Background

So why have a Parish Plan?  What does it do for us?  Well, here's a little of the background. 

In November 2000, the Rural White Paper "Our Countryside - The Future" was published and it set out a range of measures so that local people could have more say in how their affairs were managed and give everyone a chance to say how their community develops.  As part of this, the Government has committed itself to establishing Parish Plans. 

Of course, the Government doesn't produce the Parish Plans itself; it encourages Parishes to produce their own plans for themselves.  So that's what we're doing - starting with a questionnaire to gather your views, opinions, and ideas. 

There's no compulsion for a parish to produce a plan but many parishes around the country have done so and found them very useful.  They provide a good view as to what the community likes about itself and wants to preserve, what it would like to improve and enhance, and what changes it would like to see in the future.  Needless to say, what we might like and what we actually get are not the same thing!  Money is always limited and local ideas may not agree with wider-area ideas, but having a Parish Plan makes a statement as to what we, the community, want and it adds weight to our requests - and that can make all the difference when it comes to obtaining funding or having our say. 

The Government seem to be very impressed with what Parish Plans have achieved in many areas and are hinting that this is such a good idea that one day it might become a requirement for every parish to have a plan - so we'll be ahead of the game!  Furthermore, if Parish Plans help local communities as much as the Government hope, then this might become a regular part of local life with the parish producing a new plan perhaps every ten years or so.  After all, life doesn't stay still and things are always changing, so it would be nice to think that every so often we'll take stock of where we are and look for further ways to keep improving the place where we live.