Any Neighbourhood Plan News
The Neighbourhood Plan Working Group have organised two opportunities for residents to receive an update on the work of the group and make their views on the future of the village heard. You can participate either by zoom on Wednesday 8th November or in person in the village hall on Thursday 9th. Details are on this NOTICE which will also be available on noticeboards and social media.
A report on what makes Westbury a special place, technically called a settlement character assessment or appraisal (SCA), has been prepared by a specialist consultant, Liz Beth. It was commissioned by the parish council to support the development of our neighbourhood plan. In simple terms, its purpose is to tell developers what they need to do to make sure any new development ‘fits in’ or is ‘in keeping’ with the nature of our village.
The report can be looked at HERE
We will make copies avaiable f0r people without the internet to read in convenient locations shortly. There will be a chance to discuss it, and express views before it is formally considered by the parish council, at village meetings on the 8th and 9th November. More details later.
A reminder that there is only one week left to complete this survey which will help inform the parish council response to any proposals for development on Roughmoor Lane and contribute to the Neighbourhood Plan. You can access the survey by following the link HERE or you can pick up a copy from the village shop.
As part of developing a neighbourhood plan the village needs to think about what facilities might be needed in 10 – 15 years time and where they might best be located. At the same time the parish council needs to be in a position to respond if the church commissioners move to develop land allocated for housing south of Roughmoor Lane. In that case 0.1 hectares of space would be made available for community use and the parish council would need to decide what should go on it and where exactly it should be. To help answer these questions we have designed a short survey which we would be grateful if you could complete and return by October 8th .
The survey and supporting papers can be accessed HERE. Hard copies will be available, if needed, from the village shop.
For the benefit of those who do not read the PEW I am circulating a recent article from the neighbourhood plan working group. It reports the thinking of some key village organisations on how their facilities need to develop over the next 10 – 15 years. I should emphasise that we need to think about how these facilities might need to change, irrespective of whether the Church Commissioners go ahead with their proposals to build housing alongside Roughmoor Lane so that we can take advantage of any opportunities to invest in our community that might arise. Read the article here
A number of documents have been added to the Roughmoor Lane pages of the village website and can be accessed here. They include information received by the Parish Council from Litchfields, a copy of advice on the application from Mendip Planners and a summary of the advice given to the Parish Council by the Neighbourhood Plan Working Group as at 3rd May 2023.
The Parish Council is considering the production of a Settlement Character Assessment that could inform both a long term Neighbourhood Plan and in the short term a response to planning applications. Several people have asked what such an assessment might look like. Here is an example from Norton St Philip
The February Parish Council newlsetter, including the latest information about housing developments at Roughmoor Lane, can be accessed here
