Engagement crucial for plans
I believe that local communities should be in the driving seat when it comes to the planning of the new developments which the borough has to accommodate. This is why I am asking Tunbridge Wells Borough
Council for a community representative from town and parish councils to be part of the decision- making when it comes to the hiring of a consultant to help master plan major new sites. Large new extensions to settlements across the borough are proposed in the new Local Plan, including Paddock
Wood, Capel, Hawkhurst and Cranbrook, as well as a new garden village settlement at Tudeley.
These proposals will have a significant impact on residents and businesses. It is essential that the council understands and learns from past mistakes, such as the failure of the Calverley Square project. In July, the auditors’ draft report concluded that the council didn’t gather enough evidence to ensure public support for the project.
Surely, the council must now be doing everything possible to make sure that we take the public with us on major proposals from the outset?
It is nearly 10 years since the Localism Act (2011) came into force, yet only one parish in the borough, Hawkhurst, has a made neighbourhood plan.
One of the major drivers behind the act was a recognition that faster delivery of new homes could only be achieved by greater collaboration with and empowerment of local communities.
This clearly has not happened, as TWBC still cannot demonstrate a five-year housing land supply.
New developments are more likely to succeed if communities are involved at the earliest stages. This success should include a determination on the choice of consultant who will help guide communities through the design process.
It is only by enabling community buy-in to these new developments that we can ensure the creation of truly sustainable places which will be pleasant places in which to live, work and play for many years to come.
Cllr Nancy Warne
Tunbridge Wells Alliance Ward Member for Benenden and Cranbrook