Whitburn Neighbourhood Forum has written a neighbourhood plan that sets out rules for development in Whitburn; a plan that is made by and for residents.
A neighbourhood plan is the best chance residents and businesses in Whitburn have to influence the future of Whitburn. This is because, once adopted, planning applications will have to follow the rules set in the plan.
A neighbourhood plan is the best chance residents and businesses in Whitburn have to influence the future of Whitburn. This is because, once adopted, planning applications will have to follow the rules set in the plan.
How do you make a Neighbourhood Plan?
A group of residents held its first meeting with the intention to establish a neighbourhood forum in 2016. To make a neighbourhood plan, you first need to formally have the neighbourhood forum and area designated. Whitburn Neighbourhood Forum and Area were designated by South Tyneside Council in January 2017. After this, work started on building the evidence base and consulting with residents. The first large consultation event was held in 2017, to identify the key issues that are important to residents. These key issues were then translated into a vision for Whitburn, as well as objectives for its future. The Forum consulted residents on the Whitburn vision and objectives in 2018.
After this, the first draft of the Plan was written, which included the first policies for the future development within the Whitburn Area. Consultation on this first draft (called the pre-submission plan) ran between December 2020 and February 2021. Taking all comments from residents and others into account, a new draft was written with the help of a planning consultant. The Plan was then submitted to the council (called the submission plan), who ran a public consultation until 19 November 2021, inviting residents and others to comment on the plan.
After the consultation closed, the council collected all the comments made on the Plan and sent these to an independent examiner, who assessed the Plan early 2022. The examiner recommended that the Plan met all the legal requirements, pending some changes, and said it could proceed to referendum to vote on. The Plan is now due to go to the council's cabinet for discussion to see if they can agree to the examiner's recommendations. If the Cabinet agrees, the Plan can then be voted on by residents in a referendum.
A group of residents held its first meeting with the intention to establish a neighbourhood forum in 2016. To make a neighbourhood plan, you first need to formally have the neighbourhood forum and area designated. Whitburn Neighbourhood Forum and Area were designated by South Tyneside Council in January 2017. After this, work started on building the evidence base and consulting with residents. The first large consultation event was held in 2017, to identify the key issues that are important to residents. These key issues were then translated into a vision for Whitburn, as well as objectives for its future. The Forum consulted residents on the Whitburn vision and objectives in 2018.
After this, the first draft of the Plan was written, which included the first policies for the future development within the Whitburn Area. Consultation on this first draft (called the pre-submission plan) ran between December 2020 and February 2021. Taking all comments from residents and others into account, a new draft was written with the help of a planning consultant. The Plan was then submitted to the council (called the submission plan), who ran a public consultation until 19 November 2021, inviting residents and others to comment on the plan.
After the consultation closed, the council collected all the comments made on the Plan and sent these to an independent examiner, who assessed the Plan early 2022. The examiner recommended that the Plan met all the legal requirements, pending some changes, and said it could proceed to referendum to vote on. The Plan is now due to go to the council's cabinet for discussion to see if they can agree to the examiner's recommendations. If the Cabinet agrees, the Plan can then be voted on by residents in a referendum.
Referendum
The referendum is a crucial step for the neighbourhood plan. This is where the residents of Whitburn will have their say on whether they think the Plan should be approved. If residents vote in favour of the plan, it will then be adopted. This means that all the policies in the Plan will become active, and any planning applications and developers will need to make sure their proposals follow the rules in the Plan. This means that Whitburn residents will finally be able to influence development in Whitburn to ensure the development is right for the village.
Once the Forum has conformation that the referendum will go ahead, we will restart community consultation, to explain what the Plan is about and what it does, so residents can have an informed vote.
The referendum is a crucial step for the neighbourhood plan. This is where the residents of Whitburn will have their say on whether they think the Plan should be approved. If residents vote in favour of the plan, it will then be adopted. This means that all the policies in the Plan will become active, and any planning applications and developers will need to make sure their proposals follow the rules in the Plan. This means that Whitburn residents will finally be able to influence development in Whitburn to ensure the development is right for the village.
Once the Forum has conformation that the referendum will go ahead, we will restart community consultation, to explain what the Plan is about and what it does, so residents can have an informed vote.
