Neighbourhood Plans – a tactical dilemma

The following article by Jon Green was addressed to ANTAS members, and recently published in their Newsletter

With the increasing interest in exploring the pros and cons of pursuing a Neighbourhood Plan a tactical question will soon arise in the civil parish of Welwyn , which spreads over three  physically separate settlements, linked administratively but with distinctly different characters.

The question will be whether to develop smaller and localised Neighbourhood Plans for each settlement which would perhaps bring greater community involvement in preference to a ‘composite’ Plan for the entire parish, which might appear more logical to our Borough Council but risk a weaker identity across our disparate community.

Practical issues such as the attitude of our local authority and the costs of preparation and implementation are clearly likely to be the determining factors, but it will be helpful to learn the views and better still the experience of members who have faced a similar quandary.

Jon Green