The government recently announced that seventeen communities will spearhead a trial of neighbourhood planning. Neighbourhood Plans are a flagship "big society" policy being introduced in the localism bill. The aim is to make it possible for communities to exercise genuine influence over what their home town should look like.
Few would disagree with giving communities greater power and influence over the places they live and the decisions that affect them. Indeed, many agree that it delivers better informed decisions as well as socially just outcomes. But broad consensus about the need for people to have a greater say is the easy bit. The real challenge is making involvement a meaningful within the complex decision making framework of planning.
The challenges of neighbourhood planning
The government estimates that neighbourhood plans will cost around £17,000 per plan, with an upper estimate of £200,000. While some communities will be able to afford to develop fine grain neighbourhood plans, others will not and it is in those communities without the resources where planners will be needed most.
However, the real test of whether neighbourhood planning will take off is not just financial. There are other challenges. Firstly, communities will have to navigate a planning system which has to get to grips with the significant cultural change needed to re-orientate itself towards the community level.
Secondly, participation in planning is often in the form of opposition to development, such as housing, which is vital to meeting social needs. So how do council's help re-engage people in a planning system that can be confrontational and seem, well, a little dull?
Engaging communities
At its heart, planning is all about creating a picture of a community's future. That is why the Town and Country Planning Association has published Your place, your plan – a guide to community planning that is all about showing how local people can really influence their area, either through the newly proposed neighbourhood plans, the council's Local Plan, or other community-led vision documents.
But it won't always be easy to reach agreement on community priorities. There are inherent tensions within planning that must be acknowledged. In the real world of planning, and particularly in relation to housing and infrastructure, large scale developments are a test of how far local communities can control their own destiny in the face of national economic imperatives. Even those who are interested in promoting social justice – including local politicians, planning officers and communities - are caught between wanting to see inclusive planning processes and wanting to see inclusive outcomes.
Tools for change
In response to these sorts of challenges, housing and homelessness charity Shelter have launched a free online tool to try to tackle local objections to house building. The new resource Housing Insights for Communities, will allow local authorities to see information about demographic groups, down to ward level, to find out about attitudes towards development in those area and the likelihood of objections. This tool aims to help local authorities select the right messages and communication channels to engage people in a positive way and achieve behaviour change.
These tools are worth using, whether you are involved in one of the government's neighbourhood planning "front runners" or simply interested in helping ensure that people no longer feel excluded or ignored by the planning process. We must make the new planning system work - it is essential for the health of our communities, the environment and our economy.
Kate Henderson is chief executive of planning think-tank the Town and Country Planning Association
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