Eglingham and Warkworth Neighbourhood Plans officially ‘made’
20 Aug 2024 ARCHIVED (over 3 months old) - view latest news
Residents of Eglingham and Warkworth Parishes Parish now have more of a say over future development in their local areas.
The two Neighbourhood Plans were formally made by Northumberland County Council on 6 August 2024. They now form part of the statutory development plan for the County, which means that planning decisions in these parishes will be made in line with policies in the Plans, unless ‘material considerations’ indicate otherwise.
Local referendums held in each Parish last month returned majority votes in favour of Northumberland County Council using the Neighbourhood Plans to help decide planning applications in their local areas.
The Plans were prepared by the Eglingham and Warkworth Parish Councils respectively, with the involvement and support of their local communities.
Northumberland County Councillor Colin Horncastle, Cabinet Member for Looking after our Environment said:
"Neighbourhood Plans give communities real power in the planning process. These pieces of work are led by the communities, allowing them to prioritise what they think is important to the area. They are a testament to the hard work of many dedicated people in these community.
The Plans will give each Parish the ability to shape the growth of their community.”
Each Plan provides a locally-distinctive approach to how development proposals in the area should be treated and includes policies to address a range of planning issues identified by the local community.
The Warkworth Plan, which has 6 policies, supports housing on Rural Exception Sites, promotes high quality and sustainable design, provides greater protection to the Conservation Area and provides protection for locally-valued green spaces and community facilities that contribute to the vitality of the area.
The Eglingham Plan, which has 9 policies, supports development within defined settlement boundaries for the villages of Eglingham and South Charlton, defines an ‘area of valued landscape’ whose special features will be taken into account in decision making, promotes well-designed and sustainable development in line with requirements set out in a local design code, provides protection for locally-valued green spaces and community facilities and provides greater protection to non-designated heritage assets.
Work is underway on the preparation of neighbourhood plans in over 20 other parishes across Northumberland, while 24 neighbourhood plans are already in place.
The Neighbourhood Planning Team continues to provide dedicated help and practical support to all the local parish councils involved in neighbourhood planning.