Membership :
Chairman Phil Cable,
Secretary Adrian Gray,
Treasurer John Smith,
George Scrini
Lee Sinclair
P Beckett,
C Beckett
(Parish Council Representatives; George Scrini, Phil Cable)
Laneham and Church Laneham - a brief description
The Parish of Laneham includes the two settlements of "Town" Laneham and "Church" Laneham, separated by the village beck and a short stretch of low-lying ground. The total population is approximately 300 people who are served by two public houses, a village hall and a Parish Church.
The two settlements have unique character of their own. Church Laneham is focussed on the church of St. Peter, which is built on a small knoll above the River Trent, which regularly floods one of the access roads to the hamlet. In summer, visitors come to enjoy the river for water sports or just for the view, with many of them making use of the caravan sites. The main village has a well preserved linear shape based on its wide main street, which follows a low ridge down to Church Laneham, where there was once a ferry. Substantial farmhouses reflect the former prosperity of the village, based on the well ordered fields surrounding the village which in turn show the influence of the enclosure movement.
Modern development has been limited to the building of social housing several decades ago, and the occasional in-filling of land along the main street. A number of village residents now work elsewhere, but a growing proportion are based at home.
Frequently asked questions
General
Q. Does the Parish Council have to do all the work?
A. No. It's far better to involve a wide range of volunteers from throughout the community to prepare the plan. The Parish Council needs to apply for the grant and should keep an overview of the plan while it is being prepared.
Q. Are the results of the Parish Plan binding on the Parish Council?
A. The Parish Council should endorse the final plan and use it as a statement of policy. They may be responsible for taking forward some of the actions, and they should be encouraged to do so.
Q. How long will it take to prepare a Parish Plan?
A. Between 12 to 18 months.
Involving other people/organisations
Q. Is it ok to work with other bodies like the police and health authorities?
A. Yes. many public bodies now have a statutory duty to consult the public on many issues and you may be able to make a positive contribution to planning and service delivery. It is a good idea to involve these and other service providers at the start of the exercise. They might even help with some of the funding.
Q. Do district and county councils fully support Parish Plans?
A. Some local authorities have positive policies towards community led action plans. Others are still developing an understanding of Parish Plans and how they might use them to inform policy and decision making. It will help if you consult your local councillor about your Parish Plan and to try to involve them in the process.
Q. How does the Parish Plan relate to the community strategy?
A. Community strategies are still being developed and in ways in which the Parish Plan could influence a community strategy are still being tested. W hope Parish Plans will provide clear evidence of need and priority in relation to a range of services and that they will be able to feed into the process.
Q. Does the local authority have to take notice of our plan - does it have any formal status?
A. Parish Plans do not currently have any formal status, and they cannot override agreed planning policy. But, if you start a dialogue with the local authority (and other service providers) at an early stage in preparing the plan, you should be able to identify where they can help you and where you might be able to influence them.
What are the benefits of producing a Parish Plan?
Q. Will it help us get a new village hall/youth club?
A. Yes. If you have consulted widely with the community and come up with clear evidence of need, a Parish Plan will certainly help you make a case to a range of funding bodies for such projects.
Q. We've done this before and nothing came of it - How could we be sure it'll bring benefits to the village?
A. As soon as you start work on the plan consult and involve the people and organisations that might help you achieve what you want (e.g. local authorities, health and police). When you produce the final action plan make sure you have nominated individuals or small groups within the parish who will follow up action points and make things happen.
Possible Problems
Q. Will we be penalised if we don't do a Parish Plan?
A. Not at all. Preparation of a Parish Plan is entirely voluntary and there is no obligation on you to prepare one. But there are many benefits.
Q. We're a very poor village and lots of residents are out of work and disillusioned - how can I convince people it's worth doing?
A. Preparing the plan will allow everyone in the community to have a say about what is important to them. It will help them to feel valued and might even help create employment, if you decide you need a community transport scheme, or other facility, such as a shop. People who are out of work may be willing to help with the consultation process - you could pay them to help work on the plan.
Q. We're only a small village; we don't think we've got enough people to undertake such a massive task.
A. Being a small village might be an advantage, since it might be easier to canvass everyone's views and identify the people who can help. You really need 8 to 12 people to take the work forward. Or you could use Parish Plan grant to buy in additional help from outside the community.
Q. Our Parish Council is made up of people who've been there for years - they never do anything, let alone a Parish Plan.
A. The parish council themselves don't have to do all the work. In fact it is best if volunteers do most of the work, with the Parish Council in a monitoring role as part of the steering committee. But you will need to convince them that a Parish Plan is a good idea. This could be an opportunity to revitalise the parish council and get other people involved..
Q. What do we have to do if we wish to have the land use planning parts of our Parish Plan considered for supplementary planning guidance (SPG)?
A. It is vital that you involve your planning department before you start the Parish Plan. This will:
enable you to agree the planning scope of your Parish Plan early on;
ensure that you understand the formal process that the local authority needs you to go through to consider parts of your Parish Plan as SPG.