Neighbourhood Plans for Ilkley and Oxenhope take a significant step forward

Ilkley Town Council and Oxenhope Village Council have prepared draft Neighbourhood Development Plans, which will help shape development in each parish until 2030.

Neighbourhood Development Plans are a means to enable local people to develop a shared vision for their neighbourhood.

Ilkley Town Council and Oxenhope Village Council have been working with their local communities to produce the plans for their areas over the last eight years, undertaking research and consultation with local communities to inform a number of planning policies and land designations.

The two councils have now submitted their proposed plans to Bradford Council.

Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Executive Member for Regeneration, Planning and Transport at Bradford Council, said: “I am pleased two more neighbourhood plans are now going out to consultation and encourage residents in these areas to look at them and take part.

“Neighbourhood plans take a lot of hard work by parish and town councils, so it’s important residents respond to the consultation as they go on to form part of our overall Local Plan. The Local Plan sets out the overall planning framework for the district for the next twenty years.”

Ilkley Town Council Mayor, Councillor Mark Stidworthy, said: “I am delighted that Bradford Council are beginning the Regulation 16 public consultation for the Ilkley Neighbourhood Development Plan, and that they have agreed to extend the consultation period by two weeks over the summer period.

"I would like to thank the Neighbourhood Development Plan Working Group and its Chair, Councillor Ros Brown, for their hard work to progress the plan to the consultation stage. The Town Council hopes that all who live, work and do business in Ilkley will take the opportunity to have their say about the plan.”

Peter McManus, of Oxenhope Parish Council, said: “Thank you to all our public volunteers for their help through the Neighbourhood Development Plan process and also thank you to IntegreatPlus and Bradford Council for their support.”

Bradford Council is now formally inviting comments from the public and organisations on these plans. The consultations run for eight weeks from Friday, 16 July until 5pm on Friday, 10 September.

Following the consultation, Bradford Council will submit the plans for independent examination. Subject to the examiners’ reports, Bradford Council can then hold a local referendum to allow the local community to vote on whether or not they think the plan should go ahead.

If the plan receives a majority vote in favour, it will then become part of the statutory development plan for the Bradford District.

The consultation documents are available to view and submit comments on at: https://bradford.oc2.uk/.

The documents and electronic comment forms are also available online at: https://www.bradford.gov.uk/consultations.

Paper versions of the consultation documents are available for inspection by appointment at the following locations:

• Britannia House, Bradford
• City Library, Centenary Square, Bradford

The Oxenhope Neighbourhood Development Plan is available by appointment at:

• Keighley Town Hall, Keighley
• Keighley (Local Studies) Library

The Ilkley Neighbourhood Development Plan is available at the following locations:

• Ilkley Library
• Ilkley Town Hall (By appointment only – please call 01943 436212 or email enquiries@towncouncil.ilkley.org) 
• Ilkley Visitor Information Centre, Ilkley Town Hall
• Clarke Foley Centre, Ilkley

For appointment bookings, please contact the relevant location. 

Comment forms must be either emailed to planning.policy@bradford.gov.uk or printed and posted to: Local Plans Team, City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, 4th Floor Britannia House, Broadway, Bradford, BD1 1HX.

Bradford Council must receive comments by 5pm on Friday, 10 September 2021.

For further enquiries about neighbourhood planning or this consultation, contact Bradford Council’s Local Plan Team on 01274 433679.