Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan

Adoption of Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan

Following a positive referendum result, Ashford Borough Council has adopted the Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan 2016-30 as part of Ashford Borough Council’s Development Plan in accordance with Regulation 19 of the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012.

The Adopted Neighbourhood Plan and formal Regulation 19 Decision statement as required under Neighbourhood Planning Regulations is included in the key documents set out below:

Adopted Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan [pdf] 8222KB

Regulation 19 Decision Statement [pdf] 452KB

Adopted Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan - Appendix 1 [pdf] 6507KB

Hard copies of the Neighbourhood Plan and Decision Statement above can be found at St Mary the Virgin Church, the Ewe and Lamb Public House, and the Civic Centre, Ashford during their usual opening times.

Referendum

The Referendum was held on 7 November 2019. The declaration of turnout and results are available here.

Final Neighbourhood Plan Decision Notice

Regulation 18 – Council's Decision Statement

Ashford Borough Council has now considered the contents of the Examiner’s Report and have prepared a Decision Statement setting out the actions to be taken in response to the recommendations of the Examiner.

The Decision Statement confirms that the Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan, with modifications, can proceed to referendum.

Decision Statement - Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan [pdf] 116KB

Final Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan - Including Modifications [pdf] 8908KB

Final Character Areas Assessment and Approaches - Appendix [pdf] 6457KB

Public Notice - Rolvenden [pdf] 124KB

This information can also be viewed in hard copy at the following locations from 26 September 2019:

St Mary the Virgin Church, Maytham Road, Rolvenden, TN17 4ND
Ewe and Lamb Public House, 26 Maytham Road, Rolvenden, TN17 4NP
Ashford Borough Council, Civic Centre, Tannery Lane, Ashford, TN23 1PL
Tenterden Gateway, 2 Manor Row, Tenterden, TN30 6HP

Examiners Report

Ashford Borough Council appointed Mr. Derek Stebbing as the Independent Examiner of the Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan.

The Examiner assessed whether the RNP meets certain legal requirements, known as the ‘basic conditions’ as well as giving consideration to representations made on the draft PNP.

The council has received the Examiner’s Report which recommended that, subject to certain modifications, the plan can proceed to referendum.

Inspectors Report - Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan [pdf] 427KB

Examination

On 11 July 2019, Ashford Borough Council received the following correspondence from the independent examiner [docx] 23KB regarding the Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan Examination.

You can view the submitted plan and other documents by following this link to the Rolvenden Neighbourhood Plan consultation portal.

Background and Designation

In April 2013 Ashford Borough Council received an application from Rolvenden Parish Council for the designation of a Neighbourhood Area. The area requested to be designated was the entire Parish of Rolvenden. The application and map of the area went out for public consultation for six weeks until Friday 21 June 2013. Three comments were received and they can be viewed in Appendix 2 of the Cabinet Report below.

On 11 July 2013 the Cabinet approved the designation of the Rolvenden Neighbourhood Area. You can download copies of the Cabinet Report, Neighbourhood Area application and map, which identifies the area, below:

SEA/HRA Screening and Regulation 14 consultation

Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is required under European legislation for all plans which may have a significant effect on the environment. This particularly relates to plans which allocate development sites, including Local Plans and Neighbourhood Plans. An SEA is a mechanism for considering and communicating the likely significant effects of a draft plan, and reasonable alternatives, with a view to avoiding and mitigating negative environmental effects and maximising the positives.

A Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) is a process which looks at the potential impact of proposals within a plan on internationally designated wildlife sites. For the purpose of the HRA, internationally designated wildlife sites are Special Protection Areas (SPA), Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) and Ramsar wetland sites, often together referred to as ‘Natura 2000’ sites.

Does a Neighbourhood Plan require an SEA/HRA?

Not every plan needs an SEA and/or HRA. To determine whether the neighbourhood plan requires an SEA/HRA it is necessary to screen the proposals in the plan to determine whether it is likely to result in significant environmental effects. Ashford Borough Council has undertaken this screening and the determination report can be found below: