Out-Law / Your Daily Need-To-Know

Plans for six more neighbourhood planning areas pass referendum but voter turnout is consistently low

08 Mar 2016, 2:42 pm

The development plans for six neighbourhood planning areas in England were backed by nine out of 10 participating voters last month. However, less than a third of eligible voters took part in each referendum.

Only 10% of those eligible to participate in a referendum on the neighbourhood plan for the Old Market Quarter in Bristol cast a vote on 25 February. The plan, which seeks to revitalise the local high street, whilst providing homes and promoting the wellbeing of residents and workers, received the backing of 265 voters: 90% of those taking part. However, the low turnout means planning decisions will be guided by a plan for which nine out of 10 local people did not indicate their support.

The neighbourhood plans for Bassett in Southampton and Morpeth in Northumberland both passed referendums with the support of 94% of participants. However, the 4,099 residents voting in favour of the Morpeth Neighbourhood Plan represented only 28% of eligible voters and the turnout in Bassett was only 21.4%.

A similarly small proportion of voters took part in the referendum for a Staffordshire parish, with 89% voting in favour of the Little Aston Neighbourhood Plan on a turnout of 21.5%. Turnout was slightly higher in nearby Stonnall, where 29.7% of eligible voters participated in the referendum on the Stonnall Neighbourhood Plan: 92% of them voting in favour of the plan.

The neighbourhood plan for the market town of Alton in East Hampshire was also approved for use in planning decisions, by 3,556 votes to 282 on a turnout of 28.6%. The plan allocates six sites in Alton for the development of a combined 1,027 homes by 2028.

Planning expert Emma Cottam of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, said: "The statistics show that amongst those participating in the neighbourhood planning process, there is an overwhelming vote in favour of the plan. There could well be a number of reasons as to why voter turnout is consistently low: a lack of understanding or awareness about the processes involved; failure to 'grab' the attention of local residents with respect to the content (for example, whether there are specific concerns around housing allocations in the area); or simply whether this just follows the general trend of levels of participation in local government elections."

"It will certainly be interesting to see whether the provisions in the Housing and Planning Bill, which aims to speed up and simplify the neighbourhood planning process, will encourage greater participation or whether it will simply be of most relevance to those already familiar to the concept of neighbourhood planning to begin with," said Cottam.