Neighbourhood Plan

A Neighbourhood Plan is a framework developed by the community i.e. the residents and businesses of Ilminster, to guide the future development of the town. An approved Neighbourhood Plan would run alongside the policies contained in the South Somerset Local Plan and the National Planning Policy Framework.

This is an opportunity for people who live and work in Ilminster to have their say in the future of the town.

The Ilminster Neighbourhood Plan Story
Town Council agreed on 13th October 2015 to investigate developing a Neighbourhood Plan

The Neighbourhood Plan area formally designated by South Somerset District Council June 2017 Click here for neighbourhood area designations

All households received a leaflet which informed them about the Neighbourhood Plan July 2017 click here for leaflet.

Workshops were held during June and July 2017 to give residents, business and local organisations more information and to encourage participation. There were also information stalls at the Ilminster Midsummer Experience. At all the events participants were asked to complete a form indicating based on their current knowledge of Neighbourhood Plan whether or not they would support the development of a Neighbourhood Plan for Ilminster; 81 votes were cast of those 76 said they would support the development of the plan, 2 were not sure and 3 would not support.

Click here to download a summary of the themes raised and discussed at the workshops.

The Town Council agreed at the Planning, Highways and Transport Committee meeting on 5th September 2017 to apply for a grant to conduct a Housing Needs Survey which will provide important evidence for the Neighbourhood Plan

Regular meetings of the Neighbourhood Plan Development Group are now taking place. With regular updates to Town Council.

Click here to download the Neighbourhood Plan Development Group’s Terms of Reference

December 2018
The Neighbourhood Plan Development Group sought quotations from suitably experienced people or organisations to provide consultancy support to the Group and ECA were subsequently appointed.

Survey No 1 (Summer 2019) – Providing the homes and jobs that we need

The results of the survey will be posted here in the Autumn of 2019.

Housing Needs Report
As part of the evidence gathering for the Neighbourhood Plan, the Town Council commissioned the Community Council for Somerset to undertake a Housing Needs Survey. Survey forms were posted to every household in Ilminster in April / May 2018. The Town Council approved the report compiled for the survey responses, at the Town Council meeting on 23 October 2018. To download a copy of the report Click here for HNS Report

Call For Sites – July 2019
Landowners and agents of land within the Ilminster Neighbourhood Plan boundary have been asked for expressions of interest in applying for future development permission.This exercise will not in itself decide whether a site will be allocated for development nor will it commit the proposer(s) to applying for planning consent. It will enable the Town Council to better understand the needs and wishes of residents and businesses within the area. The person nominating the site does not need to own or manage the site.

Public Workshops
The Neighbourhood Plan Development Group is holding a series of structured workshops for the people of Ilminster to join in. Run by a team of professional planners, urban designers and architects in an informal environment, they will be informative and fun, with refreshments along with activities for younger people.
We will share the outcome of our completed ‘Call for Sites’ and ‘Sites Options Report’ and wish to hear your views on what sites are suitable for development, and the design of developments, in Ilminster.

The workshops are:
Site Selection Workshop No.1
Thursday 26 September 2019, 17:00-19:00hrs, Ile Valley Youth and Community Centre, Frog Lane, Ilminster, Somerset, TA19 0AP
Design Code Workshop No.1
Thursday 17 October 2019, 17:00-19:00hrs, Shrubbery Hotel, Station Road, Ilminster
Design Code Workshop No.2
Thursday 21 November 2019, 17:00-19:00hrs, Shrubbery Hotel, Station Road, Ilminster

To join our workshops, please let us know as soon as possible, and no later than 5pm, the previous Tuesday, by emailing: martha@eca-p.com with the title/reference ‘Ilminster Neighbourhood Plan’. Should workshops be oversubscribed, we will arrange additional workshops and keep you informed of these.

Keep Up To Date with the Ilminster Story
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