Neighbourhood planning

Neighbourhood plans were introduced by the Localism Act 2011, allowing communities to draw up a plan for their local area. The aim is (within certain limits) to give people more of a say in how their local area is developed.

Neighbourhood plans are led by authorised community organisations – a neighbourhood forum.  In line with the Neighbourhood Planning Regulations (2012), community groups who wish to do this must apply to us for neighbourhood area/forum designation (PDF).

We encourage neighbourhood plans to be prepared as 'Community Plans'. These will then be adopted as a Supplementary Planning Document without having to go through a formal independent examination and referendum.

Section 61F of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as inserted by the Localism Act 2011) provides a local planning authority the power to designate an organisation or body as a neighbourhood forum.

The Council originally designated the Highams Park Neighbourhood Area / Forum on 15 July 2014. The Highams Park Planning Group (as the designated Neighbourhood Forum) is the relevant body to prepare a Neighbourhood Plan for the Highams Park area, and the Highams Park Neighbourhood Plan prepared by the group was adopted by the Council in 2020 following success at a neighbourhood referendum. 

The designation as a neighbourhood forum lasts for 5 years, after which the members must apply for re-designation to continue to function as the relevant body for the purposes of neighbourhood planning.  The Highams Park Planning Group applied for and were successfully re-designated in 2019 and again in 2024. The organisation was formally re-designated by the Council as the statutory Neighbourhood Forum for Highams Park on Tuesday 9 July 2024. Re-designation will enable the community-led Forum to continue to prepare statutory neighbourhood planning proposals for the geographical area set out in their application.

The re-designation means that no other organisation or body can be designated to prepare a plan for any part of the area until the designation has expired or been withdrawn. The Council can withdraw the designation if it considers that the Group is no longer meeting the conditions by reference to which it was designated.

Designation

Under the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 Part 3 Regulation 10 a Local Planning Authority must publish on their website, and in such other manner as they consider is likely to bring the designation to the attention of people who live, work or carry on business in the neighbourhood area. 

•    Public Notice: The re-designation of the Highams Park Planning Group a Neighbourhood Forum (pdf)

Background

Following the Highams Park Planning Group’s submission of an application for re-designation, the Council published the following documents for a six week public consultation which ran between Monday 6 May to Friday 14 June 2024 :

•    The Highams Park Planning Group’s application for redesignation (PDF)
•    The Constitution of the Highams Park Planning Group (PDF)
•    The Highams Park Neighbourhood Plan Boundary (PDF) 
 

Hard copies of these documents will be made available for viewing at the Hale End Library, and by prior request at Waltham Forest Town Hall. 

1. Reception, Waltham Forest Town Hall, Fellowship Square, Forest Road, Walthamstow E17 4JF
2. Hale End Library, Castle Avenue, Highams Park, E4 9QD

We designated the Highams Park Neighbourhood Area / Forum on 15 July 2014. The Highams Park Planning Group is preparing the neighbourhood plan for the Highams Park area (PDF). The plan must be in keeping with planning policy and our Local plan. 

• Public Notice (PDF)
• Designated Neighbourhood Area (PDF)
• Constitution of Designated Forum (Highams Park Planning Group) (PDF)

The designation lasts for five years. We designated the Highams Park Neighbourhood Area / Forum on Monday 8 July 2019, following public consultation.

On Thursday 21 May 2020: Full Council unanimously agreed that the plan should be made. See the full version:

• Highams Park Neighbourhood Plan Adopted Version (PDF)
• Highams Park Neighbourhood Plan Annex 1 Aspirations, Projects and Actions (PDF)
• Decision Statement Appendix C (Word)

Referendum on the Highams Park Neighbourhood Plan

To meet the requirements of the Localism Act 2011, there was a referendum on Thursday 5 March 2020. The referendum question was:

“Do you want the London Borough of Waltham Forest to use the neighbourhood development plan for the Highams Park Neighbourhood Area to help it decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area?”

Of the votes cast, 95.7 per cent voted in favour of adopting the Neighbourhood Plan. The turnout was 21.8 per cent.

• Declaration of Referendum Result (Word)
• Referendum version of the Highams Park Neighbourhood Plan (PDF)
• Referendum version of the Highams Park Neighbourhood Plan Annex One (PDF)
• List of streets covered by the Highams Park Neighbourhood Plan (Excel)

Consultation on the Highams Park Neighbourhood Plan

The Highams Park Planning Group (HPPG) submitted a Draft Neighbourhood Plan to the council on 14 November 2018.

We sought representations on the plan in accordance with Regulation 16 of the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 (as amended) before it is submitted to an independent examination.

This consultation on the submission version of the plan ran from 7 January 2019 to 18 February 2019.

The area the plan covers is within the blue boundary on the map and includes parts of four Waltham Forest Council Wards.

Documents

The HPPG submitted the following documents as part of the consultation process on The Draft Neighbourhood Plan:

• Highams Park Plan Neighbourhood Area (PDF)
• HP Plan Submission Version (PDF)
• Consultation Statement for HP Plan Submission (PDF)
• Basic Conditions Statement for HP Plan Submission (PDF)
• Appendix 1 to Basic Conditions Statement - HRA and SEA Screening Report (PDF)
• HP Plan Submission Letter to LBWF (PDF)
• Annex 1 HP Plan Aspirations, Projects & Actions LBWF Submission Version (PDF)
• Notice of Referendum on the Neighbourhood Plan for Highams Park (PDF)

What happens when?

• June 2019 The Examiner’s report of June 2019 concluded that, subject to the policy modifications recommended being made, the Plan will meet the Basic Conditions and should proceed to a referendum
• Draft Highams Park Neighbourhood Plan Decision Statement (PDF)
• Appendix One (PDF)
• Appendix Two (PDF)
• July 2019: Following a period of public consultation the Council renewed the HPPG’s designation as the neighbourhood planning body at Cabinet on Monday 8 July 2019.
• Thursday 5 March 2020: Resident referendum had 95.7 per cent of those voting approving the plan.
• Thursday 23 April 2020: Waltham Forest Council Cabinet approved the plan and recommended Full Council adopt it.
• Thursday 21 May 2020: Full Council agreed that the plan should be made.
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