With its Neighbourhood Forum status renewed, the South Woodford Society can now push ahead with its long-awaited neighbourhood plan, setting out a community-led vision for the area. Pearl Arbenser-Simmonds reports
In February 2020, the South Woodford Society was designated Neighbourhood Forum and Area status by Redbridge Council. Whilst Area status does not expire, Neighbourhood Forum designations only last five years. So, earlier this year, we submitted an application to have our Forum status re-designated.
Our application has now been formally ratified by the council and we once again hold full Neighbourhood Forum designation. This will allow us to officially take the final steps towards completing the neighbourhood plan for South Woodford. It has been a long journey, but we are proud of what we have achieved thus far.
We applied for and received government funding, which allowed us to engage a consultant to assist us in drafting the plan. It also allowed us to commission: a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Screening Opinion to assess the environmental impact of the vision and aims of our plan; and a Housing Needs Assessment to determine local housing requirements, affordability pressures and gaps in housing supply across different tenures. It informs local planning strategies, housing registers and development plans to ensure communities have suitable homes for all demographic groups. Additional government funding enabled the production of a Design Code for the area, which will support the Neighbourhood Plan.
Throughout the process, we have engaged with our local community, including service providers, landowners and businesses, to ensure we can accurately represent diverse viewpoints. The result of all this work is a vision and a set of aims outlined below:
- To manage change for the benefit of residents and to create a clean and safe environment that is well-maintained and managed. A place that people of all ages and from all walks of life can be proud of and will want to work together to protect.
- To enhance the busy atmosphere of the town centre and make it more vibrant with better shopping and entertainment.
- To protect and enhance our green spaces, being environmentally sensitive to improve amenities so people can enjoy the community areas to the full.
The success of the South Woodford Business Network is a testament to our aim to enhance the busy atmosphere of the high street, and our ever-popular Summer Festival and Christmas Light Up events further support this aim. Improvements to the Community Orchard at the corner of Primrose Road and Mulberry Way, as well as Eastwood Green opposite the roundabout on George Lane, demonstrate our commitment to protect and enhance our green spaces and improve amenities for the benefit of our community.
Our next steps will be to:
- Update our evidence, policies and preferred options.
- Hold a statutory public pre-submission consultation.
- Submit our revised plan to the council, who will publish it for further comments.
- An independent examiner will review the documents.
- The council arranges a community referendum for registered electors.
A simple majority is required to pass the referendum, and if successful, the council will formally adopt the plan. It then becomes part of the council’s statutory development framework and local decision-makers are legally required to use it when assessing planning applications.
With thanks to the community for their input and support.
For more information on the South Woodford Society and the Neighbourhood Plan, visit sowosoc.org
