Before you start writing a neighbourhood plan you should contact your local district or borough council or the Peak District National Park Authority:
You should also talk to other community groups, the parish or town council, or the neighbourhood forum.
The 5 steps to writing a neighbourhood plan
Step 1 - defining your neighbourhood
Determine whose responsibility it is to write the neighbourhood plan and which area it will cover.
The area covered by the plan may be the parish or town boundary, or just part of it.
Step 2 - preparing your plan
Neighbourhood plans set out policies for development and use of land within the area. They can be as general or as detailed as you like.
However, they must be in generally in line with the council's local plan. This means neighbourhood plans cannot contradict the local plan or undo decisions it has made.
For example, if the local plan says there will be 500 new houses, the neighbourhood plan cannot say there will only be 50 new houses.
Similarly, if a local plan allocates a site or parcel of land for development, the neighbourhood plan cannot stop development taking place there.
Neighbourhood plans must also be in line with national planning policy and other legislation such as European Union laws.
The neighbourhood plan will sit under the local plan as part of the development plan for your area.
This means that neighbourhood plans will have legal weight in the planning process and will be used by the local planning council to determine planning applications.
Because the local plan, core strategy and neighbourhood plans will be part of the same development plan for the area, having a good relationship with your local planning authority from the start will be very important.
Once you have drafted your neighbourhood plan you must consult your local community for 6 weeks.
You should make sure residents and people who work in the area have a chance to have their say. You may also need to consult people who live in neighbouring areas who will be affected by your neighbourhood plan.
You must also consult statutory bodies. Your local planning authority can advise you on who the statutory bodies are in your area.
Your local planning authority is usually your district or borough council, a city council or a national park authority. They can:
- help you to define your neighbourhood
- designate neighbourhood forums (where there isn't a parish or town council)
- advise you on European and national policies and the local plan
- provide information on:
- design, character and the history of your area
- shops and sport and leisure facilities
- housing, affordable housing and homelessness
- waste collections and recycling
- regeneration, tourism, business and employment
- water and flood risk
- parks, open spaces and countryside
- gypsies and travellers
- noise, pollution, pest control and environmental health
- give you details of the statutory bodies you will need to consult
- help you to arrange the Independent check and appoint the examiner
- organise and manage the community referendum
However, your local planning authority cannot write the plan for you.
We can:
- put you in touch with your local planning authority
- provide information on:
- regeneration, tourism, business and employment
- schools, colleges and adult education
- leisure and cultural facilities including libraries and museums
- parking, roads and road safety, and community and public transport
- waste management including household waste recycling centres
- minerals and waste planning and the county council’s planning role
- public rights of way, greenways and countryside sites
- ecology, geology, biodiversity and landscape character
- water, drainage and flood risk
- listed buildings, conservation areas, historic buildings and monuments, historic parks and gardens and tree preservation
For more information contact Harriet Fisher, email: harriet.fisher@derbyshire.gov.uk or tel: 01629 539551.
Step 3 - independent check
Once the neighbourhood plan has been drafted and consulted on, an independent examiner will be appointed to check it.
This independent examiner can be anyone who is suitably qualified. They cannot sit on the parish or town council or Neighbourhood Forum and they cannot have any interest (for example be a landowner) in the area.
The examiner will check that the neighbourhood plan has been consulted on properly and is in line with the local plan, European and national policy and legislation.
Once the examiner is happy that the neighbourhood plan meets these basic standards, the local planning authority must adopt it.
If the examiner thinks big changes are needed to the neighbourhood plan the community may need to be consulted again on those changes.
Step 4 - community referendum
Once the examiner is happy with the neighbourhood plan, the local planning authority will organise a referendum.
This gives the community a chance to say if the neighbourhood plan should come into force.
If it will affect people in neighbouring areas, residents from those areas may be able to vote in the referendum too.
The government has suggested that referendums could be held alongside council elections to make it easier for people to vote. We're waiting for more guidance on exactly how referendums will work.
Step 5 - legal force
If more than 50% of the people that vote in the referendum vote in favour, the neighbourhood plan will be adopted and will come into force.
It will then have legal weight in the planning system and will become part of the area’s development plan.
This means that the local planning authority will use it when determining planning applications.
Support and advice on writing your plan
You may be eligible for advice and support from one of these charities: