Advice on policy development
Stonehouse Town Council (Stroud, Gloucestershire) approached us in 2016 to provide short-term support and independent planning advice to help shape their emerging policies for the neighbourhood plan. The plan is now “made”.
“Critical friend” review of emerging plan and the process followed
We were commissioned by Holt Parish Council in Wiltshire in 2015 to provide a “critical friend” review and gaps analysis of their initial draft plan and policies and the evidence base produced to support it. The Council's plan is now “made”.
Advice on process and the review of a technical housing sites appraisal
We were commissioned in 2016 to provide Wedmore Parish Council in Sedgemoor, Somerset, with an independent review of the work they had done on the plan’s development to ensure that there were no gaps in the process followed or outputs they had produced up to that point. We were also asked to provide an independent critique of their technical assessment of potential development sites to ensure that the process and tests they had undertaken were robust and line with good practice.
Evidence base review, advice on assessing housing need and identifying key issues
Ruishton and Thornfalcon Parish Council in Taunton Deane, Somerset, commissioned our support during 2017 and 2018 to review the evidence base material they had gathered, identify any gaps and provide evidence reports to help fill those gaps. We also provided an opinion on the need or not for a housing needs assessment, set against the context of the Government’s consultation on the revised housing need methodology and the associated proposal for local authorities to provide neighbourhood plan groups with housing need data relevant to their plan area. Subsequently we were also asked to produce a report identifying and documenting key issues and messages from the evidence base and consultation, which the group has used to inform and evidence the emerging objectives and vision for the plan.
Delivering training sessions for steering groups
We have delivered numerous training sessions for parish / town councils and steering groups. One example is support provided to the North Tawton Parish Council (West Devon Borough) neighbourhood plan steering group where, as well as guidance on policy and plan drafting, much of the early support focused on attending steering group meetings to advise the group on the process and deliver presentations on how best to work through key stages and outputs demanded of the process and the tasks they would need to undertake to arrive at a robust and sound plan.
"Draw down" support
We have provided neighbourhood plan support to many parish and town councils during their neighbourhood plan journey on a “when needed” basis. This amounts to a providing a combination of desk-based, phone, email and / or face-to-face support, depending on the questions that arise during the process and technical and time-consuming tasks that emerge during the process on which neighbourhood plan groups require professional support and / or capacity.
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