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Boughton Monchelsea COVID-19 support network

Please get in touch if you need our help

For further info and links click on the 'COVID-19 support' tab above

With the new lockdown now upon us, the Parish Council would like to advise you that the Boughton Volunteers (set up during the first lockdown in March) are still there to support you.

Boughton Monchelsea Volunteers was set up by the Parish Council to provide support during the COVID-19 crisis to those people within the parish who are self-isolating as a result of symptoms, age or health condition. We are aware that many of you who are or will be self-isolating as a result of symptoms or being 'at risk' due to age or health conditions would under normal circumstances be leading fully independent lives.

If you are self-isolating then you have to protect yourself and others by staying at home for the relevant period of time but we're here to assist in any way we can. We can help with things like picking up shopping and urgent supplies but whatever your need is just get in touch. This is not just for the elderly, it's for every one of us here in Boughton Monchelsea.

If you are being supported already by Boughton Monchelsea Helping Hands then please don't worry, this will continue and there is no need to contact us unless you need any further help. 

Please contact your local Volunteer Coordinator if you need any help at all, we will be happy to assist. 

Contact details for all the Coordinators are shown below. If you are unable to get hold of your co-ordinator then please contact Cllr Steve Munford on 01622 741310.

Boughton Monchelsea Neighbourhood Plan

Update 11th February 2021

Work on Boughton Monchelsea’s NHP started in 2012. Following various consultations and some minor modifications requested by the government examiner, the plan went before MBC’s Strategic Planning and Infrastructure committee this week. After complimenting the plan, the following motion was approved :

1. The modifications to the Boughton Monchelsea Neighbourhood Development Plan as set out in the examiner’s report be agreed

2. The Boughton Monchelsea Neighbourhood Development Plan proceeds to local referendum.

Following a successful referendum, a neighbourhood plan becomes part of the local development plan. When a local plan authority agrees to send a neighbourhood plan to referendum, the plan becomes a significant material consideration in decision making. This is what happened at this week's MBC meeting and is a great step forward in making sure that the views of local people are taken into account in planning decisions.

It has taken the Parish Council 9 years to get to this point, with many members of the community, current and past Parish Councillors and consultants being involved. Particular thanks goes to Cllr Doug Smith for all his hard work and input over the years. The referendum is due to take place later this year and assuming there is a simple majority in favour, the NHP will be adopted by MBC as part of their development plan and will be given full weight in planning decisions, as set out in law.

We are very pleased to be able to report this good news and would like to thank you all for your continued support throughout this long process.

Cllr Steve Munford

All the documents which the Parish Council submitted as part of the Neighbourhood Plan process are below, and here is a brief explanation of each.

Neighbourhood Plan draft March 2020  – this sets out planning policies which, if we are successful in the independent Examination and subsequent referendum, will be used by MBC to help make planning decisions in the parish.

Consultation Statement  and Appendices 2019 – this describes all the community consultation the Parish Council have carried out on the Plan as it was drafted, and how your comments have shaped its contents.   

Basic Conditions Statement  2020 -  a Neighbourhood Plan  has to meet various legal requirements, known as the “Basic Conditions”.  This document explains how the Plan complies.  It also lists all the publicly available sources of information used to help develop the Plan.  

Environmental Statement 2019 – this is another legal requirement, and it explains why key national bodies consider that the Plan does not require a Strategic Environmental Assessment or a Habitats Regulation Assessment.

We have also submitted key pieces of information and reports which were compiled specifically for Boughton Monchelsea to help us develop the Plan:

Colvin and Moggridge, Boughton Monchelsea Landscape Management and Masterplan 2018 – this report was prepared by landscape architects to help the Parish Council understand, maintain and improve the landscape of the parish in partnership with landowners.  

Colvin and Moggridge, Boughton Monchelsea Priority Local Landscape 2019 – this report by landscape architects identifies an area of high quality landscape which is proposed for protection in the Neighbourhood Plan

Boughton Monchelsea Housing Needs Survey 2018, Action for Rural Communities Kent – this report supports the Plan’s policies on housing

A folder of additional parish-specific Evidence on Flood Risk, MBC Housing Register and Housing Density – these are shorter documents which support the Plan’s policies on locally important topics