A Neighbourhood Plan aims to capture the aspirations of residents and puts their ideas into a framework to guide the future development, regeneration and conservation of an area – the parish of Coggeshall in our case.

The Localism Act 2011 gave local communities the right to produce a Neighbourhood Plan, to develop policies which will influence the development of land and other important areas such as those affecting the environment, economy and infrastructure.

The Neighbourhood Plan must be approved by the Planning Inspectorate and then ratified at a referendum by the residents of the Parish of Coggeshall. We will be working closely with the Parish Council to produce a document that benefits and safeguards the future of the village.

Coggeshall’s Neighbourhood Plan will then become a statutory development plan to determine planning applications within the Parish of Coggeshall. It will be read in conjunction with the Braintree Local Plan and National Planning Policy and be valid for the next 15-20 years.

It’s about the use and development of land and contains a vision, aims, planning policies, proposals for improving the village, the provision of new facilities and site allocation.

It will include provision for housing, employment, heritage, the environment, transport and anything we feel that is relevant to our life living here.

So far, over 100 neighbourhood plans have been successfully adopted across the country, with hundreds more at various stages of preparation. These plans give communities the voice to decide what they want in their area e.g. from affordable housing to improved infrastructure.

Community consultation is vital to prepare a robust Plan to safeguard the future of this lovely heritage village in accordance with our vision above. Please take the time to browse this website for more information and contact us to give us your views. The members of the group preparing this plan are all residents and volunteers and want to work with the community to take Coggeshall forward positively for future generations.