North Devon Council and Torridge District Council are excited to inform you about the launch of the new ‘People and Place’ project for northern Devon. This is a joint venture between the two Councils to review the Local Plan and will look at how the area should take shape over the next 20+ years. It will set out a plan for the future of northern Devon by looking at what needs to be done around matters such as housing, the environment, sustainability, jobs, access to transport and health and wellbeing.
This is an important project for the future of northern Devon and we want to ensure that people have the opportunity to get involved and shape the future of their area. The launch of the project is offering an opportunity for people to get involved in a number of ways:
- a community survey offering the chance for people to outline what their priorities are for their local area, for wider northern Devon as a whole and to provide an insight as to what it’s like to live where they live now;
- seeking views on the proposals for how the community and other stakeholders can get involved with the project moving forward, through a consultation on the Statement of Community Involvement;
- a range of opportunities
- a ‘call for sites’ providing the opportunity for people to provide details of land that they wish to be considered for future development through a so-called Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment (HELAA);
- an opportunity to comment on the way that we will assess those sites for future development, through a consultation on a draft methodology for the HELAA; and
- seeking nominations for specialists to sit on a panel of experts to help inform the assessment of those sites through the HELAA.
The consultations will run for a period of six weeks ending on Friday 29th April. Further information on these initial consultations, plus the timetable for the wider project, can be found on the People and Place hub. You can access the Hub online via www.northdevon.gov.uk/peopleandplace or www.torridge.gov.uk/peopleandplace.
If you wish to continue to be informed about the People and Place project, we ask that you register on our new consultation portal. This is a very simple process that you can complete by following the registration link on the People and Place hub detailed above. Please note that if you do not register, you will no longer receive notifications about the People and Place project, including work on the Local Plan and neighbourhood plans*.
Should you have any questions about the People and Place project or the opportunities to get involved outlined above, please get in touch with the Planning Policy Teams at the Councils. You can contact the teams via:
- North Devon Council: peopleandplace@northdevon.gov.uk / 01271 388317
- Torridge District Council: peopleandplace@torridge.gov.uk / 01273 428700
We hope you will join us as we progress the People and Place project for northern Devon and help us plan for our future together.
