Decision details

Designation of Horseheath Neighbourhood Area

Decision Maker: Lead Cabinet member for Planning

Decision status: Recommendations Approved

Is Key decision?: No

Is subject to call in?: Yes

Purpose:

1.              The purpose of this decision is to agree on the proposed designation of the parish of Horseheath as a Neighbourhood Area (NA). (See Appendix A – the application submitted by Horseheath Parish Council (PC)).

 

Background

 

2.              A Neighbourhood Area must be designated before a Parish Council can prepare a Neighbourhood Plan. There are national regulations guiding how an application for the designation of a Neighbourhood Area should be considered.

 

3.              The regulations state that a local planning authority must designate a Neighbourhood Area if it receives a valid application and some or all of the area has not yet been designated. The regulations also state that a local planning authority must designate the whole of the area applied for in certain circumstances, and this includes if a Parish Council applies for the whole of their parish to be designated as a Neighbourhood Area.

 

4.              A valid neighbourhood area application is one where a ‘relevant body[1]’ has submitted an application to the local planning authority that must include:

 

·       a map which identifies the area to which the area application relates

·       a statement explaining why this area is considered appropriate to be designated as a neighbourhood area; and

·       a statement that the organisation or body making the area application is a relevant body for the purposes of section 61G of the 1990 Act

 

The application from Horseheath Parish Council

 

5.              The application from Horseheath Parish Council is for the whole of their parish to be designated as a neighbourhood area. None of this area has been previously designated for neighbourhood planning purposes and the application includes all the information required.

 

6.              The Parish Council has undertaken consultation with its community to determine whether to prepare a Neighbourhood Plan.

 

Consideration by South Cambridgeshire District Council

 

7.              South Cambridgeshire District Council is supportive of Horseheath PC preparing a NP for its parish and keen for the two councils to work together in considering the future development of the area.

 

8.              South Cambridgeshire District Council considers that the application submitted by Horseheath Parish Council is valid and therefore that the parish of Horseheath should be designated as a neighbourhood area. As the whole of the parish has been proposed as a Neighbourhood Area, South Cambridgeshire District Council must designate the Neighbourhood Area.

 

Local Development Scheme

 

9.              The Local Development Scheme (LDS) sets out the planning policy documents that South Cambridgeshire District Council intends to prepare for the next three years and tends to be updated annually. The LDS agreed in October 2018 is for the Greater Cambridge Area and includes a section that lists the Neighbourhood Areas designated in and therefore the Neighbourhood Plans that are being prepared within the Greater Cambridge area. When the LDS is next reviewed, this section of the LDS will be updated to include the Horseheath Neighbourhood Area. In the interim, the complete list of Neighbourhood Areas designated is available to view on the Council’s website: www.scambs.gov.uk/content/neighbourhood-areas, and Horseheath Neighbourhood Area will be added to this list.

 

 



[1]  In South Cambridgeshire the relevant body this is a parish council

Decision:

It is recommended that the Planning Portfolio Holder approves the designation of a Neighbourhood Area for Horseheath as proposed by the Parish Council.

 

Reasons for the decision:

South Cambridgeshire District Council has received an application from Horseheath Parish Council (PC) to designate the ‘Horseheath Neighbourhood Area’.  The PC has applied to have the whole of its parish as a neighbourhood area. The regulations relating to such applications state that South Cambridgeshire District Council must designate all of the area applied for.

Alternative options considered:

None.

Publication date: 25/11/2019

Date of decision: 25/11/2019

Effective from: 03/12/2019

Accompanying Documents: