We published the draft Kilmington Neighbourhood Plan as part of the formal Regulation 14 pre-submission consultation process. Please use the button below to view the plan; please note, it is a large file and therefore may take time to load.
Click below to view 2020 Neighbourhood Plan
Thank you to all those who sent us comments. The feedback we received by the end of the consultation period 28th February 2021 will be considered by the Parish Council. A planning judgement will be taken and a decision will be made over whether or not to amend the Plan in response to each representation before the Plan is submitted to East Devon District Council for further consultation and on to independent examination.

Individuals’ comments will be anonymised in the report of comments received which will be made public in the coming weeks. Organisations, agencies, private businesses and consultants etc. will normally be named. Any contact information you may have provided will be held on a database and used to assist in the preparation of planning documents. The information will be used in accordance with the Data Protection Act (2018) and the data privacy policies of Kilmington Parish Council.

For any further information regarding the Plan please contact Adrian Jenkins, Kilmington Parish Clerk, Tower View Fruit Farm, Offwell EX14 9RW Tel: 01404 43220 or email: np@kilmingtonvillage.com.
Kilmington Parish Council, December 2020
What is a Neighbourhood Plan?

The Localism Act, which received Royal Assent on November 15 2011, introduced new rights and powers to allow local communities to shape new development by coming together to prepare neighbourhood plans. Neighbourhood planning enables communities to play a much stronger role in shaping the areas where they live and work.  

Unlike the parish or village plans prepared to date, a successful Neighbourhood Plan has statutory weight and status and it will become part of the districts ‘Development Plan’. Therefore it will be used when deciding planning applications within the designated Neighbourhood area. Future decisions on planning applications will therefore be made in accordance with both the EDDC Local Plan setting the strategic context within which Neighbourhood Plans will sit. Neighbourhood Plans can contain detailed policies to guide local authority decisions about planning applications.

This plan is our community’s opportunity to shape and guide development that will take place in Kilmington and make sure that it is appropriate to our needs and aspirations. We can have a real say in where it goes and how it looks!
Developing a Neighbourhood Plan

There is a process which must be followed before a Neighbourhood Plan can be put to a community referendum and legally come into force.  Moreover, it must take account of National Planning Policy and it must align with strategic policies in the EDDC Local Plan.
The parish council should consult with and work with other members of the community who are interested in, or affected by, the Neighbourhood Planning proposals to allow them to play an active role in preparing a Neighbourhood Plan or Order.

The basic stages in developing a Neighbourhood Plan are:

1.    Set up a neighbourhood planning group and have the plan area designated
2.    Collect evidence about the area and gather local views about priority issues
3.    Identify which issues we want to produce policies for
4.    Write a draft neighbourhood plan for the area
5.    Formally consult local residents and other interested parties with the draft
6.    Submit a final version of the plan for its examination by EDDC and an independent examiner.
7.    When approved (modifications may be necessary) hold a residents referendum to vote to adopt the plan.
Proportionate, robust evidence has to be included in the Plan to support the choices made and the approach taken. The evidence provided has to explain succinctly the intention and rationale of the policies in the draft Neighbourhood Plan or the proposals in an Order.
The Neighbourhood Planning Team reconsidered the appropriateness of the Kilmington Village Design Statement, nine years after its publication. It was clear the majority of the recommendations made are still very pertinent today.  The Village Character Assessment aligns with the Village Design Statement and brings it up-to-date including the most recent standards, design guidance and new requirements for protection of the environment and biodiversity.
The Kilmington Neighbourhood Plan policy DE1 signposts The Kilmington Village Character Assessment as the main point of reference for proposers of development in the parish.
Following the positive response from villagers to the production of the Kilmington Parish Plan it was agreed to create a more detailed document - The Village Design Statement 2011.

It was prepared by villagers following a lengthy consultation process within the community, approved by the Parish Council and endorsed by the East Devon District Council (EDDC) in October 2011. The advisory document sets out a series of recommendations in an attempt to protect the village, its rural setting, its character and its heritage.

The Village Design Statement has official standing as Supplementary Planning Guidance.
Following advice to Parish Councils from East Devon District Council in autumn 2002, Kilmington residents agreed, in 2007, to produce a Parish Plan to ensure there was a clear blueprint for local parish needs to be implemented by local and county authorities for the future development of the village.

Following its completion, the Kilmington Parish Plan was delivered to every home in the parish in July 2008. It is a summary of the views, needs and priorities (expressed by local residents) about key issues at that time, which they felt to be important to the future of their community - socially, economically and environmentally.
Click here to find out how the Design Statement
and Parish Plan were created.