Many villages in England are producing ‘parish plans’. Village people see them as a way of stating how they want their village to develop in the future. Some villages have already published their Parish Plans. Several have already found them very useful. The village of Kewstoke in Somerset used their Parish Plan to get big improvements to the bus service to the village. Hawkesbury in Gloucestershire used theirs to help prevent a property developer building ‘executive homes’ on open-space in the village (which nobody in the village wanted) and Askam in Furness have used theirs to get big improvements to the village roads.
Like all villages, Coniston has its own problems and a small group in the village have decided that a Parish Plan for Coniston would be an extremely useful thing.
What is a Parish Plan?
A Parish Plan is a statement from people living in the village saying:
How can the future of the village be safeguarded.
What facilities does the village need for the future.
What is important to them in the village.
What new developments are they prepared to accept.
What problems are there that need to be tackled.
In other words it is a ‘vision’ for the village for the future, identifying what action needs to be taken to tackle issues, and who should do it.
How useful will it be?
A Parish Plan does not have any statutory powers. However:
· They often influence district/county councils when they are making decisions.
· They will influence inspectors during public enquiries or other disputes.
· They should be used by district/county councils when they draw up future policy.
But, the main thing is, it helps the community to focus on key issues affecting them and helps drive projects forward to sort the issues out.
How far have we got in Coniston?
We have only just started. The small group came together at the start of the year and there is still a long way to go before the Parish Plan is published. We expect it to take about 12 months and we will be giving every household in the village a copy of the plan when it is complete. Before then we need to speak to as many local people as possible asking them for their views and opinions on what the village needs. We will be doing this by a number of different ways – at village meetings, coffee mornings, by telephone and door-to-door. I am sure you will agree that the outcome of this will be very useful to the village so please help the group as much as you can.
Who are the group who have started this?
The group consists of Gill Irwin, Anne Hall, Malcolm Grindrod, Charles Sargeant, Ibby Brown and Alastair Cameron. They have the blessing of Coniston Parish Council and of the Countryside Agency (who oversee parish plans).
Many other local people have offered to help and will no doubt be roped in at some point. If anyone would like to lend a hand, please contact one of the group.
What will the Parish Plan cover?
Anything anyone is concerned about. The subjects may include: Affordable Housing, Future Development, Tourism, Safety, Facilities for the elderly, Education, Health, Shops, Traffic & Crowding, Sports Facilities, The Institute, Local Industry etc.
Time Scale?
We hope to be able to stick to the following time scale:
Have project team set up – by February 2003
Apply for funding for the project from the Countryside Agency – by March 2003
Receive our allocation of funding – by April 2003
Consult with local people – start April 2003, complete July 2003-04-19
Produce a draft report – August 2003
Produce final report – September 2003
Ask for report to be reviewed by local authorities – October 2003
Implementing action that the Parish Plan has identified – November 2003 –
Information board
An information board has been installed in the Coniston Co-op so that all passers by can see how the project is progressing.
Links:
www.coniston-net.com the Coniston village web-site
www.countryside.gov.uk/vitalvillages the Countryside Agency’s web-site