Locals sceptical about Neighbourhood Planning, reveals Ipsos MORI poll

It was revealed that only 12% would be willing to help prepare a Neighbourhood Plan, according to the research by Ipsos MORI for the British Property Federation.

Conversely, the survey "revealed a widespread public support for new development", the BPF said. Nearly two thirds of respondents said they would support new development in their local area as long as it helped to create jobs or provided affordable housing for local people. 

However, Neighbourhood Planning, "an important pillar of Localism", aimed at handing power to locals to decide where certain development should take place, has been treated with "apathy and scepticism", said Liz Peace, chief executive of the BPF.

Only 34% of recipients would support the establishment of a Neighbourhood Plan where they live, and only 12% would be willing to help prepare a neighbourhood plan, said the BPF on the Ipsos MORI report. “Even more alarmingly” just 26% of respondents said they would vote in a referendum needed to approve a neighbourhood plan.

"It’s clear that there is a degree of apathy and scepticism towards the concept of neighbourhood planning that the Government must overcome if this important pillar of Localism is to succeed," said Peace. "To have any democratic legitimacy, neighbourhood plans should be drawn up and endorsed through the ballot box by as wide a cross-section of the community as possible.”

The support for local development to boost jobs and affordable housing was supported. It found that 61% of those asked agreed with the statement "I would support new development if it helped to create jobs by attracting people and businesses".

A total of 66% of respondents agreed that "I would support new development if it meant that enough affordable homes were provided for local residents."

"There will always be a vocal minority, but these figures reveal that, by-and-large, the silent majority will support new development as long as the housing and employment benefits of a particular scheme are made clear to them," said Peace.

Those living in the South of England were relatively less likely than those in the North or the Midlands to welcome new development but, again, the majority would welcome development.

In the North, 72% of residents said they would welcome development leading to affordable homes – higher than 63% in the Midlands and 64% in the South, the BPF said.

The survey also revealed confusion over how much of England has already been developed, which showed that 63% of people believed that a quarter or more of England has already been developed. The actual proportion of developed land in England is one tenth.