This page provides access to the Blewbury Neighbourhood Development Plan and its associated documents (all are pdf format).

Background

The village consultation on the draft Plan was in February/March 2016. Although no major changes were required, some very helpful suggestions from the public and the statutory bodies we consulted strengthened the Plan. There was a further consultation by the Vale of White Horse District Council in June/July, requesting comments on the Plan from a wider range of consultees. This did not lead to any changes.

An independent examiner was then appointed by the Vale. As expected, he asked us to make some minor revisions, but the substance of our policies remains intact. He was very complimentary about the village and the Plan. His report is available; see below.

The final step, a village referendum organised by the Vale, was held on 24 November 2016. The vote was 531 in favour, 31 against with a 42.9% turnout. The Plan has therefore been ‘made’ and now forms part of the Development Plan for the Vale, with equivalent status to the Vale’s Local Plan 2031.

Documents

The main document is the final Blewbury Neighbourhood Development Plan. You can also see a commented version showing where and how the text was changed in response to the examiner’s comments. (The examiner only requested changes to the policies themselves, but some of the explanatory text also had to be lightly updated to match.)

The Plan’s four appendices are available either as one big file or four smaller ones:

• Combined appendices (16MB)
• Appendix A: Drainage, Sewer Overflows and Groundwater Flooding
• Appendix B: Housing Needs Survey
• Appendix C: Landscape Character Assessment (10MB)
• Appendix D: Village Character Assessment (5MB)

The Consultation Report is a summary of how we involved the village and statutory bodies. It includes the comments submitted and how we acted on them.
The Basic Conditions Statement is more ‘technical’; it documents how our Plan fits in with the policies of the Vale, UK planning laws and other regulations.

The Examiner’s Report made general comments and asked for some minor revisions to our policies.

We also have some informative material:

• A short summary of the Plan (delivered to all houses before the referendum)
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

If you have any questions or comments regarding the Plan itself or any of the other documents, please use the contact facility on this website or email us at blewburyndp@outlook.com.

Remember, this is your Plan! The steering group is very grateful for comments, advice and all kinds of help from many people over the three and a half years it has taken to reach a successful conclusion.