Referendum – FAQ

Neighbourhood Plans allow communities to have more influence and control over their local area to ensure they get the right type of development for their neighbourhood.   By stipulating policies for a defined local area, they guide and influence decisions about planning applications, including new buildings or changes to existing buildings.

Initially the Plan was developed by Cottingham Parish Council in collaboration with residents,  and consultants.

The result was a draft plan which was then put out for consultation to Cottingham residents and to a wide range of stakeholders such as Anglian Water, English Heritage the local MP for Corby and the Environment Agency. The responses from the consultation modified the plan which was then submitted to the Planning Authority of North Northamptonshire Council which conducted their own consultation and made further modifications.

The next step was for an independent external examiner to thoroughly check the plan. The examiner accepted that the Plan was sound, was compliant with all relevant legal and policy requirements and could be put to a referendum.

There are many good reasons and purposes for doing this, but the most fundamental are:

• to identify the key aspects that make life in our rural village important to all of us residents;
• to identify the main threats to those key aspects (such as excess or inappropriate development, misuse of special green spaces etc);
• To propose an approach that would best ensure their protection and preservation from the main threats.

The following extracts from the Plan are not a summary of the Plan (please read the Plan or at least those chapters that interest you).  However, they are the main statements that North Northants Council would have to factor in to any decisions about Cottingham over the next 9 years:

• Any development must reflect the general character of the village and as far as possible, meet locally identified needs;
• Hill Farm farmyard, Rockingham Road will be designated as the preferred site for new housing, with a maximum 10 dwellings.
• The majority in any housing development will be homes of 3 bedrooms or less;
• All new commercial and residential development, and modifications to existing buildings, must meet strict design criteria to ensure they are compatible with and ‘suit’ the local distinctiveness and character of the village;
• All development plans should demonstrate that they will enhance local biodiversity;
• All development should incorporate sustainable design and construction techniques to meet high standards for energy and water efficiency, including the use of renewable and low carbon energy technology;
• The whole village environment will be protected from inappropriate development
• Our most important local green spaces will have same level of protection in planning terms as the ‘Green Belt’ 
• Development planning must include access to superfast broadband. Any above-ground installations must be sympathetically located.

You may be interested to read how the Plan addresses several other topics and proposed actions over its nine year lifetime including tree cover in the parish, establishing a traffic management plan, enforcement of the 7.5 tonne limit for HGV’s and traffic calming schemes. 

The Plan has taken three years to produce.

If the outcome of the referendum is a majority vote that the Neighbourhood Plan for Cottingham be formally adopted by North Northamptonshire Council, the Plan will attain the same legal status as NNC’s adopted Local Plan. At this point it comes into force as an integral element of the Statutory Development Plan.

As is required by the relevant legislation, North Northants Council formally took over the administration of the NP from Cottingham Parish Council in the final stages of the process, and will be responsible for its future use and application. 

If accepted by the residents of Cottingham, the NP will become a document that the NNC Planning Authority are legally required to take into consideration when they receive applications for development within our village.

Simply vote YES or NO.

If you are not registered to vote, applications to register to vote in this referendum must reach the Electoral Registration Officer at the Municipal Offices, Bowling Green Road, Kettering NN15 7QX by 12 midnight on Tuesday 1st February 2022. Applications can be made online: www.gov.uk/register-to-vote.

Applications, amendments or cancellations of postal votes, and amendments or cancellations of proxy votes, must reach the Electoral Registration Officer at Municipal Offices, Bowling Green Road, Kettering NN15 7QX by 5pm on Wednesday, 2nd February 2022.

You can also view the Plan on the Parish Council’s website here or on the North Northamptonshire web site Neighbourhood Planning | Corby Area .  (You will have to scroll down to find Cottingham).

Saturday 12th February, 10.00am to 2.00pm. 

You can also contact one of the following Parish Councillors:

David Grayson – davidgrayson@live.co.uk; 01536 – 771565 

George West-Robinson – grwrconsultingltd@gmail.com; 07891  – 159155

Tom Russel – thomas-russel@sky.com; 07806 – 784212 

Any of your other Parish Councillors will also be pleased to try to help.