A Neighbourhood Plan for Launceston moved a step closer to reality last week, with a well attended public meeting in the Guildhall.

Chaired by town councillor John Harris, and with a panel consisting of other members of the town council’s working party — Cllrs Joan Heaton, Leighton Penhale and Paul O’Brien, the meeting explained more about what a Neighbourhood Plan is and the advantages and disadvantages it would have for the town.

Also in attendance were Chris Sims, Cornwall Council community link officer and Adam Birchall, head of sustainable growth and innovation at Cornwall Council.

Mr Sims explained that a parish plan ‘with teeth’ sets out policies in relation to development use within a parish. It can set local design and quality criteria; can allocate sites for development and can safeguard important assets.

“You have a bit more control over what developers do in your area.”

A Neighbourhood Plan must be permissive; be about land use planning and be produced by the community.

It cannot conflict with local or national policy; propose less growth than the strategic plan; override strategic policy nor specify higher levels of building regulations above the national standards.

In Cornwall there are currently 35 made Neighbourhood Plans in place, including St Stephens-by-Launceston.

Mr Sims explained that some plans can take as little as 18 months to complete, but warned that there are some plans that are six years in the making.

“It will take you a reasonable amount of time to do it.”

He told the meeting that help is available and there are also grants and loans if needed.

There were representatives from other nearby parishes that have already been through the process, who explained how it went for them.

The chair of the steering group at St Stephens-by-Launceston said their plan took six years from start to finish.

In the last two years they used a consultant and they took advantasge of grant money.

“The end result is something we’ve got in place that the planners can go to.”

Brian Dixon from Bude said their Neighbourhood Plan is currently in the process of being updated, to include issues such as climate change.

The Bude plan took around two and a half years to complete.

A number of questions were asked from members of the audience, including which areas would be included and where the boundaries would be set — would the plan focus solely on Launceston or would it take in the surrounding parishes?

Another attendee asked how much say businesses in the town would have on the plan.

Cllr John Conway said: “I’m very much in favour of us having a Neighbourhood Plan in Launceston. If we had a Neighbourhood Plan in the beginning, we wouldn’t have the Hallam development now.”

Cllr Harris asked for a list of people who would be interested in helping with a plan, and added: “If we have no community support then it will not happen.”

Mayor, Cllr Dave Gordon said the next stage is for the working group to bring it back to the full council to see whether they want to move ahead with it en bloc.

“I think that should have been done before tonight really. I think it’s important that the council either agrees with it or disagrees with it.”

But Cllr Harris said the purpose of the meeting was to gather some evidence of support to take to the full council.

“A Neighbourhood Plan has to be a community project. The qualifying body will be the town council.”

Cllr Harris said the formation of a plan would not cost the town or town council anything.

“It’s no skin off the council’s nose how long we’re going to do it.”

Cllr Rob Tremain noted the amount of people that live in Launceston and added: “It’s a hell of a big job. It’s going to take an awful lot of work. We need the community to be involved. Will there be that involvement, I don’t know.”

The working party will be making an interim report to full council on February 18 at 7 pm in the Guildhall.