My Erewash account

NOTICE OF REFERENDUM

SANDIACRE NEIGHBOURHOOD AREA

Referendum on the adoption of the Sandiacre Neighbourhood Plan

1. A referendum will be held on Thursday 13 February 2025 to decide on the Question below:

 ‘Do you want Erewash Borough Council to use the neighbourhood plan for Sandiacre Parish to help it decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area?’

 2. Applications to be included on the register of electors for this referendum (if you are not already registered to vote) must be received no later than Tuesday 28 January 2025. Applications can be made online at www.gov.uk/registertovote.

3. New applications for, or amendments or cancellations of postal and postal proxy votes must reach the Electoral Registration Officer at Town Hall, Ilkeston. Derbyshire DE7 5RP by 5pm on Wednesday 29 January 2025. Applications for a postal vote can also be made online: www.gov.uk/apply-postal-vote

4. New applications to vote by proxy at this referendum must reach the

Electoral Registration Officer at Town Hall, Ilkeston, Derbyshire DE7 5RP by

5pm on Wednesday 5 February 2025. Applications for a proxy vote can also be made online: www.gov.uk/apply-proxy-vote

5. Applications for a Voter Authority Certificate or an Anonymous Elector’s Document valid for this referendum must reach the Electoral Registration Officer by 5pm on Wednesday 5 February 2025. Applications for a Voter Authority Certificate can be made online: www.gov.uk/apply-for-photo-id-voter-authority-certificate

6. Applications to vote by emergency proxy at this referendum must reach the Electoral Registration Officer at Town Hall, Ilkeston, Derbyshire DE7 5RP by 5pm on Thursday 13 February 2025.

Dated: Thursday 9 January 2025

Jeremy Jaroszek, Counting Officer

General information about town and country planning (including neighbourhood planning) and the referendum.

On Thursday 13 February 2025 there will be a Referendum on a Neighbourhood Plan for Sandiacre Parish.

This statement explains more about the planning system, neighbourhood planning and how you can take part in the referendum.

The Town and Country Planning System

The purpose of the planning system is to help achieve sustainable development. This means deciding what gets built and where so that places can grow for homes, businesses and new technologies, without detriment to future generations and in a way that respects and protects the natural and historic environment. Without a planning system everyone could construct buildings or use land in any way they wanted, no matter what effect this would have on other people, or the landscape.
Most new buildings, major changes to existing buildings or major changes to the local environment need planning permission. In Sandiacre, Erewash Borough Council is responsible for deciding whether (most forms of) development should go ahead. Decisions are based on the National Planning Policy Framework, Planning Practice Guidance, and the Local Plan.

National Planning Policy Framework

This provides guidance from Central Government to local planning authorities on how Local Plans should be drawn up and how decisions about planning applications should be made. See https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-planning-policy-framework--2

The Development Plan

A development plan is a set of documents that contain policies for the development and use of land in a local planning area.

The Development Plan in Sandiacre

The development plan in Sandiacre is the Erewash Core Strategy (Adopted 2014). See the Core Strategy page.

Neighbourhood Planning

What is neighbourhood planning?

Neighbourhood planning was introduced under the 2011 Localism Act and enables local communities to write a Neighbourhood Plan – part of the statutory development plan – for their own area. Neighbourhood Plans must have regard to national planning policy, contribute to sustainable development, be in general conformity with strategic policies in the development plan for the area and be compatible with European Union obligations and human rights requirements.

Who makes Neighbourhood Plans?

Neighbourhood Plans are prepared by town or parish councils or neighbourhood forums.

How are they made?

There is a statutory process that must be followed. The plan must be prepared in consultation with local residents and businesses. An independent examiner checks that it meets legal requirements, reports whether any modifications should be made and recommends whether it should proceed to referendum.
The referendum asks residents to consider whether the local planning authority should use the neighbourhood plan to help it decide planning applications in the area concerned. All those registered to vote within the neighbourhood area are entitled to vote in the referendum.

What status do plans have?

If more than half of those voting have voted in favour of the neighbourhood plan, the local planning authority must make it part of the development plan (see above) for the area to be used in determining decisions on planning applications.

Sandiacre Neighbourhood Plan 2022-2037

A draft plan was prepared by Sandiacre Neighbourhood Plan Group on behalf of Sandiacre Parish Council, in consultation with local residents and businesses, and submitted to Erewash Borough Council in November 2023. An independent examiner found that the plan, subject to modifications, met all the necessary legal requirements and could proceed to referendum. If you would like to read the Act and the Neighbourhood Planning Regulations you can see
them here:
The Town and Country Planning Act 1990 webpage
The Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 webpage

The Referendum

A Referendum on Sandiacre Neighbourhood Plan will be held on Thursday 13 February 2025. The question that will be asked in the referendum is: Do you want Erewash Borough Council to use the Neighbourhood Plan for Sandiacre to help it decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area?
The neighbourhood plan for Sandiacre is the submission version of the plan that contains the modifications recommended by the independent examiner.
The Referendum area is identified on the map at the end of this report.
A person is entitled to vote in the Referendum, if on Tuesday 28 January 2025
• the person is entitled to vote in a local government election in the referendum area;
and
• the person’s qualifying address for the election is in the referendum area
A person’s qualifying address is, in relation to a person registered in the register of electors, the address in respect of which he or she is entitled to be registered.
A copy of the specified documents, that is those documents listed below, may be viewed online (click to download):