East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan

The referendum for the East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan was held on Thursday 19 January 2023. There was a turnout of 20.5%. The results of the poll included: 446 votes in favour (95.1%) and 22 votes against (4.7%). More than 50% of those voting in the referendum voted ‘yes’ and therefore the neighbourhood plan has become part of the statutory development plan for the parish of East Woodhay.

Declaration of result of poll - East Woodhay

Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council agreed to proceed to a referendum on the East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan on 12 October 2022. As required by the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 as amended, a Decision Statement has been published which can be found below.

East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan – Decision Statement

A referendum on the East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan will be held on Thursday 19 January 2023.

There are a number of documents that are available to view as part of the referendum. These are listed below:

• An Information Statement
• The referendum version of the East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan;
• The independent examiner’s report on the East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan;
• A summary of representations submitted to the independent examiner following consultation on the Plan;
• A Decision Statement from the Local Planning Authority which confirms the draft Neighbourhood Plan meets the basic conditions and other legislative requirements. It also confirms that the neighbourhood plan can proceed to referendum;
• A statement that sets out general information in respect of town and country planning, which includes neighbourhood planning.

The referendum area is identified on the map which is included within the information statement. The referendum area is identical to the area which has been designated as the Neighbourhood Plan area for East Woodhay. For this referendum those entitled to vote will receive a ballot paper which asks the following question:

Do you want Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council to use the Neighbourhood Plan for East Woodhay to help it decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area?

If more than 50% of individuals vote ‘yes’ in the referendum, then Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council will ‘make’ the East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan. If the Neighbourhood Plan is ‘made’ it will help determine planning applications in the East Woodhay Neighbourhood Area. It will also form part of the statutory development plan for Basingstoke and Deane.

If more people vote ‘no’ than ‘yes’ then the Neighbourhood Plan will not be made part of the statutory development plan for the local area.

Open Letter to East Woodhay Parish Council(PDF) [159 kb]

Ms Janet Cheesley was appointed to carry out an Independent Examination of the East Woodhay Neighbourhood. The Examination commenced on 7 September 2022.

East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan Examiners Report

During the examination any correspondence between the council and the examiner relevant to the examinations was placed on the council’s website. This correspondence is available below:

Email 1 - Notification of examination of East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan
Email 2 - East Woodhay Parish Council Response to the Regulation 16 representations

Any further correspondence will also be added to this webpage.

The East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan (EWNP) was submitted to Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council in March 2022. Consultation on the draft Plan was undertaken in accordance with Regulation 16 of the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 between March and May 2022.

Ms Janet Cheesley was appointed to carry out an Independent Examination of the Plan.

However, the examination of the Plan has been delayed to allow further work to take place on the impact of the Plan upon the protected nature conservation sites in the Solent. This is because a small part of the Parish is within the catchment of the River Test where advice from Natural England indicates that wastewater from new overnight accommodation could have significant effects upon the protected habitat sites in the Solent.

The following correspondence has been exchanged between the examiner and the parish council:

Formal letter to BDBC re Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment(PDF) [103 kb]

As a result of this, the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) screening report, and Policy HO2 (Settlement Policy Boundary and Building in the Countryside) of the Neighbourhood Plan have been updated. Consequential changes have also been made to the Basic Conditions Statement. These documents are set out below. No other policies in the Plan have been changed.

The East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan (BNP) was resubmitted to Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council (BDBC) on 30 June 2022, including the changes set out above. The plan has been subject to a compliance check to ensure it accords with the relevant legislation. The borough council’s decision and completed checklist can be found below:

• BDBC East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan compliance checklist letter
• BDBC East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan Plan compliance checklist

The Council carried out a further Regulation 16 consultation on the updated Plan between Monday 18 July 2022 and 4pm on Monday 5 September 2022.

The comments received will be passed on to the appointed examiner who will then carry out an independent examination on the neighbourhood plan. The examiner will consider whether the plan meets the Basic Conditions or whether any changes need to be made. The examiner will recommend if the plan should proceed to referendum.

It is not necessary to resubmit your comments from the Regulation 16 consultation in March - May 2022 if your views have not changed.

Representations received through the second consultation(PDF) [3 Mb]

The consultation documents (as updated, June 2022) can be viewed by selecting the links below:

• Submission East Woodhay NP,
• Consultation Statement,
• Consultation statement appendices,
• Basic Conditions Statement,
• Strategic Environmental Assessment and Habitats Regulations Assessment screening report and notice
• Representation Form and Guidance Note on the consultation and;
• Public notice

The East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan (BNP) was submitted to Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council (BDBC) on 1 March 2022. The plan has been subject to a compliance check to ensure it accords with the relevant legislation. The borough council’s decision and completed checklist can be viewed below:

• BDBC East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan compliance checklist letter
• BDBC East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan Plan compliance checklist

The first Regulation 16 consultation on the submission East Woodhay NP closed on Tuesday 3 May 2022.

All of the representations received can be viewed below:

Representations from the East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan

The comments received will be passed on to the appointed examiner who will then carry out an independent examination on the neighbourhood plan. The examiner will consider whether the plan meets the Basic Conditions or whether any changes need to be made. The examiner will recommend if the plan should proceed to referendum.

Details of the examination timetable and procedure will be published when available

The documents from the first consultation in March 2022 can be viewed by selecting the links below:

• Submission East Woodhay NP - SUPERSEDED,
• Consultation Statement - SUPERSEDED,
• Consultation appendices - SUPERSEDED,
• Basic Conditions Statement - SUPERSEDED,
• Strategic Environmental Assessment report and screening notice - SUPERSEDED,
• Representation Form and Guidance Note on the consultation SUPERSEDED and;
• Public notice - SUPERSEDED.

Consultation on the Pre-Submission East Woodhay Neighbourhood Plan took place from Monday 28 June to Monday 9 August 2021.

The East Woodhay Neighbourhood Area was approved on 5 November 2013. You can view copies of the documents associated with the area designation below:

East Woodhay Neighbourhood area map(PDF) [4 Mb]

East Woodhay Neighbourhood area application(PDF) [85 kb]

At the end of the publicity period any comments received will be passed on to the appointed examiner who will then carry out an independent examination on the neighbourhood plan. The examiner will consider whether the plan meets the Basic Conditions or whether any changes need to be made. The examiner will recommend if the plan should proceed to referendum.

Details of the examination timetable and procedure will be published when available.