Developing a Community Led Plan for Charlbury
As mentioned in the Town Council report elsewhere in the Chronicle, the Town Council has been considering how to respond to the principle provided by the Localism Act 2012, that communities should have opportunities to influence the future of the places where they live.
There are two options, one being the Community Led Plan, with the other a Neighbourhood Plan. With a Neighbourhood Plan, the focus is on how to shape new development in the town, establishing general planning policies for the development and use of land in the area. This has to be agreed through a local referendum after a full consultation with all residents. With a Community Led Plan (CLP), the intention is for the community to develop a sound understanding of local aspiration and need, again through a broad consultation process. The CLP can focus on the social, economic, environmental and cultural life of the town, support applications for funds and be used to work closely with the District & County Councils to deliver against.
At its January meeting the Town Council considered a proposal to start a consultation with the residents of Charlbury on the proposal to develop a Town Plan, based on the model of a Community Led Plan. Before we can start, we propose to set up a CLP Advisory Group that will be the team that drives forward the CLP consultation process, sets up events, and arranges consultation and feedback to understand the aspirations and ideas of the town. The CLP Advisory Group will agree a set of Terms of Reference with the Town Council to ensure that there is proper planning and clear outcomes for the plan.
Our first request is for anyone interested in being a part of the CLP Advisory Group to contact the Town Clerk on charlburytc@btinternet.com or telephone 01608 810608, to indicate their interest. Once we have a team together we will start the process of planning events in the town that will give the widest feedback from all parts of the town, providing regular feedback to all interested parties and eventually arriving at a final report and plan for the future of Charlbury.
We are sure that this proposal will bring together a creative and hard-working team that will deliver a fresh plan for Charlbury and if you want any further background go to www.oxonrcc.org.uk for information from Oxfordshire Rural Community Council to see the national 9 step CLP process. You can also go to www.clp-se.org.uk to see examples of other local towns and parishes that have taken this opportunity to shape the future of their communities.
The group of Town Councillors are Richard Fairhurst, Jim Holah, Liz Reason, Russell Robson, Valou Pakenham-Walsh