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1. That the Joint Director of Planning, having consulted with the Executive Councillor for Planning, Building Control and Infrastructure, recommends Council note the results of the referendum on the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan.
2. That the Joint Director of Planning having consulted with the Executive Councillor for Planning, Building Control and Infrastructure, recommends to Council that it ‘Makes’ (adopts) the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan as part of the Local development Plan for the area.
Decision Maker: Executive Councillor for Planning, Building Control, and Infrastructure
Decision published: 05/02/2025
Effective from: 05/02/2025
Decision:
Decision taken:
1. That the
Joint Director of Planning, having consulted with the Executive Councillor for Planning, Building Control and
Infrastructure, recommends Council note the results of the
referendum on the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan.
2. That the
Joint Director of Planning having consulted with the Executive Councillor for Planning, Building Control and
Infrastructure, recommends to Council that it ‘Makes’ (adopts)
the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan as part of the Local development Plan for
the area.
Decision of: Stephen Kelly, Joint Director of Planning.
Reference: The scheme of delegation was considered and agreed by Cambridge Planning Transport and Scrutiny Committee (PTSC) on 28 September 2023. The scheme of delegation for decisions on any Neighbourhood Plans in Cambridge (as set out in the report to PTSC): takes account of the lessons learnt in South Cambridgeshire; is in accordance with national legislation and regulations; is in accordance with Cambridge City Council’s constitution; and shares the responsibility across the Executive Councillor, the Joint Director of Planning, officers and full Council depending on the nature of the decision being made and taking account of any statutory timescales for decisions where they are imposed.
If a Neighbourhood
Plan is successful at referendum as a result of the
majority of those voting being in favour of the Neighbourhood Plan being used
when making decisions on planning applications, then the Neighbourhood Plan
must be ‘made’ (adopted) by the local planning authority unless by doing so
would breach or otherwise be incompatible with EU or human rights obligations.
National regulations set out that the Neighbourhood Plan must be ‘made’
(adopted) within 8 weeks of a successful referendum.
As the
Neighbourhood Plan will become part of Cambridge City Council’s statutory
development plan, it will need to be formally ‘made’ (adopted) by full Council.
It was agreed that the decision recommending that full Council ‘makes’ (adopts)
the Neighbourhood Plan is delegated to the Joint Director of Planning, in
consultation with the Executive Councillor for Planning, Building Control and
Infrastructure, given that the Council has limited options other than to make
(adopt) the neighbourhood plan following a successful referendum and in light of the prescribed timetable for the making of a
Neighbourhood Plan. It is proposed that the ‘making’ (adoption) of the
Neighbourhood Plan is carried out by full Council on 24 February 2025.
No Neighbourhood
Plans in Cambridge have yet been ‘made’ (adopted) by Cambridge City Council so
once the decision is taken, South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan will be the first.
Date of decision: 31 January 2025.
Matter for Decision:
The purpose of this report is to set out the results of the
referendum on the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan and make a recommendation to
Council on whether the Neighbourhood Plan should be formally ‘made’ (adopted)
by Cambridge City Council.
The draft of the
South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan that was submitted to Cambridge City Council
met the requirements in legislation. As a result
Cambridge City Council publicised the Neighbourhood Plan for more than 6 weeks,
invited comments, notified any consultation body referred to in the
consultation statement and sent the draft Neighbourhood Plan to independent
Examination. Following the Examination, Cambridge City Council determined that
the ‘referendum’ version of the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan was ready for
a public referendum (Schedule 4B of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as
varied by s38A & 38C of the Town and Country Planning Act)).
A ‘referendum’
version of the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan was prepared taking account of the Examiner’s recommended
modifications. The ‘referendum’ version of the plan also included some
additional minor modifications to update parts of the plan. On 3 December 2024,
the decision was made by the Joint Director of Planning in consultation
with the Executive Councillor for Planning,
Building Control and Infrastructure to proceed to referendum (with any
necessary modifications that an Examiner has recommended that the neighbourhood
plan).
A referendum on the ‘making’ (adoption) of the South Newnham
Neighbourhood Plan was held on 16 January 2025. Voters were asked “Do you want
Cambridge City Council to use the neighbourhood plan to help it decide planning
applications in the neighbourhood area?” The results
were declared as follows:
If a
Neighbourhood Plan is successful at referendum as a result of
more people voting ‘yes’ than ‘no’, the Neighbourhood Plan becomes part of the
development plan for the area (National Planning Practice Guidance, Paragraph:
064, Reference ID: 41-064-20170728), and all planning decisions in the
neighbourhood area will be made in accordance with the development plan unless
material considerations indicate otherwise. The formal ‘making’ (adoption) of
the Neighbourhood Plan does not happen until Cambridge City Council’s full
Council are asked to do this at a meeting following the referendum.
