Issue - meetings

Sarratt Parish Council have formally submitted their draft Neighbourhood Plan to Three Rivers District Council. It is now a statutory requirement for Three Rivers to consult on the draft Neighbourhood Plan and this report seeks agreement from the Policy and Resources Committee to go out for consultation.

Recommendation:

The Policy & Resources Committee note the report and agree the Sarratt NDP for consultation.

The Head of Planning Policy and Conservation reported that Sarratt Parish Council had formally submitted their Neighbourhood Plan (NP) following their own rounds of consultation.  Officers are satisfied that the NP meets all of the legal requirements, and we now have a statutory requirement to consult on the plan for them for a period of six weeks.  Officers were seeking agreement from the Committee for the consultation to go out.  Following the consultation officers would appoint an examiner and the plan go forward for examination and we can make any modifications following that and the Parish Council can then choose whether they agree to take that plan out for referendum.  We would organise the referendum and it would then be brought back to the Committee and Full Council to be adopted and to become part of the Development Plan. 

Members raised the following points:

Don’t put the NP out with another document just do it on its own.

The entire cost of any referendum would be absorbed by TRDC rather than by the Parish Council

How long are we expecting before we will be in a position to get to the referendum as the Parish Council expectations were to have been at referendum in May 2023?

If we are ready to go out for referendum substantially before May 2024 whether TRDC will hold the referendum out of sequence with the local election.

Was concerned about the delay and the impact this would have on planning appeals for Church Street in Sarratt.

Having a NP in place would not impact on the particular applications being referred to although the emerging plan had been commented on during the process.

Need to weigh up doing the referendum during December and not in May when the other elections are taking up and weigh up the process required, and the costs involved.

The Head of Planning Policy and Conservation we are required to run the referendum and the costs within that.  The Council do get some grant funding to assist with the costs.  In terms of the timetable, it would depend on whether we get to do the referendum out of sequence or not.  Initial talks with Elections had advised it may be possible but will need to clarification on the costs.

Councillor Sarah Nelmes moved, seconded by Councillor Ciaran Reed the recommendations as set out in the officer report.

On being put to the Committee the recommendations were declared CARRIED by the Chair the voting being by general assent.

RESOLVED:

Noted the report and agreed the Sarratt NDP for consultation.