Introduction to the Parish Plan
Winterslow Parish Council
Discussion Paper
PARISH PLAN
Mick Brown
15/7/08
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
1. What is a Parish Plan?
2. Why Produce a Parish Plan?
3. Who Produces the Parish Plan
4. Recommendation
5. Appendix A:
A Step-by-Step Guide & Flow Chart
INTRODUCTION
The Rural White Paper "Our Countryside: the Future" sets out an agenda for change. A change set in the context of reform, involving how we govern and plan.
The emphasis is on helping local rural communities to take charge of their destinies and strengthen the first, and most local form of government the Parish Council.
A Parish Plans should be looked upon as a way of building upon existing experience and expertise within the Parish Council by developing a blue print for the survival of the community of Winterslow.
It should be seen as a tool to influence local strategic partnerships and the preparation of a community strategy for the Parish.
It provides an opportunity to form the bedrock of the new local development frameworks that are prepared by local planning authorities.
"PARISH PLANS ALREADY EXERT INFLUENCE AND WILL BECOME INCREASINGLY MORE IMPORTANT IN THE FUTURE."
1. What is a Parish Plan?
What is a Parish Plan?
Parish Plans are "holistic" or comprehensive in scope. They should set out a vision for how the community wants to develop, and identify the action needed to achieve it. They can include everything that is relevant to the people who live and work in the community, from employment and playgrounds to the design of new buildings and protection of hedges and ponds. They can include social, environmental or economic issues. It is up to the community to decide, what is important to them.
Who decides?
The Parish Plan gives everyone a chance to say what he or she thinks about the social, economic and environmental issues affecting their community, and how they'd like to see it improved in the future. It is important that the whole community is involved in producing the plan, not just those people who usually come along to parish council meetings.
What's it leading to?
The Parish Plan needs to consider local problems and opportunities as a whole. It makes the links between these issues and sets out a broad vision for the future - where the parish wants to be in 5 or 10 years time. But achieving this vision will require action. This includes both:
• Action which the parish itself proposes to undertake;
• Policies, decisions and action carried out by other bodies, which the plan might influence.
What does the plan look like?
There is no standard format for a Parish Plan and no prescriptive list of the subjects it should address. It is up to the community to set out its vision, decide which issues it would like to tackle, agree priorities for action and present the information in a way that is interesting and attractive to everyone.
A practical way to present the plan could be in two parts:
First a detailed report explaining how the consultation has been carried out and conclusions drawn. It could take various forms, including photographs, documents and sketches.
Second a succinct action plan clearly setting out what needs doing, when, why, by whom and at what cost.
Summary
• Parish Plans are local, action-based plans which address a range of problems and opportunities affecting rural communities.
• They can include social, economic and environmental issues.
• The whole community should be involved in producing the Parish Plan, with the parish council taking lead responsibility.
• The Parish Plan must be consistent 'with related policies set out in the local authority's planning documents and local strategic partnerships.
• The plan should be based on information provided through survey, research, consultation and community participation.
• A grant to assist with the production of Parish Plans is available from the Countryside Agency. Advice and help with producing the plan and involving the community are available from the rural community council.
Parish Plans should identify actions, which can be taken forward by the parish council, by other individuals and groups within the community or by other service providers and statutory bodies. These should have a clear focus on Who? What? Why? How? When?
2. Why Produce a Parish Plan?
It is Government policy to increase individual participation in public life and for public bodies to consult communities about the delivery of services. As part of this policy of" active citizenship" the Government wants to give more power to parish councils to decide what's best for their own communities.
If we as a parish council can show you are taking your future seriously, a Parish Plan might increase your chances of getting local authority support to enhance your parish's economic, social and environmental well-being.
It will give us the evidence to help inform policy-making by a range of organizations, from the local planning authority to police and health services. It will also help you to develop and maintain effective working relationships with all those outside bodies who provide services to your community, now or in the future.
Influencing local authorities & other service providers
Local authorities are continuously involved in drawing up and reviewing land use plans as well as deciding individual planning applications. A Parish Plan can potentially influence both these processes. It might do this by:
• Identifying local needs for affordable housing or community facilities;
• Producing a design statement for new development;
• Identifying which open spaces are needed and valued for community use;
• In the long term there could be an opportunity to feed into the Local Development Frameworks (LDF's)
Local authorities are also required to draw up 'community strategies', to promote or improve the economic, social and environmental well being of their area. This is usually achieved through parish councils, involving representatives from public, private, voluntary and community bodies. The main aims of a community strategy are:
• To identify what sort of services, activities and support are needed;
• To make links between services and organize them better to avoid overlaps;
• To promote local people's involvement in planning and improving services in the areas where they live.
In addition, most county and unitary authorities have signed up to negotiate a Local Public Service Agreement (LPSA) with central government, comprising a dozen or so specific targets to improve local services such as health and police. LPSA authorities are encouraged to involve local partners, particularly through the parish councils and the community strategy, in drawing up and delivering these targets. A Parish plan has the potential to influence LPSAs through such community strategies.
3 Who Produces the Parish Plan?
The plan production will be the responsibility of the" Parish Plan Steering Committee"
Purpose
To act on behalf of the Parish Council to carry out the following tasks:
1. Investigate and identify support for the PP
2. identify sources of funding in addition to the Country Side Agency grant.
3. Take responsibility for planning, budgeting and monitoring expenditure on the plan and report back to the PC on these matters.
4. liase with relevant authorities and organisations to make the plan as effective as possible
5. Identify ways of involving the whole community and gather the views and opinions of as many groups and organisations in the community as possible.
6. Determine the type of survey and information gathering used.
7. Be responsible for the analysis of the survey, the production and distribution of the final report.
8. Identify priorities and timescale for local action in the plan including lead organisations and potential sources of project funding.
9. To report back to the parish council on progress, issues arising and outcomes from the exercise.
Membership
The committee will have a maximum of 12 elected or nominated members.
No more than two of these will be members of the parish council.
Election of the Steering Committee will take place at an open public meeting.
The Steering Group may co-opt additional members at it discretion, to a maximum not exceeding the number of original members.
Officers
At the first meeting the following will be elected:
Chairperson, vice-chair person,, secretary, treasurer, publicity officer, and volunteer coordinator.
4. Recommendation
Feasibility Study
To Include:
- Contacting Salisbury District Council
- Contact Wiltshire Unitary Authority
- Contact all Activity & Sports Groups in Winterslow
- Contact Winterslow School
- Contact Neighboring Parish/Town Councils Who Have Plans
- Contact Police
- Contact Doctors Surgery
- Contact Church Representatives
- Investigate Funding (DEFRA)/Sponsorship
- Circular & questionnaire to Village "would you support the production of a Parish Plan?"
- Canvas potential Candidates for Steering group
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