News Archive

15 Oct 25

Apologies to those of you that received multiple emails two nights ago. There was an error in the host mail server which said that emails had not been sent, when they had been, so the system resent them. The problem has been fixed.

The NPSG hopes you can come along to the drop in session at 1900 on Thursday 16 Oct at the Village Hall for the opportunity to chat about the NP and to provide your comments, which the NPSG will capture. Tea etc will be available and the bar may be open too. Several people have said that they cannot make it and would like there to be a second session asap. We are hoping to do this at the Farmers' Market on Saturday, but that is not yet confirmed - as soon as a venue is firm, we will share the details.

As comments have begun to arrive (thank you), these are being compiled on a spreadsheet that will be made visible to everyone on this website as soon as we can make it available. We will also publish the results of the Questionnaire.

9 Oct 25

For the NPSG members, August was a time of holiday and go-slow and September was a very busy time for everyone returning to work, school and home.

FINALLY, the NPSG is pleased to announce that the Shrewton Neighbourhood Plan Draft V1-1 is available for your comments by email, please, by 31 Oct 25. Instructions for paper comments are on the Draft.

Here is the link to download the NP Draft V1-1

Paper copies should shortly be available to read in the Village Hall, Social Club, The Plume, Profile Hair Studio and the Bustard Inn.

What Happens Next? We have a Drop In Session in the Village Hall - 1900 on 16 Oct, when the NPSG team will do their best to answer your questions and chat about what is happening.

Here is the schedule for the Draft Review and Comment process.

9 Oct. Publish the updated draft NP V1 for public comment
16 Oct. NP public drop in/chat session 1900 at VH
31 Oct. NP draft V1 public comment period closes
6 Nov. NPSG reviews V1 responses
13 Nov. NP V2 published for public comment
27 Nov. NP public drop in/chat session 1900 at VH
28 Nov. NP draft V2 public comment period closes
4 Dec. NPSG reviews V2 responses

11 Dec. NP V3 published for public comment
18 Dec. NP public drop in/chat session 1900 at VH.
13 Jan. NP draft V3 public comment period closes
22 Jan. NPSG reviews V3 responses

29 Jan. NP public drop in/chat session 1900 at VH.
30 Jan. NP submission to Wilts Council.

Thank you for all the support so far..... Please get reading, chatting and commenting!!

Patrick Curry, Chair NPSG - patrick.curry@shrewton.info

7 Aug 25

The lead up to the holiday season has resulted in a slowdown on the NP as our volunteers have been busy with their day jobs. And the same is true in Wilts Council and elsewhere. It is quieter now that the school holidays have started. Nevertheless, this quiet time is a great opportunity for our editors to get our Draft NP V1 published for your review, suggestions and comments - unfortunately Paul McKernan has been struck down by Covid and we wish him a speedy recovery.

Team members manned the large NP stand at the Shrewton & Till Valley Horticultural Show. They were very busy answering questions and discussing village needs throughout the afternoon. It was a successful day.

The overall response was really positive and supportive, and people were very understanding and sympathetic about the challenges that continue to cause changes and delays in the producing the draft NP document, such as....

Government funding for NPs has stopped.
Wilts Council has two members of staff trying to handle more than 200 NPs, which has stopped briefings and slowed communication.
The top planning guidance has changed and we have to map to a new planning timeframe.
We can't yet get the water quality data associated with Wessex Water's 250 discharges/year, which we need as part of the assessment process..
We are required to include an implementation chapter with an explanation on how the plan's implementation could be funded, particularly in the case of affordable housing. In the same chapter, we have to explain how this is going to be managed in some form of Community Land Trust under a Registered Provider. Registered Providers are appointed nationally.

As a consequence, we need time to find new ways to get things done and allow volunteers some time off, so we are pausing all public briefings until September. That said, our door is always open for questions and comments.

3 June 25

Two encouraging events since our last post...

On 1 May (Polling Day), over 120 villagers came to speak to us at the Drop In stand at the Sports and Social Club after they had voted. All of them supported the NP effort and a good few offered to help.
On 21 May over 50 villagers were at the Parish Council Annual Meet The Electorate Meeting, which included a NP briefing. Many took home a flyer that summarised our NP progress to date.asdf

The guidance from Wiltshire Council has changed. They want us to stay with the existing housing target of 66 houses for now in the NP, in accordance with the existing Wiltshire Council Local Plan and complete our NP in early 2025. The Local Plan will go into review next year, resulting in a new Wiltshire Council Local Plan for another 5 years with a new housing target, which will require Shrewton to update its NP to synchronise with the Local Plan target. Thereafter, the Shrewton NP will have to be updated to align with the current Local Plan in a 5 year cycle, if our NP is to remain valid.

