Residents in Bishop's Waltham to have say over future housing numbers (From Hampshire Chronicle)
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Residents in Bishop's Waltham to have say over future housing numbers
9:50am Thursday 4th October 2012 in Winchester By Wesley Rock
Residents in Bishop's Waltham to have say over future housing numbers
THE PEOPLE of Bishop’s Waltham are to have their say in shaping the future of the town.
A neighbourhood plan is being drawn up which will decide future development in the parish and at a meeting on Saturday (October 6) residents can contribute.
The parish council has appointed a steering group to produce the plan, which it is hoped will allow local people to influence what, and where, developments should be.
Barry Nicholson, chairman of the parish council’s planning, environment and highways committee said: “The main issue about the neighbourhood plan is that the public must be involved. The emphasis is very much on their involvement. We have to be ahead of the game on this.”
Over the next 20 years Bishop’s Waltham, under the Winchester District Local Plan (Part One), needs to provide more homes, greater employment opportunities and improved educational facilities.
To achieve this, a supporting infrastructure of public services and improved facilities for leisure and recreation are required, whilst at the same time maintaining the character and identity of Bishop’s Waltham’s town centre. The neighborhood plan is intended as the document which guides this development.
The final plan will either form part of the Winchester District Local Plan (Part 2) or will be subject to an independent examination followed by a local referendum. The final document will be legally binding and up to 2031 all planning applications would need to conform to it.
Neighbourhood plans have come about through the coalition’s Localism Act 2011 and are billed as a ‘new right for communities’.
In September, the Hampshire Chronicle reported how city councillors approved the Stanmore Planning Framework, which will shape regeneration in that neighbourhood over the next 10 years.
Meanwhile, the Alresford neighbourhood plan caused controversy with radical proposals focused on industry and housing developments.
The consultation event for Bishop’s Waltham takes place in the Jubilee Hall from 10am to 3pm on Saturday, October 6.
