency Groups – divide into smaller groups – allows all to speak, takes pressure of chair, address different themes. Maps / display boards – participants add post‐its, dots. Photos – bring a photo to display (Favourite places / room for improvement) Postcards from the future – ask participants to write a postcard from the future ideal village / town. (input to vision) Question board – ‘park’ questions to answer later (people feel heard) Walking survey – brief intro, then groups go out and about noting observations, report back.
76 Workshop exercise...
Challenges / Opportunities Actions
Lack of bus services Increase frequency of bus services
Cost of housing for the young Provide more affordable homes
Littering in public spaces Place additional bins in public areas
•This kind of technique can be used with the steering group and/or at community event.
•Once you have identified issues/ challenges or opportunities – use a large poster or sheet of paper (like this slide or the next one) to start recording solutions or actions.
•Stick them up on the poster – under the relevant “Challenges” and “Actions” column. (shown on next slide)
Let’s look at the challenges and actions.
We can use these to help us start to select the most appropriate approach…
77 What
The poster might look like this.
78 Action matrix...
National & Local & unrelated unrelated to to planning planning
National & related to Local & related to planning planning
•Once you have identified challenges and actions, you can use the “Action Matrix”
•If we take our actions / options – from the poster – and put them in here …. we will be able to determine if the actions are relevant to a planning related solution or a different approach.
79 Responsibility matrix...
Strategic & Local & unrelated unrelated to to planning planning
Strategic & related Local & related to to planning planning
• in essence what this exercise enables you to do is systematically identify actions which could potentially be addressed through a planning approach – which might include a neighbourhood plan
• However, what we are not suggesting is that simply because you’ve identified issues within this area of the matrix that you automatically need a neighbourhood development plan.
•You need to look at all the options for how these actions might be achieved, and how they are already supported through existing policy. Then ask “Is there an additional way that a neighbourhood plan can help?”
•All of the Aspirations, Challenges and Actions identified through these scoping exercises will help to inform the Vision and Objectives of your plan. (whether that is a neighbourhood plan or alternative plan)
We are not proposing to receive feedback from each individual table – however, hopefully you have found this a useful exercise which you can potentially run with your steering groups – or indeed perhaps with the local community
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