Eight Ash Green Neighbourhood Plan

(2) 5 Background

5.1 In broad terms, what is the Eight Ash Green Neighbourhood Plan seeking to achieve?

To define a new settlement boundary for the village;

To set out an overarching Vision for the locality underpinned by a broad set of Objectives and detailed Policies on the development and use of land both for domestic properties and for businesses;

To identify how and where in Eight Ash Green, growth proposed in the emerging Local Plan for Colchester is to be met; and

To set out how the residents of Eight Ash Green would like to see their community develop and prosper in a sustainable way over a particular time frame of 2017 to 2033.

5.2 What are the issues the villagers of Eight Ash Green are seeking to address in the Plan?

Fundamentally, there are four issues:-

• First, how to preserve all that is good about living in a small rural village, the latter being an important factor as to why people like living in Eight Ash Green;
• Second, how to play a responsible part in the continuing growth of the Borough of Colchester;
• Third, how to ensure that over the proposed Local Plan period of 2017 to 2033, future development is managed to ensure 150 dwellings are built on a location chosen by the villagers; and
• Fourth, to encourage more small businesses into the village with the aim of expanding the opportunities for local employment.

5.3 How does the Neighbourhhod Plan link with the Colchester Borough Council Local Plan?

Section 3 of the Basic Conditions Statement explains how this Neighbourhood Plan fully conforms with the current Colchester Borough Council's Core Strategy Policies as set out in the 2014 Focussed Review.

Colchester Borough Council is in the throes of producing a Local Plan that will set out the future development of the Borough over their plan period of 2017 – 2033 which will include the vision and strategic objectives for Colchester as a whole. As part of this process, it will detail the policies for those areas identified as having the capacity to help deliver the future growth of the population. The Eight Ash Green Neighbourhood Plan will deliver 150 new dwellings, thereby contributing to the Borough's wider housing target of 18,400 new dwellings. The Neighbourhood Plan will also seek to deliver a range of supporting infrastructure needed to ensure that all new growth is as sustainable as possible.

5.4 What does the Publication draft of the proposed Local Plan^[7] for Colchester say about Eight Ash Green?

Paragraph 6.161 says "A preferred site for development in Eight Ash Green has been identified by the Neighbourhood Plan Group through consultation with the local community".

The Local Plan Policy SS5 describes the proposals for Eight Ash Green in which it states that the Neighbourhood Plan will:-

• Define the extent of a new Settlement Development Boundary for Eight Ash Green
• Allocate a preferred site(s) for 150 dwellings in Eight Ash Green
• Set out any associated policies needed to support the site allocation ie housing mix, type of new housing and density for each site allocated for housing
• The Neighbourhood Plan will also set out the policy framework to guide the delivery of any infrastructure/ community facilities required to support the development.