Issue - meetings
Neighbourhood Planning Protocol Update
Meeting: 07/07/2020 - Strategic Planning and Infrastructure Committee (Item 169)
169 Neighbourhood Planning Protocol Update 
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An update to the protocol is required to
reflect changes in practices for processing neighbourhood plans,
and to clarify actions at certain stages of plan
production.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Planning Policy Officer introduced the report and highlighted that the Neighbourhood Planning Protocol was last approved in July 2018 with the update now requested as a result of changes to the Council’s practices in processing neighbourhood plans. It was noted that the protocol must comply with the Statement of Community Involvement (SCI) as approved by the Committee in June 2020. A reference to the SCI had been included made within the proposed updated protocol.
The Planning Policy Officer made specific reference to the urgent update that was circulated prior to the meeting, to note that the outcome of stage 17A would now read:
‘post-examination draft neighbourhood plan (as modified by the Examiner) becomes a material consideration in decisions on planning applications’.
The Committee was reminded that paragraph 1.13 of the report indicated that the Lenham Neighbourhood Plan was at examination, with the examiners report having been received on 30 June 2020 which recommended that the plan move to referendum subject to modification. As such, the plan would now obtain some material consideration with a report for decision to be presented to the September meeting of the Committee.
In response to questions, the Strategic Planning Manager confirmed that whilst the amended SCI would be a temporary measure, the proposed update to the protocol would result in a permanent change.
The Committee felt that the wording of the protocol that related to the weight given to a post-examination neighbourhood plan was unclear. The Planning Team Leader for Mid Kent Legal clarified the legal position to be that a neighbourhood plan would obtain the same legal status as a local plan once it had been approved through a referendum. Alternative wording for the outcome of Regulatory Stage 17A as shown within Appendix 1 was proposed.
RESOLVED: That the revised Neighbourhood Planning Protocol be approved, subject to additional wording to read:
‘Note: post-examination draft neighbourhood plan (as modified by the Examiner) becomes a significant material consideration in decisions on planning applications but will receive full weight post-successful referendum’.