Results of Referendum held Thursday 15th August 2024
Residents voted YES to the Neighbourhood Plan.
Yes: 88%
No: 12%
Following six years of hard work, by a small, but dedicated team of resident volunteers and town councillors, the Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan went to Referendum on Thursday 15th August 2024. Residents voted in favour of adoption of the Plan by Ashford Borough Council, the local planning authority.
The Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan will now be presented to the next available meeting of the Cabinet at Ashford Borough Council for formal adoption as planning policy.
The Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan can be viewed here.
Documents relating to the referendum and examination process of the Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan are shown below.
Ashford Borough Council Issue of Decision Statement
Ashford Borough Council has released a Decision Statement confirming that the Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan, with modifications, can proceed to referendum.
The Referendum will take place on Thursday 15th August 2024.
Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan Information Statement for Referendum
Regulation 18 Decision Statement - Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan [pdf] 262KB
Regulation 18 Public Notice - Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan [pdf] 137KB
Neighbourhood Plan documents are available to view here.
Independent Examination of the Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan
Ashford Borough Council appointed Mr. Derek Stebbing B.A. (Hons), Dip. E.P., MRTPI as the Independent Examiner of the review of the Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan in December 2023. The Independent Examination has now been completed, the Examiner has recommended that the Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan has been duly prepared in compliance with the procedural requirements and that the Plan, subject to a number of modifications (set out in Appendix 1 of the Examiner's report below), meets the Basic Conditions and should proceed to referendum.
View the Examiner's report of the Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan [pdf] 436KB
Examination Documents
The Examiner has set out the procedural matters for how the Examination will progress, and asked some questions of the Qualifying body and the Council in correspondence dated 16 January 2024.
View the Examiner's Procedural Matters and Questions [pdf] 229KB
Tenterden Town Council Response to Examiner's Questions
View the response from Tenterden Town Council to the Examiner's questions [pdf] 13335KB
Neighbourhood Plan documents are available to view here.
Status of the Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan
While Neighbourhood Plans cannot be formally ‘made’ (adopted) until after a positive referendum result, national planning policy and legislation stipulates that emerging Neighbourhood Plans, and in particular ‘post-examination’ plans, should be given appropriate weight in decision making where that Plan is a material consideration to the application.
Consequently, the issuing of the Decision Statement by Ashford Borough Council on 30 May 2024, brought into force the Tenterden Neighbourhood Plan as a material consideration in the planning application process. Proportionate weight can now be applied by the Town Council in making comments on planning applications and ABC in determining them.