The South Newnham
Neighbourhood Plan was successful at its referendum as more than half of those
that voted were in favour of Cambridge City Council using the Neighbourhood
Plan to help it decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area. The
Council is therefore required to ‘make’ the Neighbourhood Plan, unless the
making of the Neighbourhood Plan would breach or is otherwise incompatible with
EU or human rights obligations, which is one of the ‘Basic Conditions’ set out
in national planning regulations that all Neighbourhood Plans must meet.
Officers have
assessed whether the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan meets the ‘Basic
Condition’ that the Neighbourhood Plan does not breach, and is otherwise
compatible with, EU and human rights obligations at various stages during the
preparation of the Neighbourhood Plan. Officers consider that the ‘making’ of
the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan does not breach, and is otherwise
compatible with, EU and human rights obligations (see Appendix
2).
The ‘made’
(adopted) version of the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan is included in
Appendix 1 of this report. Officers have worked with the South Newnham
Neighbourhood Forum to agree minor (non-material) amendments to the referendum
version of the Neighbourhood Plan to turn it into the made version of the
Neighbourhood Plan. Minor (non-material) amendments can be made to a
Neighbourhood Plan at any point (National Planning Practice Guidance,
Paragraph: 106 Reference ID: 41-106-20190509 and Paragraph: 084a Reference ID:
41-084a-20180222). These amendments included updates to the wording on the
front cover and to Chapter 1 (Introduction and Background) so that it is clear that the Neighbourhood Plan was voted in through
referendum and the Plan forms part of the statutory development plan.
Once this
decision has been agreed and published, Cambridge City Council’s full Council
at their meeting on the 24 February 2025 will be asked to ‘make’ (adopt) the
South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan. Once the Neighbourhood Plan is formally
‘made’ (adopted) by full Council, Officers will publish the decision to ‘make’
(adopt) the Neighbourhood Plan and send notifications to the necessary
statutory bodies, organisations and others as required by national planning
regulations.
Once formally
‘made’ (adopted) the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan will form part of the
“Development Plan” for Cambridge City all planning decisions in the
neighbourhood area will need to have regard to it.
a.
Consultation with South Newnham
Neighbourhood Forum (the Qualifying Body)
Officers, in
conjunction with South Newnham Neighbourhood Forum, have reviewed the ‘made’
version of the Neighbourhood Plan; and a review of the Basic Conditions
undertaken by Officers have been shared with the South Newnham Neighbourhood
Forum.
Officers recognise
the hard work that members of the Neighbourhood Forum and other residents of
South Newnham have put into preparing the Neighbourhood Plan.
b. Consultation
with the Executive Councillor for Planning,
Building Control and Infrastructure.
This report, the ‘made’ version of the Neighbourhood Plan, and the Basic
Conditions Check undertaken by Officers have been shared with the Executive
Councillor for Planning, Building
Control and Infrastructure.
Any alternative options considered and rejected:
Where a Neighbourhood Plan is successful at its referendum, Cambridge
City Council has limited options in how to respond. National planning
legislation requires that the Council ‘makes’ (adopts) the Neighbourhood Plan,
unless the making of the Neighbourhood Plan would breach or is otherwise
incompatible with EU or human rights obligations.
Officers have concluded that the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan would
not breach or be otherwise incompatible with EU or human rights obligations, as
set out in the Considerations section.
Reason for the decision including any background papers
considered:
The ‘made’
(adopted) version of the South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan is included in
Appendix 1 of this report that includes minor amendments.
Appendix 2
provides evidence that consider that the ‘making’ of the South Newnham
Neighbourhood Plan does not breach, and is otherwise compatible with, EU and
human rights obligations (see Appendix 2).
Appendix 1: ‘Made’ version of the South Newnham
Neighbourhood Plan
Appendix 2: Basic Conditions Check on ‘Made’ version of the
South Newnham Neighbourhood Plan
Background documents:
·
National Planning Practice Guidance – Neighbourhood
Planning
Conflict of interest and dispensation granted by the Chief Executive: None
Comments: None.
Contact for further information: Lizzie Wood, Principal
Planning Policy Officer, Greater Cambridge Shared Planning.
Lead officer: Lizzie Wood