Southwater Neighbourhood Plan

Client: Southwater Parish Council
Local Planning Authority: Horsham

In March 2014, at a public meeting, the community of Southwater decided to prepare a Neighbourhood Plan. They worked on the plan for several years with some consultant support and our director (Andrew Metcalfe) became involved in the project in 2017 before Squires Planning was established and when he was working at Enplan. He helped those working on the plan focus on what needed to be done as well as guide them through the process of creating planning policy, from preparing the evidence to writing the plan itself. The plan was complex and required a successful working partnership with the Parish Council, local volunteers on the Steering Group, site promoters, statutory consultees, Horsham District Council, and a range of other consultants who assisting in preparing the plan's evidence base including Landscape Architects, Highway Engineers, Viability Consultants. 

The plan is bold, including a significant allocation for new homes and introduces a range of local requirements from housing and parking standards to planting trees.

Squires Planning was instructed in April 2019 when the company was established. We helped to drive the plan forward from that point, successfully dealing with issues as they arose, responding to examination questions and attending the examination hearing on behalf of the Parish Council. We are really pleased to report that the plan passed examination with minor changes (view the Examiners Report) and went on to receive 2,440 yes votes (82.5%) in favour of bringing the plan into force!

We are delighted to have assisted the Parish Council get the plan over the line.