Decision details

To amend the Queen Thorne Neighbourhood Area by retaining the parish of Trent but excluding the parishes of Over Compton, Nether Compton and Sandford Orcas. The neighbourhood area will subsequently be referred to as Trent Neighbourhood Area. 

Scheme of delegation 

Under the Officer Scheme of Delegation (April 2019), the Executive Director of Place has the power to ‘make a final determination as to whether to designate a neighbourhood plan area and/or make such an area a business area’. 

The Local Scheme of Nomination sets out which functions have been nominated by the Executive Director of Place and any conditions or limitations. This includes the power ‘make a final determination as to whether to designate a neighbourhood plan area and/or make such an area a business area’.  

The conditions/limitations are ‘Provided that this does not include power to make: (i) a final determination as to whether to designate a neighbourhood plan area unless in his/her opinion: 

    (A) there is insufficient time to have the matter considered by the relevant committee as part of the normal committee cycle;  

    (B) the Council is legally obliged to approve the designation; and/or  

    (C) there has been no objection to the proposal submitted to the Council within any relevant time for the submission of representations which has not been withdrawn;’ 

The Neighbourhood Planning (General) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 introduces Regulation 6A which requires the authority to determine an area application within 13 weeks from the date immediately following that on which the application was first published. As the Trent Neighbourhood Area application was first published on 4 August 2023 the Council needs to make a decision regarding the proposed neighbourhood area by the 4 November 2023. Given no objections were received in respect of the consultation held relating to the proposed neighbourhood area, the conditions within the Officer Scheme of Delegation / Local Scheme of Nomination have been met and a decision can be made. 

To amend the Queen Thorne Neighbourhood Area by retaining the parish of Trent but excluding the parishes of Over Compton, Nether Compton and Sandford Orcas. The neighbourhood area will subsequently be referred to as Trent Neighbourhood Area. 

Scheme of delegation 

Under the Officer Scheme of Delegation (April 2019), the Executive Director of Place has the power to ‘make a final determination as to whether to designate a neighbourhood plan area and/or make such an area a business area’. 

The Local Scheme of Nomination sets out which functions have been nominated by the Executive Director of Place and any conditions or limitations. This includes the power ‘make a final determination as to whether to designate a neighbourhood plan area and/or make such an area a business area’.  

The conditions/limitations are ‘Provided that this does not include power to make: (i) a final determination as to whether to designate a neighbourhood plan area unless in his/her opinion: 

    (A) there is insufficient time to have the matter considered by the relevant committee as part of the normal committee cycle;  

    (B) the Council is legally obliged to approve the designation; and/or  

    (C) there has been no objection to the proposal submitted to the Council within any relevant time for the submission of representations which has not been withdrawn;’ 

The Neighbourhood Planning (General) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 introduces Regulation 6A which requires the authority to determine an area application within 13 weeks from the date immediately following that on which the application was first published. As the Trent Neighbourhood Area application was first published on 4 August 2023 the Council needs to make a decision regarding the proposed neighbourhood area by the 4 November 2023. Given no objections were received in respect of the consultation held relating to the proposed neighbourhood area, the conditions within the Officer Scheme of Delegation / Local Scheme of Nomination have been met and a decision can be made.

Proposed Area 

Queen Thorne Parish Council has submitted an area application to amend the Queen Thorne Neighbourhood Area by retaining the parish of Trent but excluding the parishes of Over Compton, Nether Compton and Sandford Orcas. The neighbourhood area will subsequently be referred to as Trent Neighbourhood Area. 

As part of the designation process a minimum 6-week consultation period is required where the proposed area does not align with a parish boundary, in order to give interested parties, the opportunity to make comments. The proposal was subject to consultation, held between the Friday 4^th August to Friday 15 September 2023, a period of six weeks.  

At the close of consultation four responses had been received from three statutory bodies (Highways England, Natural England and Historic England) and an adjacent Local Planning Authority (Somerset Council). All responses noted the change but provided no further comment regarding the change to the neighbourhood area.  

Recommendation 

As a valid application has been received from Queen Thorne Parish Council, the Council must designate a neighbourhood area. No objections to the revised area have been received within the consultation period and on this basis, it is recommended that the revised neighbourhood area (now excluding the parishes of Over Compton, Nether Compton and Sandford Orcas) be approved without delay. The neighbourhood area will now be referred to as Trent Neighbourhood Area. 

Business Area

Section 61H of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, as amended by the Localism Act 2011, requires that when designating a neighbourhood area, a local planning authority should consider whether the area concerned should be designated as a ‘business area’. If a business area is designated, local businesses would have the opportunity to be more involved in the formation of the neighbourhood plan and would get an opportunity to vote (alongside registered electors) in the later referendum on whether the neighbourhood plan should come into force. However, this section of the Act is clear that a neighbourhood area should only be designated as a business area if it is ‘wholly or predominantly business in nature’.

Trent is a small rural village with few businesses and in this context, it is not considered appropriate to designate the neighbourhood area as a business area.