Much Wenlock Town Council is reviewing the Neighbourhood Plan
Come along to our next event on Saturday 9th November at the Priory Hall to learn more about the first formal consultation on the draft Neighbourhood Plan
What is the Neighbourhood Plan? Our Neighbourhood Plan is a document that contains planning policies to guide land-use and development in the parish. It sits alongside the Shropshire Local Plan, providing additional local detail so that decisions in Much Wenlock can be made in a more considered way.
Why are we reviewing it? The current Neighbourhood Plan was adopted in 2014 and has been successfully used by decision makers. But since 2014, there have been changes to national policy and Shropshire Council policy. It’s important that our Neighbourhood Plan remains up-to-date and responds to new issues. That is why we’ve been updating it.
Who’s doing this? The work has been led by a team of volunteers comprising Town Councillors and other members of the community. We’ve sought to retain the overarching objectives of the plan, and update these – and the associated policies – where necessary.
What’s new in the Review? To inform our work, we’ve held community events, meetings and a community survey. We’ve gathered together the evidence needed to support the aspirations expressed by residents. Some new areas that we are including in the Review are:
- Identifying locally important heritage assets to ensure that we don’t lose them
- Preparing Design Guidance to influence the look and feel of development locally
- Designating additional local green spaces, to prevent inappropriate development on them
- Supporting the town centre so that it remains a vibrant focal point for the community
- Considering where improvements can be made to make it easier for people to get around on foot locally
What can I do? We are reaching a very important point in the project. We will shortly be sharing our Draft Neighbourhood Plan document with everyone. We will be launching a formal six week consultation on the document and will be asking for comments and feedback. We are hosting an event on Saturday 9th November at the Priory Hall to talk about the Plan and to let you know how you can comment.
What happens next? After the consultation, our team will carefully consider all of the comments and amend the Plan into its final version. This will be submitted to Shropshire Council, who will run another six-week consultation. You’ll be able to see how your comments were integrated into the plan.
After this, the Plan will be screened by an Independent Examiner, who will be checking that it is legally sound and compliant with national and strategic policy. They will issue a report setting out if any amendments need to be made. The document can then be finalised so that it can proceed to a public referendum.
