Publow with Pensford Consultation Report INTRODUCTION 1.1 This Consultation Statement has been prepared to fulfil the legal obligations of the Neighbourhood Planning Regulations 2012. Section 15(2) of Part 5 of the Regulations sets out what a Consultation Statement should contain: (a) contains details of the persons and bodies who were consulted about the proposed neighbourhood development plan; (b) explains how they were consulted; (c) summarises the main issues and concerns raised by the persons consulted; (d) describes how these issues and concerns have been considered and, where relevant, addressed in the proposed neighbourhood development plan. A much greater level of consultation has been undertaken than the legislation requires, and this is set out in detail in the reports that are submitted in support of this Consultation Statement. It is not the intention of this Consultation Statement to replicate what is in these detailed reports. The aims of the Publow with Pensford Neighbourhood Plan consultation process were: to ‘front-load’ consultation, so that the Plan was informed by the views of local people and other stakeholders from the start of the neighbourhood planning process; to ensure that consultation events took place at critical points in the process where decisions needed to be taken; to engage with as wide a range of people as possible, using a variety of events and communication techniques; and to ensure that results of consultation were fed back to local people and available to read (in both hard copy and via the Parish Council’s website) as soon as possible after the consultation events. INITIAL CONSULTATION Our aim has been to engage residents in the development of a sustainable community into the future. Awareness raising to encourage local involvement was initially through articles in the Parish magazine which is distributed monthly to every household in the Parish. This process continued throughout the period of developing our Neighbourhood Plan, with full page articles in nearly every edition of the monthly magazine. Past copies of the Magazine are available to view on the Publow with Pensford Parish Council website http://www.publow-with-pensford-pc.gov.uk/pc/. Examples of Neighbourhood Planning articles are to be found in the Magazines for the following months: February 2015 (informing residents of the official designation of the area); October 2015 (informing residents about the Questionnaire) and March 2016 (informing residents about the second series of Open Days) WHO WAS CONSULTED Our Neighbourhood Plan is the result of consultation and engagement with all the residents and local businesses in the Parish of Publow with Pensford. Our Steering Group, comprising local volunteer residents and Parish Councillors, is representative of our community, geographically and demographically. We have members from all parts of the Designated Area, with a range of ages, from 17 to over 70, and with a range of skills, interests and occupations, from publican, Postmaster, college student, retired teacher and social worker, IT. Consultant and Church sidesman. We also received invaluable support from our local authority with whom we worked closely on all aspects of the Plan. Our logo, by a pupil at the village school, is the result of a talk given to the pupils by the Chair of the Steering Group. Our slogan which features in most of the Magazine articles and on our banners and posters is HOW PEOPLE WERE CONSULTED There are 5 main stages, which can be summarised as follows: As already indicated regular articles in the Parish Magazine informed residents of the progress and process and encouraged engagement. The first public meetings (drop-in events) were held in May 2015, on a Friday afternoon and all day Saturday to encourage attendance. This was followed by a detailed Questionnaire in October 2015, based on the views expressed at the drop-in events in May. There was a return rate of 42%. A second drop-in meeting, again on Friday and Saturday, was held in March 2016 to enable residents to comment on the draft policies and on the issues raised by the responses to the Questionnaire. After further refinement following this meeting, our Draft Plan was hand delivered to every household and business, together with a Comments Sheet and letter of explanation. This was the start of the statutory 6 week period of final consultation. Because this was late June and the beginning of the holiday season we decided to extend this period to the middle of September. All these consultation events were advertised through the Parish Magazine and also through banners and posters throughout the Parish. The Questionnaire and our Draft Plan were hand delivered to every household and business within the Parish. As detailed above, consultation was through public meetings and a detailed Questionnaire. In addition the Parish Council website has a dedicated section for our Neighbourhood Plan which explains the process, provides updates on progress and publishes the Minutes of the Steering Group meetings. Analyses of the views expressed through the public