YOUR choice will dictate future
Ashbourne Neighbourhood Plan group member ALBERT GOLDING returns with a more detailed look at why the document is so important for the town
LAST week I wrote that the Ashbourne Neighbourhood Plan will be subject to a local referendum on May 6. Why is the Neighbourhood Plan so important to Ashbourne and its residents?
The answer is simple: It’s because neighbourhood planning gives communities the opportunity to direct the development of their areas through creating plans and policies.
Our own town council will be able to shape the future development of Ashbourne from the Town Hall.
Local town councillors, who know Ashbourne well and have their fingers on the pulse of Ashbourne’s future needs, should now become the first point of call for developers wanting to invest in Ashbourne.
The town council’s views on planning matters in Ashbourne now have legal force for the first time.
This also presents an opportunity for residents to get more involved in the local planning process and ensure that the town council does the right thing for Ashbourne.
Local accountability and community involvement in neighbourhood planning will enable us to improve Ashbourne over the next decade.
So where do we start? Let’s look at the town centre and what needs to be done to build on the recent investment by local retailers in improving the centre.
The Neighbourhood Plan was prepared following years of public consultation. Therefore the issues and planning policies for improving the town centre come direct from our community.
The Ashbourne Neighbourhood Plan states that we need:
To build on its strengths as an historic market town with a unique Georgian heritage and superb range of independent quality shops within its beautiful setting;
To optimise its opportunities by promoting new quality employment, improving the economy of the town centre, while resisting unsustainable out of town developments; Addressing parking issues to maximise visitor and shopper visits and encourage footfall – cheaper short stay parking. Re-establishing its reputation as a market town and supporting independent retailers; Resolving the issues which do not encourage a visitor economy, such as HGV traffic volumes and parking charges; Protecting the historic environment, including the listed buildings and conservation areas, which make Ashbourne attractive as a market town. How will the Neighbourhood Plan achieve these aims?
The Ashbourne Neighbourhood Plan will encourage developers, Derbyshire Dales District Council, Derbyshire County Council and community organisations to promote new development that meets the needs of the town centre.
The Neighbourhood Plan will be pro-active rather than re-active. It will give a lead to what the town centre needs rather than depending on what planning applications are randomly submitted.
It represents a new way of community regeneration, delivering what the community needs and wants.
In addition, the Neighbourhood Plan provides a new way of working for everyone interested in making the town centre better. It allows for the creation of a new strategic plan for Ashbourne that ties together the key organisations with a stake holding in our town.
Organisations, like our local authorities that have access to significant resources to invest in Ashbourne, can start to plan over the long term for improving the town centre.
For example there is a current Government funding programme called the ‘Levelling-up Fund’ that could provide up to £20 million to improve Ashbourne.
Bids for this nationally-competitive fund need to be made by June 16 and Ashbourne has already responded positively to this opportunity by outlining a potential programme of projects and investment.
It is now for Derbyshire Dales District Council to decide whether it wants to support an Ashbourne bid in 2021.
Even without this extra money for investment in Ashbourne, there is still a lot that can be done through the Neighbourhood Plan to make the town centre a safer and more attractive place to visit, shop in and enjoy, than it is at the moment.
Through co-ordinated action between public sector organisations and the private sector, individuals and agencies, major improvements can be made in managing traffic flow through the centre of Ashbourne. More of these opportunities in a further article.
These traffic mitigation measures can be coupled with major improvements of our open spaces and passageways through town, assets that Ashbourne should be proud of.
How can we improve the Market Place, the historic heart of Ashbourne, and link this with safe and attractive walking routes through Victoria Square, the Green Man and Horse and Jockey Yard leading to Compton through a revamped Shrovetide Walk?
The answer is by working in partnership and possibly creating a new model of managing regeneration in Ashbourne through a town partnership.
Next week I will be looking at what can be done to improve traffic management in town, building on the temporary Covid-19 measures that the county council has recently introduced.
If you want Ashbourne to be a better place to live in and visit then you have the opportunity of voting in favour of the Ashbourne Neighbourhood Plan at the local referendum on May 6, either by voting at your local polling station or by post if you have a postal vote.
This is an opportunity to get more involved in local planning and ensure the council does the right thing.