Alvechurch Parish Council
serving Alvechurch, Bordesley, Forhill, Hopwood, Rowney Green and Weatheroak.
serving Alvechurch, Bordesley, Forhill, Hopwood, Rowney Green and Weatheroak.
THE FUTURE OF ALVECHURCH PARISH
A public statement from Alvechurch Parish Council February 2025
INTRODUCTION
This public statement is part of a review of the Alvechurch Parish Neighbourhood Plan (APNP). It mentions what national and local agencies like Bromsgrove District Council are doing and how our Parish Council is gearing up for what could be significant change. That change will affect everyone who lives or works in the Parish.
THE ALVECHURCH PARISH NEIGHBOURHOOD PLAN
The first APNP (APNP1) was completed by Alvechurch Parish Council (APC) in 2018 and formally adopted one year later. It was comprehensive in planning Parish futures, including topics such as housing need, the importance of the green belt, the impact of too much growth on our existing infrastructure and the local environment plus the need to protect local character and heritage. It was widely respected because local people felt included in its production.
APNP1 recognised that some managed change is beneficial to communities. It stressed the need for more housing for older people, social housing and those embarking on the property ladder but warned that too much change could overwhelm local facilities and destroy the character and identity of a historic village.
NATIONAL AND DISTRICT POLICIES – PARISH VULNERABILITIES
Central Government has made no secret of its desire to reform the planning system alongside a 5-year target of 1.5M new homes nationally, to be allocated by District Councils like Bromsgrove. Bromsgrove District Council (BDC) will require Parishes to take a proportion of new housing figures. All this will be set within a new Local District Plan. It is likely that this new Plan will emerge from Bromsgrove in the coming months.
WHAT’S THE PARISH COUNCIL DOING?
The urgency of the Government’s intentions has put pressure on Bromsgrove to update its Local Plan and for Parishes like ours to update their neighbourhood plans.
A working group of APC Councillors and local residents has written a brief report for Bromsgrove DC stressing the validity of our existing APNP with the intent of recommending that a first phase of any future development should focus on areas indicated in the APNP.
APC recognises pressure may come for further phases of new housing but feels this should be considered only when there is clear evidence that Parish infrastructure can cope, such as improved primary healthcare facilities and only after community consultation.
The Parish Council has recently engaged the services of a consultant who advises on planning law and policy.
A new work plan is being put together to assess in detail whether the Parish, its infrastructure and facilities would cope with significantly more houses, the council’s preference as to where they might be located and how best to judge what local people want. The working group will present early findings to the Annual Parish meeting in March.
CONSULTATION – A 2-WAY PROCESS
APC recognises the value of good, 2-way communication with the community. After March, events like Picnic in the Park will be part of the consultation process, alongside information on websites, social media and The Village magazine.
A blueprint for the next 10 years or so will eventually emerge as ANPv2 and you will play a key role in influencing its shape.
“Alvechurch 2030 – where managed change and a celebration of rural character combine in a community made better by design”
More info on the APNP is available at https://alvechurch.gov.uk/, talk to your local Parish Councillor or contact your local Parish Council Office.
In April 2012 local communities were given legal powers under the Localism Act 2011 to develop Neighbourhood Plans. Neighbourhood Planning is the government’s initiative of trying to empower local communities to help make and take forward planning proposals at a local level. The idea being that local people will drive and then help to shape how their local communities grow and develop over the next coming years.
Alvechurch Parish Council wanted the people of our Parish to have a say in all aspects of the future of the parish area, but most importantly it wanted local people to decide where new housing, allocated by the Bromsgrove District Council’s Local Plan, should go.
The Alvechurch Parish Neighbourhood Plan sets out a vision for the area till 2030 that reflects the thoughts and feelings of local people with a real interest in their community. The Plan sets objectives on key themes such as, housing, employment, green space, the environment and conservation, moving around, community facilities and recreation. It builds on current and planned activity and what the Parish Council and its partners will work towards over the coming years.
What is in the Plan?
The Plan is a plan for the Parish as a whole. It provides a vision for the future and sets out clear planning policies to realise this vision. These policies accord with higher level planning policy of Bromsgrove District Council, as required by the Localism Act. It looks at a wide range of issues, including:
Referendum
The Neighbourhood Plan was put forward for examination to test whether it was in accordance with the strategic policies in Bromsgrove’s District Council’s Core Strategy. It was determined by the External Examiner that Alvechurch’s Parish Neighbourhood Plan had ‘undergone an exemplary public consultation process and set out a clear and deliverable vision for the neighbourhood area’. Following recommendation from the External Examiner, the Plan moved forward to referendum.
The referendum which took place on 10th January 2019, was successful, achieving a turnout of 36.6%. Over 96% of those who voted were in favour of the Plan. The Alvechurch Parish Neighbourhood Plan was formally made part of Bromsgrove District Council’s development plan on 27th February 2019.
The Future
The Neighbourhood Plan will need to be reviewed as the District Council allocate new homes and employment land to Alvechurch Parish in their proposed draft Local Plan and Green Belt review to be completed by 2023. As soon as housing allocations have been made in that Local Authority review to Alvechurch Parish Council, the NP Steering Group will need to start work again to review the Neighbourhood Plan so that we remain compliant and up-to-date with the Local District Plan.
You can see the core policy documents of the Neighbourhood Plan(NP) below, and find more information by following the link below to the NP’s website.
