Neighbourhood Plan Update Session
Residents are invited to come along to a drop-in session at the Youth Centre, Newton Aycliffe, on Thursday 1st October, between 4.30pm and 7pm for the latest information on the Great Aycliffe Neighbourhood Plan.
Work on the Plan has progressed well over the summer months and this session will aim to bring residents up to date. It will include information on the findings of a Character and Heritage Assessment, which has been carried out by consultants, and will look ahead to the forthcoming ‘Your Issues, Our Proposals’ public consultation.
In response to issues residents identified as important to them, this consultation will include a number of proposals to protect the green and spacious environment of Aycliffe, including the greens of the older parts of the town. There are also proposals to ensure that future housing development meets the needs of all residents, particularly the elderly, within the limitations of a Neighbourhood Plan, which is concerned with planning policy only. There will be the opportunity to vote on these proposals at this session.
In last year’s town-wide Neighbourhood Plan questionnaire, retail provision was ranked the most important topic and in recognition of the strength of feeling of residents, an independent soft retail test was obtained, which asked 139 national and local retailers if they would be interested in locating a store in Newton Aycliffe.
The results were dis-appointing, as there was practically no interest from retailers, who took a purely commercial decision. However, there are some proposals, regarding retail
provision, which the Neighbourhood Plan could facilitate, and your views would be welcome. For more information, please contact Christine Walton at the Town Council, Tel: 300700.
