Thursday 15 May 2014
Thursday 28 November 2013
Neighbourhood Development Plan Presentations
A copy of the presentation slides can be found here on St Ive Parish Council website, also comments left by those who attended the meetings.
Any comments are welcome here on this blog or on the parish website, or even on Facebook.
Thursday 24 October 2013
Build 50 New Houses
Where do we put 50 new houses?
According to Cornwall Council Parish Statistics and The Office of National Statistics Census Data for 2001 and 2011, the Parish of St Ive grew from 917 to 971 households. It is expected that the demand for more housing in Cornwall in general and in our parish will continue to grow. The previous growth was more than fifty households in ten years. We can expect a similar demand in the future. So where do they go?
The new Cornwall Local Plan shows the Parish of St Ive is within the new PP16 Caradon Community Network Area. This is a lot smaller than the area covered by the previous Caradon District, which no longer exists. The new Community Network Area centres on Callington and with Gunnislake, this is where most new housing is targeted.
The St Ive Parish Plan 2003 updated 2009 envisions limiting new housing to infill, and in keeping, with the exception of a small estate of low cost housing (which has since been built at St Ive Cross).
There is a view that new housing should be concentrated around towns like Liskeard and Callington, where the jobs are, since long commutes are not sustainable in a low carbon future. This appears to be the policy in the Cornwall Local Plan, But if the local jobs move to town, what will happen to the parish? Will it gradually turn into a destination for retiring pensioners from up country, and will all the young people move away?
Within the parish, Pensilva is nearly large enough to be a town. It has most of the housing, and the largest industrial estate in the parish, but narrow roads with heavy goods vehicles and commuter traffic near capacity. The hamlets of St Ive Cross, St Ive Church End, St Ive Parkfield and St Ive Keason have good communication with the A390, but little industry. Should future expansion be along the A390, or should the roads to Pensilva be widened to allow its growth?
If these issues are important to you please comment.
According to Cornwall Council Parish Statistics and The Office of National Statistics Census Data for 2001 and 2011, the Parish of St Ive grew from 917 to 971 households. It is expected that the demand for more housing in Cornwall in general and in our parish will continue to grow. The previous growth was more than fifty households in ten years. We can expect a similar demand in the future. So where do they go?
The new Cornwall Local Plan shows the Parish of St Ive is within the new PP16 Caradon Community Network Area. This is a lot smaller than the area covered by the previous Caradon District, which no longer exists. The new Community Network Area centres on Callington and with Gunnislake, this is where most new housing is targeted.
The St Ive Parish Plan 2003 updated 2009 envisions limiting new housing to infill, and in keeping, with the exception of a small estate of low cost housing (which has since been built at St Ive Cross).
There is a view that new housing should be concentrated around towns like Liskeard and Callington, where the jobs are, since long commutes are not sustainable in a low carbon future. This appears to be the policy in the Cornwall Local Plan, But if the local jobs move to town, what will happen to the parish? Will it gradually turn into a destination for retiring pensioners from up country, and will all the young people move away?
Within the parish, Pensilva is nearly large enough to be a town. It has most of the housing, and the largest industrial estate in the parish, but narrow roads with heavy goods vehicles and commuter traffic near capacity. The hamlets of St Ive Cross, St Ive Church End, St Ive Parkfield and St Ive Keason have good communication with the A390, but little industry. Should future expansion be along the A390, or should the roads to Pensilva be widened to allow its growth?
If these issues are important to you please comment.
Public Meetings
The St Ive Neighbourhood Development Plan Working Group are holding public meetings;
The public meetings will also be an opportunity to find out what key issues are important to the community, and therefore need to be included in the forthcoming survey.
- 7.30pm on Friday 29th November 2013 at St Ive Institute (Village Hall)
- 7.30pm on Saturday 30th November at Millennium House, Pensilva
The public meetings will also be an opportunity to find out what key issues are important to the community, and therefore need to be included in the forthcoming survey.
Friday 4 October 2013
Hints For Cornwall Parishes Begining The Process
Where do we start?
Hint 1: Don't bother thinking about anything other than a "Neighbourhood Development Plan" for the area of your complete parish. If you look at the Cornwall Council web site under Neighbourhood Planning, you will see that no one else has. This is because any other structure has to create its own constitution, while a parish council already has one. Also neighbouring parishes you might join with are out of step, either ahead or behind in the process. Under the Localism Act 2011 there is an obligation, separate from Neighbourhood Planning, to cooperate with neighbouring areas, which makes sense anyway.
Hint 2: As soon as possible, get a letter and map off to Cornwall Council, applying for your parish to be a "neighbourhood plan area". It takes about three months to get it approved, and applying for funding is a lot easier once it is approved.
Hint 3: Copy and adapt the documents of a similar successful parish. I've just seen the example of Tattenhall Parish Council, which Cornwall Council presented as an example. The Tattenhall Examiner's Report is particularly informative about what is a good process.
Hint 4: Count back 26 to 40 weeks from when your referendum can coincide with a big election, (we are aiming for the probable General Election in May 2015), for when your final draft plan must be ready. It takes that long for Cornwall Council to consult, examine and organise the referendum, so that's the deadline.
Hint 1: Don't bother thinking about anything other than a "Neighbourhood Development Plan" for the area of your complete parish. If you look at the Cornwall Council web site under Neighbourhood Planning, you will see that no one else has. This is because any other structure has to create its own constitution, while a parish council already has one. Also neighbouring parishes you might join with are out of step, either ahead or behind in the process. Under the Localism Act 2011 there is an obligation, separate from Neighbourhood Planning, to cooperate with neighbouring areas, which makes sense anyway.
