London Colney Neighbourhood Plan
The latest draft of the St Albans District local plan was put out to public consultation over the summer. You can see the draft plan here https://www.stalbans.gov.uk/draft-local-plan-2041-regulation-18-consultation-closed
Councillors from parish, district and county wards covering London Colney reviewed the plans and it’s impact on the village.
The feedback provided to the council is shown here. This was approved at the Parish Council meeting on 28th September.
All councillors are pushing for the feedback to be taken on board in the next version of the plan which is due out over the summer of 2024.
London Colney Parish Council has launched the process of writing a Neighbourhood Plan for London Colney residents.
What is a Neighbourhood Plan?
A Neighbourhood Plan allows communities to create a shared vision for their neighbourhood. Neighbourhood planning is a process which enables local communities to shape the growth within their local area, including decisions on where housing, green spaces, local services and facilities are supported and how these should be designed. The resultant Plan typically consists of planning policies, aims and objectives for the local area.
Why is a Neighbourhood Plan being prepared?
The purpose of the London Colney Neighbourhood Plan is to help improve the quality of life and environment for the community as a whole. This is important because there is no current up-to-date development plan that covers the area. This is creating a policy vacuum, meaning we have no policy in place to guide and steer future growth and change, nor determine planning applications submitted in the area.
It is therefore really important that a Neighbourhood Plan is produced. This will enable the local community to establish a vision for the future of the area and set planning policies that will shape future change.
So the Neighbourhood Plan will seek to influence the form and quality of the new development, to ensure that future change is done so in a way which respects and enhance local character. In addition, the Neighbourhood Plan can help to shape the type of infrastructure coming forward within the parish.
But the Neighbourhood Plan can be so much more than this. It provides an excellent opportunity for the issues and aspirations of the local community to be incorporated and addressed. This includes protecting local green spaces and heritage assets for example. Once formally ‘made’, the Plan will be a blueprint for positive change, with the needs of the local community at its core.
More than 900 communities across the country have successfully completed and had a Neighbourhood Plan ‘made’ as planning policy for their area. Many more are in progress, including those at examination. In total, 2,700 communities have or are working on Neighbourhood Plans.
For more information about the progress of the Neighbourhood Plan and how to be involved please visit the Neighbourhood Plan website – www.londoncolneyneighbourhoodplan.org