Your place, your plan

Published by Fiona Mannion for TCPA in Communities and also in Central Government, Housing

Leading planning think-tank, the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) has launched today, 29^th March 2011, a new community guide, ‘Your place, your plan’ supported by The Co-operative Group, to help local people get involved with shaping their area through the planning process. The guide is being launched at the TCPA’s conference on neighbourhood planning, ‘Building a new relationship between people and planning’. 

The guide underlines the Government’s ambitions to devolve greater power to local people and give them real influence over the places in which they live through the Localism Bill. It is intended to be at entry level for anyone interested in getting involved in their local planning process and therefore not steeped in planning language.

 Dr Hugh Ellis, TCPA Chief Planner said:

“All the jargon around planning can be a real turn-off. But people don’t need to learn a new language. At its heart, planning is all about creating a picture of your community’s future. This guide is all about showing how local people can really influence their area, either through the newly proposed neighbourhood plans, their local plan or other community-led vision documents.”   

The guide offers top tips and contacts to encourage local people to get involved in creating a vision for their area, to be inclusive and realistic as well as enjoying the process.

Ruairidh Jackson, Head of Planning, Strategy and Renewables at The Co-operative Group said:

“If you want a say in your community’s future, you need to get to grips with what planning can do for you and your neighbourhood. The Co-operative Group is delighted to support this guide which aims to get rid of some of the myths about planning and give local people the confidence to get started in shaping their communities.”

Diane Smith, Project Manager of the TCPA-led GRaBS (Green and Blue Space Adaptation in Urban Areas and Eco-towns) project, which helped develop the Guide, said:

‘“The adaptation of our urban areas to the impact of climate change is too often overlooked in the planning system, but ‘Your place, your plan’ is an excellent starting point for communities. If you want to see more green open space in your area, or space for local food production or you want to adapt to flood risk, a neighbourhood plan can help bring together the right expertise to shape and develop resilience to extreme weather in your area.”