Wiltshire Council's documents have highlighted 5 areas of land in the SHELAA as being interesting for development. Four are large, and each one, by itself, could meet the housing target easily. They are all owned by the same person, who has a developer acting for him. That is currently the only landowner/developer pushing for development in the village. This developer continues to support the development of the NP.

Meantime, the guidance from Whitehall is changing too, with the government continuing to roll back environmental controls to enable faster housing development. The issue is becoming stronger government pressure to develop & build more houses vs government agencies resisting greater environmental damage. A notable case is Maids Moreton, where a 353 house village is being told to accept a development of 150 houses, even though there isn't sufficient sewage capacity for the existing housing and pollution levels in the River Ouse are already considered too high. The case has moved to the High Court. Further details are on BBC News at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn055462jy1o

We do not want that to happen here as we are in the headwaters of the Till, Wylie and Hampshire Avon chalk streams, and we sit over aquifers that could take centuries to recover from any major pollution. Wessex Water has published figures of more than 200 discharges a year for the last 2 years, however we don't know the details of the water quality involved. We continue to press for more information.

The NPSG is working hard to get the first draft of the new Neighbourhood Plan out to the village for comment, but it has been difficult as the policy guidance has shifted several times. However, we believe we can incorporate the latest changes fairly quickly so that we can publish in June. We hope that this will advance our situation from today's gathering information and views, to engaging the village in more informed debates about the issues, the potential benefits, the options, the NP itself and its eventual implementation.

Other Progress

We are delighted that Stephen Tarr has volunteered to join the NPSG and lead a lot of the Community Engagement effort, which is so important.
We have the first draft of our design guide which is in review and will be part of the NP package.
We have a 3-part environmental document that will be part of the NP package.
We have received the first draft of the AECOM Shrewton Housing Needs Assessment, for comment.
We are working on our Sustainability Appraisal which includes the Strategic Environmental Assessment. This report is one of the mandatory deliverables and will show how the proposed development will ‘ensure that potential environmental effects are avoided or mitigated, and that opportunities for enhancing the environment (and the quality of life of residents) can be fully realised).
134 Questionnaire responses so far. The 100+ pages of analytics are being digested so that we can provide a summary of the high points on a few pages, as well as a much richer and bigger document for people to consider.
The next public Zoom call is on 5 Jun at 1900 and the next physical meeting is in the VH on 19 June.
We are about to launch a WhatsApp group in response to many requests for one.

Thank you for all the support so far..... Keep it coming!!

Patrick Curry, Chair NPSG - patrick.curry@shrewton.info

23 March 25

14 days ago, I reported the following... The government recently stated that “rural communities without NPs may be more vulnerable to speculative planning applications” and they pushed a second message - "Go for Growth". Advisers added that:

A successful NP must be well constructed and show strong social, economic and environmental value for the community for the future.
It should aim to provide more housing over and above new housing targets, which are due at the end of this year.

Based on government figures, our expected target is around 132 houses, so a figure around 160 would provide a clear commitment by the village to Go for Growth, increase funding for community assets and protect us against speculative planning applications. If the government housing target is less than 132, then we can reduce the "160" figure. We have now been told that, if there is a Neighbourhood Plan in place, we will be given more % funding than if there is not. At the moment, any funding that might be available for the village is earmarked to contribute significantly to financing new and improved community assets.

In accordance with government requirements, and with government funding. AECOM has been commissioned to complete the Shrewton Housing Needs Assessment, which will take 16 weeks or so. We should be given an update sometime in June.

The NPSG members are each busy working away at their specialist roles and you will soon see new pages with information on different topics. At the same time, we/they are updating the policies and text in the draft NP V1. We are nearly there!

Other news...

The emailing list of subscribers is now operational and villagers are signing up. See above
The draft Version 1 of the NP is nearing completion, ready for review and comments by everyone.
125 Questionnaire responses so far. Here is The Questionnaire You can collect paper copies from the Bridge Garage and Profile Studio. If you haven't done one, please do - every little helps.
The NP Steering Group has 11 members and 2 vacancies - Leads for Community Engagement and Business. If you can help, please volunteer or recommend a friend.
The Walkers, Ramblers, Riders, Cyclists etc meeting on access (footpaths, bridlepaths, byways etc) took place in Maddington Church Rooms on 19 March. The few that attended were very knowledgeable about the situation and the issues, and the discussions helped to identify some clear actions.
The NP public meeting took place the Village Hall on 20 March to display various ideas on what small, medium and large village halls could look like, offering many more facilities. Also displayed were maps of the Salisbury Plain Training Area, the Wiltshire Rights of Way definitive map, the SHELAA (land bank) maps of sites around the village, available for development. It was a Browse, Chat, Ask walk around that produced some interesting questions and thoughts. This kind of session worked well and it will be repeated.
The Village Hall's application to become a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) has been submitted to the Charities Commission, which will present new opportunities. The details will soon be available on the Village Hall's brand new website www.shrewtonvillagehall.org.uk
The next public Zoom call is on 3 April at 1900 and the next physical meeting is in the VH on 17 April.