Hint 2: As soon as possible, get a letter and map off to Cornwall Council, applying for your parish to be a "neighbourhood plan area". It takes about three months to get it approved, and applying for funding is a lot easier once it is approved.
Hint 3: Copy and adapt the documents of a similar successful parish. I've just seen the example of Tattenhall Parish Council, which Cornwall Council presented as an example. The Tattenhall Examiner's Report is particularly informative about what is a good process.
Hint 4: Count back 26 to 40 weeks from when your referendum can coincide with a big election, (we are aiming for the probable General Election in May 2015), for when your final draft plan must be ready. It takes that long for Cornwall Council to consult, examine and organise the referendum, so that's the deadline.
Tuesday 10 September 2013
An Introduction with References
Why do we want a Neighbourhood Plan for the parish?
Without a Neighbourhood Plan, our Local Authority makes all the planning decisions without having to take any notice of old Parish Plans or our local wishes. A lot of effort was taken over our Parish Plan, but it is now redundant and is given little weight by the Local Authority planners. A Neighbourhood Plan is a legal document relating to the Localism Act 2011 and so must be taken into account by the Local Authority planners.
There is also a financial reason. New building developers have to pay a tax, the CIL (Community Infrastructure Levy) to the Local Authority. Our unitary authority, Cornwall Council, returns 25% of the CIL to Town and Parish Councils to spend on the local infrastructure, but only if they have a Neighbourhood Plan.
Most importantly, we think that the process of creating a Neighbourhood Plan will also bring the community together, as a wide range of people all need to work together; residents, businesses, local organisations and anyone with a local planning interest.
What can a Neighbourhood Plan do for us?
A Neighbourhood Plan can't block strategic planning of new developments, but it can specify how the development is implemented. For example, if Cornwall Council planners say that there needs to be 100 new homes built in the next ten years, we can specify that they must not be in one big estate, but small developments of 10 homes or less.
As it says on Neighbourhood planning - Detailed guidance "if the local planning authority says that an area needs to grow, then communities cannot use neighbourhood planning to block the building of new homes and businesses; they can, however, use neighbourhood planning to influence the type, design, location and mix of new development".
How far have we got?
St Ive Parish Council has formed a working group, which has already applied to Cornwall Council for St Ive Parish to be formally designated as a Neighbourhood Area.
The next stage is finding out what is important to the community. The Parish Plan 2003 updated 2009 already gives us a starting point, but things have changed. So first, in The Parish Pump newsletter, we will be asking which issues are important. There will also be public meetings for people to have their say. Then we will use a survey and displays to get numbers on what people think. This will form the basis of the plan which finally will be voted on by us all in a referendum.
References
These are the links that I've found so far. I'll comment on their usefulness as I progress.
Legislation
Guidance
Without a Neighbourhood Plan, our Local Authority makes all the planning decisions without having to take any notice of old Parish Plans or our local wishes. A lot of effort was taken over our Parish Plan, but it is now redundant and is given little weight by the Local Authority planners. A Neighbourhood Plan is a legal document relating to the Localism Act 2011 and so must be taken into account by the Local Authority planners.
There is also a financial reason. New building developers have to pay a tax, the CIL (Community Infrastructure Levy) to the Local Authority. Our unitary authority, Cornwall Council, returns 25% of the CIL to Town and Parish Councils to spend on the local infrastructure, but only if they have a Neighbourhood Plan.
Most importantly, we think that the process of creating a Neighbourhood Plan will also bring the community together, as a wide range of people all need to work together; residents, businesses, local organisations and anyone with a local planning interest.
What can a Neighbourhood Plan do for us?
A Neighbourhood Plan can't block strategic planning of new developments, but it can specify how the development is implemented. For example, if Cornwall Council planners say that there needs to be 100 new homes built in the next ten years, we can specify that they must not be in one big estate, but small developments of 10 homes or less.
As it says on Neighbourhood planning - Detailed guidance "if the local planning authority says that an area needs to grow, then communities cannot use neighbourhood planning to block the building of new homes and businesses; they can, however, use neighbourhood planning to influence the type, design, location and mix of new development".
How far have we got?
St Ive Parish Council has formed a working group, which has already applied to Cornwall Council for St Ive Parish to be formally designated as a Neighbourhood Area.
The next stage is finding out what is important to the community. The Parish Plan 2003 updated 2009 already gives us a starting point, but things have changed. So first, in The Parish Pump newsletter, we will be asking which issues are important. There will also be public meetings for people to have their say. Then we will use a survey and displays to get numbers on what people think. This will form the basis of the plan which finally will be voted on by us all in a referendum.
References
These are the links that I've found so far. I'll comment on their usefulness as I progress.
Legislation
- Localism Act 2011 and A plain English guide to the Localism Act
- The Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012
- The Neighbourhood Planning (Referendums) Regulations 2012
Guidance
- PAS (planning advisory service) Neighbourhood planning: a simple guide for ward councillors - This downloadable guide is very readable and has good examples of where the plan can be useful.
- The Planning Portal Neighbourhood planning - This page also summarises the other planning options.
- Department of Communities and Local Government Neighbourhood planning - Detailed guidance - This page also tells you what you can do.
- Cornwall Council Neighbourhood Plan checklists and guide notes - This is a very detailed resource, and since we will have to work closely with our Local Authority, (they can reject the plan if they don't think it conforms), we need to pay it close attention. This is also the place to find detailed plans for a schedule in both pdf and excel format.
- Funding from My Community Rights apply here for Direct Support and Grant Payments.
-
Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan web site
-
Upper Eden Neighbourhood Development Plan approved March 2013
- Thame Neighbourhood Plan Copy left by Sheryll Murray MP
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