Time to look again at Alnwick’s Neighbourhood Plan: Have a say in your future
The Neighbourhood Plan for Alnwick and Denwick was published in 2017, and it has achieved a lot for the town and the two parishes. However, after eight years, it’s time to update it to reflect changes in the area.
The Town Council has been working on a Review of the Plan, which sets out a vision of what the area needs and how development and change should be managed in the future.
The Plan will form a framework for any important planning decisions up until 2036.
In 2023 and 2024 we asked you for your first thoughts on the issues facing the town and how we might tackle those in the Review. Based on your feedback we have prepared a draft of the Review. Now every local household and business is about to get a leaflet setting out the main points of the revised Plan and we want to hear your views.
The Plan is divided into eight sections, covering essential areas such as climate change, housing, employment, the economy, the town centre, transport, the environment, community facilities, and our heritage.
A questionnaire and feedback form will also be included, and we ask householders to return these to one of the designated local drop-off points. There will be eight weeks to comment on the plan, starting from 18th July till 15th September. During this period, two Saturday morning drop-in sessions will be held at the Studio at Alnwick Playhouse the first on the 26th of July and also drop-ins at the Community Centre, along with an evening discussion event at the Lindisfarne Centre on 2nd September.
Chairman of the Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group Councillor Geoff Watson said: “This is a first draft of the Neighbourhood Plan Review, and nothing is finalised yet. It’s your plan for the town’s future, so it’s really important that everyone in Alnwick and Denwick takes the opportunity to shape how we want to live by taking part in this consultation and sharing your ideas with us.”
After this consultation period the plan will be revised and submitted to Northumberland County Council who will carry out a further consultation and arrange an independent examination of the Review before you all have a final chance to approve the plan in a local referendum.
The full plan is available to read online at https://alnwick-tc.gov.uk/alnwick-denwick-neighbourhood-plan/
The first consultation event is at Alnwick Playhouse Studio on Saturday 26th July from 9.30-12.30