Neighbourhood Plan

This section of our website reports on the development of a Neighbourhood Plan for Halewood.

Background

At a meeting of the council in June 2019, a decision was made that the Town Council should lead on the development of a Neighbourhood Plan for the township following elections held in May of that year. The council received formal permission to commence this project later that year, and work commenced to design a consultation strategy to engage with the people of Halewood. However, due to the Covid-19 crisis, the roll-out of this consultation was beset by delays, and the project commenced in earnest in 2021.

What is a Neighbourhood Plan?

Neighbourhood planning is a right for communities to shape the way their local area is developed through the use of Neighbourhood Development Plans.

Introduced through the Localism Act 2011, Neighbourhood Plans become part of the wider Local Plan and can be used to influence the outcome of planning applications.

Neighbourhood Plans allow communities to have more influence and control over their local area to ensure they get the right type of development for their neighbourhood. However they cannot influence or block development set out previously by the Local Plan.

Neighbourhood Plans are led and produced by an authorised local community organisation such as a parish or town council, or where one does not exist a Neighbourhood Forum may be designated. In the township of Halewood, the plan will be led by Halewood Town Council.

What Did We Do?

In late 2020, the Town Council commenced a series of consultation events to ask the people of Halewood whether they wished to help in the development of a Neighbourhood Plan. The methodology used included surveys and meetings with residents, both in-person and via Zoom. There was a lot of interest from residents in developing a plan and, after liaising with the Town Council, a series of Thematic Working Groups were established to process the work.

With the support of residents, and through funding from the Department of Communities and Local Government, a range of proposals were devised that could form the basis of a Neighbourhood Plan. This information is to be considered by the council newly elected in May 2023. The most successful aspect of the Neighbourhood Planning Work, the work of the ‘Parks, Green Spaces & Heritage Working Group’ has already been subsumed into the new council’s Green Spaces Strategy, approved in June 2023. So the legacy and learning of the Neighbourhood Plan project continues.

Policies and Proposals

When it concluded its work in March 2023, the Working Groups of the Neighbourhood Plan devised a range of policies and proposals it considered important for Halewood. These could form the basis of the continuation of the Neighbourhood Plan, or through other projects between the Town Council and partners.

This is the document outlining the proposals devised by the group: Halewood Neighbourhood Plan Policy Development Table

 

 

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