meetings and in particular through the questionnaire were published on the Parish Council website and were also made available in various public locations in the parish (Post Office, pub, Coffee Shop, Hairdressers) The process of developing our Neighbourhood Plan has been the work of the Neighbourhood Planning Steering Group, which meets monthly. Its Minutes are published on the Parish Council website and a progress report is included on the Agenda of each Parish Council meeting, the Minutes of which are posted on the Parish Noticeboard and Council website. In early 2016 Interest Groups were established, with the brief to analyse and propose policies for the four identified Key Areas. OPTIONS STAGE CONSULTATION AND OPEN DAYS Formal community consultation in May 2015 was through well attended “drop in” meetings to determine the key areas for inclusion in the Plan. We adopted the same approach for both drop-in meetings – in May 2015 and in March 2016. They were over 2 days (Friday and Saturday) to encourage attendance. The format was informal – no speeches – with displays to prompt thought and discussion. Residents were encouraged to comment by Post-it Note, anonymously – a method which proved popular. The individual Post-it Note comments were collected, collated and analysed, thus providing the evidence for the development of the Questionnaire. Analyses of the Questionnaire responses, the 81 Comments Sheets returned and feedback from the Open Days in May 2015 and March 2016 are attached as Appendices to this document. Please note that for the March 2016 Open Days the comments were collated and analysed by the different Interest Groups, each of which adopted its own approach. In October 2015 every household received a questionnaire, based on the findings of the May meetings, to further refine and research residents’ views on the important issues. The return rate of 42% was above the local and national average and reflected our community’s involvement in the Plan. The responses were collated and analysed and formed the basis of the draft policies which were presented to residents at the drop-in meetings held in March 2016. MAIN ISSUES AND CONCERNS RAISED Four key areas were identified from the community consultation process: 1) Housing and Development 2) Business and Technology 3) Environment and Leisure 4) Traffic and Transport Within these key areas particular concerns and issues were identified and, have been included in our Plan, for example: Community renewable energy schemes Road Safety (eg A37, safe route to and from village school and to Playing Field) Creation of a Heritage Trail Improved and increased car parking Meeting the demand for Affordable Housing High Speed Broadband Providing street lighting in residential areas HOW THE ISSUES AND CONCERNS HAVE BEEN CONSIDERED Our Neighbourhood Plan builds on these key areas and identifies specific objectives and policies in relation to each. These form the bulk of the Plan. Our Neighbourhood Plan includes two distinct groups of policies. The first group of policies (highlighted in green) relate to planning issues and land use, for example housing development, its location and character. The second group (highlighted in yellow), called Community Action Policies in our Plan and relate to issues identified through the consultation process as being important to the community, now and in the future, and where the community believes action is required. This action might come through local or national funding or pressure, for example pedestrian safety or improved public transport. Each key area in the Plan has a brief introduction to describe relevant background and context and to identify: 1) WHAT we are trying to achieve (our objective) 2) HOW we plan to achieve it (our policy) 3) WHY we have the policy (reason/justification/rationale) DRAFT PLAN CONSULTATION (REGULATION 14 CONSULTATION) At the end of June 2016 a copy of the Pre-Submission Draft Plan, with Comments Sheet, was delivered to every household and business in the Parish. Due to the summer holiday period, the statutory consultation period was extended to 12 September. In addition copies of the Plan were available in public places (pub, café, Post office) and on the Parish Council website. Comment Sheets were received from 24 individuals and households. They are attached as an Appendix. CONCLUSION This Consultation Statement and the supporting consultation reports are considered to comply with Section 15(2) of part 5 of the 2012 Neighbourhood Planning Regulations. APPENDICES - Appendix 1 – Open Days May 2015 – Comments - Appendix 2 – Questionnaire Responses October 2015 - Appendix 3 – Questionnaire Comments October 2015 - Appendix 4 - Open Days March 2016 – Comments - Appendix 5 – Final Draft – Residents’ Comments - Appendix 6 – BANES Comments on Draft Appendix 1 – Open Days May 2015 - Comments PARISH LIFE You Said We Did Category / Comment No. X-Ref Proposed Action TRAFFIC / A37 Local Concerns And Old Road, Hillcrest and High Street – 9 Local Concerns Include in questionnaire access only – No Through road Extend speed limit on A37.