9 March 25

The government recently stated that “rural communities without NPs may be more vulnerable to speculative planning applications”. In government "Yes Minister" language, this is a strong statement ("may" = "will be"), and similar messages are appearing from other quarters. There is a second message - "Go for Growth". Putting these two messages together and consulting with officials and planning experts, the emerging government message is that:

A successful NP must be well constructed and show strong social, economic and environmental value for the community for the future.
It should aim to provide more housing over and above new housing targets, which are due at the end of this year. Based on government figures, our expected target is around 132 houses, so a figure around 160 would provide a clear commitment by the village to Go for Growth, increase funding for community assets and protect us against speculative planning applications. If the government housing target is less than 132, then we can reduce the "160" figure.

If we opt for development that accords with the government growth targets, we likely to get more "goodies" in terms of community facilities. If we don't, then we are likely to continue as we are and, eventually, to have a larger housing target and a solution imposed upon us, in which we will have almost no say. The strong advice is that we should opt for a Growth strategy in the short term to ensure we have a vibrant community into the future. The NPSG is working to produce a set of options within the coming months, for the villagers to consider. Stay tuned!

Other news...

The draft Version 1 of the NP is nearing completion, ready for review and comments by everyone.
123 Questionnaire responses so far. Here is The Questionnaire You can collect paper copies from the Bridge Garage and Profile Studio. If you haven't done one, please do - every little helps.
The first mailing list should be operational in the next few days. It will be to send out the monthly Shrewton NP Newsletter. The second will be an email-based discussion forum as an alternative to social media; if it gets too big, then we can create more specific discussion groups as needed.
The NP Steering Group has 11 members and 2 vacancies - Leads for Community Engagement and Business. If you can help, please volunteer or recommend a friend.
The next public meeting in the Village Hall is 7 pm on 20 March - it has been given over to the Village Hall Committee to show various ideas on what a new village hall could look like, offering many more facilities. The Football Club is also participating.
The Village Hall held an Extraordinary General Meeting on 5 March to explain the Charity's transition to become a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO), and the opportunities that this will bring. The details will soon be available on the Village Hall's brand new website www.shrewtonvillagehall.org.uk
The first public Zoom call took place on 6 March with plenty of discussion. Turn out was low, but it will grow.

28 Feb 25

The NP Steering Group (NPSG) has met for the second time, with each member having a role with an initial set of tasks - click here to see who they are. As the NPSG engages with Wilts Council, Wessex Water, developers and landowners, a clearer picture is beginning to emerge, which indicates that the sooner there is a Shrewton NP in place, the more likely it is that we will be able to prevent having unwanted development imposed upon us. However, it is also clear that if we opt for development that accords with the government growth targets, we likely to get more "goodies" in terms of community facilities. If we don't, then we are likely to continue as we are and, eventually, to have a larger housing target and a solution imposed upon us, in which we will have almost no say. The strong advice is that we should opt for a Growth strategy in the short term to ensure we have a vibrant community into the future. The NPSG is exploring the situation to produce a set of options within the coming months, for the villagers to consider. Stay tuned!

122 Questionnaire responses so far. Here is The Questionnaire You can collect paper copies from the Bridge Garage and Profile Studio.
The first mailing list should be operational in the next few days. It will be to send out the monthly Shrewton NP Newsletter. The second will be an email-based discussion forum as an alternative to social media; if it gets too big, then we can create more specific discussion groups as needed.
The NP Steering Group has 11 members and 2 vacancies. Details to follow shortly on the website.
The next public meeting in the Village Hall is 7 pm on 20 March - it has been given over to the Village Hall Committee to show various ideas on what a new village hall could look like, offering many more facilities. The Football Club is also participating.
Please note that the Village Hall is holding an Extraordinary General Meeting on 5 March to explain the Charity's transition to become a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO), and the opportunities that this will bring. The details are available on the village WhatsApp and will soon be available on the Village Hall's brand new website www.shrewtonvillagehall.org.uk
The first public Zoom call is now 7 pm on 6 March, where we will give the first update.

All comments and suggestions are welcomed. Thank you!!

Patrick Curry, Chair NPSG - patrick.curry@shrewton.info