What is the Neighbourhood Plan
A Neighbourhood Plan is a document which has legal status for planning purposes and guides future development. It will allow the Parish to help direct the extent, location and design of future development. It is community led: we, the community, research it, write it and vote to accept it. Shropshire Council will use the Neighbourhood Plan, along with their Local Plan, to determine planning applications for Pontesbury Parish. The policies must focus on land use issues which would need to be decided by a planning application process.
It is not a tool to stop development: it is about recognising that some development is needed and making sure it is planned. It is about working together, as a community, with local landowners and developers, to find the best fit for everyone to meet our local needs.
Every Neighbourhood Plan is different from the next. There is not a set list of things that it should cover. Local people can decide what issues and places to focus on and what their priorities are.
This means that issues such as speeding, flooding, highways structure, bus timetables and litter cannot be covered. The Neighbourhood Plan will cover the period up to 2038.
How do we get there?
A Steering Group was formed, which comprises of local residents, Parish Councillors and the Parish Clerk. The group meets regularly to work towards completing the Neighbourhood Plan. If you would like to join the group, please click here
What have we done so far?
So far in the process, we have issued and analysed an initial short questionnaire at a variety of venues in 2018 which enabled us to draw up a draft version of a vision for Pontesbury. Fore more information, please click here
We were then were able to develop draft objectives for achieving this vision.
The Steering Group pooled all of this information and put them in the form of a questionnaire. The questionnaire was sent out to all parish households in the Spring of 2020 to gauge the community’s approval and thoughts on the work so far.
This questionnaire has now been analysed and you can view the results here Pontesbury Neighbourhood Plan survey results
Whilst we understand the anxiety concerning future development, the central question is not about whether to have it but how it can be best managed. to a large extent, the number of new buildings is decided by Shropshire Council who in turn have to carry out the wishes of Central Government. However, having a Neighbourhood Plan in the making has already had an impact on reducing future development in Pontesbury Parish by downgrading our planning status from market town to community hub.
We have noted how much people value local services but it is important to remember that the retention and enhancement of these depends in part on our acceptance of development.
Although the vision based on previous survey expresses our future aspirations, not all of them can be achieved through a neighbourhood plan. However, the Parish Council continues to work hard on matters which are important to you such as flooding, speeding, and parking near our schools.
What is happening now? Summer 2022
Following consultation with residents of the parish and statutory consultees, the draft plan has been amended and sent to Shropshire Council for comment. One this has been received back and any amendments made, it will be presented to Pontesbury Parish Council for approval.
What happens next?
A final copy of the Plan will then be sent to Shropshire Council for ratification.