A good plan
Forty-five new homes a year for the next 20 years might not sound like much, but their construction in Dawlish, in Devon, will be hugely significant for the rest of England.
These homes will be built following the expected agreement of the first neighbourhood plan under the government’s revamped planning regime, in which residents decide how many homes their area requires.
More importantly than that, however, the plan will represent one in the eye for those (myself included) who claimed this process will be a nimby’s charter, as Dawlish’s residents agree with Teignbridge Council that 900 homes are needed. Where they differ is on where these homes will be built, but this will be put to a referendum and, if more than half of those who vote agree with the neighbourhood plan, it will be adopted by the local authority.
The jury may still be out on how many English neighbourhoods will produce a plan, but this is an encouraging start in favour of more house building for those which do.
