Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Welcome to
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Forum 1
22nd April 2015
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Programme for this eve
①Welcome and Introductions
②What a Neighbourhood Plan can do,
and what it can’t do
③Hexham – the good, the bad, and what
development we want (all)
④Towards an HNP Vision for Hexham (all)
⑤A couple of Major Themes for HNP
⑥Next Steps, for Forum 2
(e.g. draft Vision, draft Objectives, Scope of and Evidence
for 1-2 Major Themes, to set priorities within these)
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
A Neighbourhood Plan
Key Principles: Town Planning
• the rules governing spaces and
buildings, where they are
• what purpose they serve
• and what they look like
• with an expectation of development
What local people want!
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
A Neighbourhood Plan
Key Principles: Town Planning
• the rules governing spaces and
buildings, where they are
• what purpose they serve
• and what they look like
• with an expectation of development
What local people want!
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
What a
Neighbourhood Plan
can’t do:
The Neighbourhood Plan
can’t decide on housing
numbers for Hexham.
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
What a Neighbourhood Plan can’t do:
The Neighbourhood Plan can’t decide on
Green Belt boundary changes.
Legislation dictates that Green Belt
boundaries can only be amended by the
County Council.
Like housing, people can try and
influence this through the County
Council’s consultation process. It is not
within the remit of a Neighbourhood Pan
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
What a Neighbourhood Plan can’t do:
The Neighbourhood Plan can’t deal with
strategic planning matters.
The Neighbourhood Plan must be in
conformity with other higher level plans.
It must also be in accordance with the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
What a Neighbourhood Plan can
do:
Provide a comprehensive policy
framework for future sites (i.e. Market
Place, land at Railway Station)
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
What a Neighbourhood Plan can do:
Allocate sites for development – specify
what type of development is acceptable,
and where.
Allocate sites to be protected from
development (i.e. public open space).
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
HNP in a nutshell
§ Made possible by the Localism Act 2011
§ Giving local people a say in how their
neighbourhood develops
§ To be used by NCC planners to decide on all
planning applications in Hexham ……
§ … and by sensible developers in advance.
~ It will have a vision, objectives, themes we deem
relevant to the town, evidence, to justify policies
that will state what will be, what we want to be.
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
What a Neighbourhood Plan
must do:
Provide clear planning policy to
guide development within the
Neighbourhood Plan Area.
It will help us achieve our Vision
for Hexham.
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
What a Neighbourhood
Plan
can
(and can’t)
achieve.
Questions
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Towards our Objectives
Hexham – the good, the bad,
and how it must develop
Groups of 3-4
Agree 3 Goods (onto 1 post-it)
Agree 3 Bads (onto 2nd post-it)
Agree 3 how it must develop
(onto 3rd post-it)
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
HNP Vision for Hexham
In your Groups, agree 3 key
words for our Vision.
First, thinking time!
Then 3 words on a post-it.
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
The Community Partnership’s
Vision for Hexham
HEXHAM WILL BE AN
INCREASINGLY VIBRANT,
ENTERPRISING AND
ADAPTABLE MARKET TOWN
FOR RESIDENTS,
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Town Plan 2013
Hexham will build on its great
strengths of people, heritage
and outdoor space and will
provide an environment to
develop new strengths,
ensuring a vibrant and robust
future and maximising the
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Hexham Vision 2020 and Town
Plan 2014
Always welcoming and family
friendly, Hexham in 2020 will be
a thriving historic Market Town,
ambitious and enterprising, with
so much to see and do, amid
unrivalled countryside, well
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
2014 Built Environment
Group
Hexham’s built
environment will retain
its essential character
and setting as a historic
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Any of these make you
change any of your 3?
Want to add 1?
The Steering Group will craft
drafts for Forum 2:
Vision and Objectives
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
HNP so far
Town Council Committee
HNP Steering Group
Our own MRTPI (part-time)
HNP Forum
www.hexhamneighbourhoodplan.co.uk
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
The HNP Steering Group wants
some work.
Give them a Theme to work up.
They’ll do some scoping, some
evidence gathering, options.
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Post-Forum Update:
4 Themes were selected by the Forum:
1. Housing - local houses for local people
2. Hexham’s Essential Architectural
Character
3. Accessibility - including signage
4. Wildlife Pathways
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
HNP Forum 2
Weds 15th July 2015, at 7.00pm.
Steering Group will present drafts
for discussion:
Vision, Objectives,
First Themes – evidence, scoping, options
Hexham Neighbourhood Plan
Good communications are
vital.
Tell us what you think.
www.hexhamneighbourhoodplan.co.uk
And Thank You.