This page gives a summary of any changing planning news in Timsbury.
All applications for land use building and conversions are referred by B&NES Council to the Parish Council for its comment at its next meeting. Also, applications for tree management within Timsbury’s designated Conservation area in the centre of the old village are also consulted on.
Details of the Parish Council Agenda and Minutes of its decisions can be seen here. Residents and applicants can ask to make comments at the Parish Council meeting. Contact the Clerk before or at the begining of the meeting.
See more background to planning in Timsbury here.
Information about Bristol Airport planning matters are here.
All decisions are made by B&NES Council based on their Local Plan as mentioned below. See their planning page here, and search for Timsbury.
House Building and the B&NES Local Plan
Updated 17th May 2021
Decisions on planning applications are made by B&NES Council based on their Local Plan current at any time.
B&NES adopted Core Strategy 2011 to 16 setting out the strategic approach to the level and location of new development throughout B&NES. The Placemaking Plan focuses on specifics such as design principles and sites for development and updating the planning policies which are then used in determining planning applications.
The Placemaking Plan includes two sites for housing development in Timsbury, each for about 25 houses, at ‘Wheelers Yard’ (see Major Sites below) and on the western part of the field to the east of the school. Planning Applications for development will be submitted at the owners’ or developer’s discretion. These sites were supported by the Parish Council and the village following a full consulation.
From 2019 B&NES is Reviewing its Local Plan and sought further sites for housing across B&NES. They asked the Parish Council to carry out formal ‘site assesments’ of 2 sites. The PC did this and rejected both for housing and since then there has been no response from B&NES.
Since the West of England Joint Spatial Plan was rejected by the Government Planning Inspector, from 2021 B&NES is carrying out a 5 year Review of its Local Plan. They have the same target of 13,000 homes from 2011 to 2029 but in the Review any new housing will mostly be in Keynsham and Bath due to better access to Sustainable Transport. But after that they are still seeking sites for a 1,100 homes elsewhere but will require stronger transport requirements from before. They will consult specific ‘key villages with services such as primary school capacity, good buses etc.’ if relevant in early summer, in time for a Draft Review to go to B&NES Cabinet in July. Affordable housing targets are not changing.
Neighbourhood Plan
Timsbury registered in 2013 with B&NES to develop its own Neighbourhood Plan, but the Parish Council later decided for the time being to not proceed with this and to rely on the B&NES Local Plan process. The reasons for this include that the consultation in 2015 with the village and B&NES resulted in satisfactory plans for house building as outlined above. Also, having taken advice from a planning consultant, it was the PC’s view that although additional detailed matters of a NPlan may be useful and that we would gain an additional 10% on top of the current 15% of Community Infrastructure Levy payments from housing developments, the process would cost about £10,000, including for a final Referendum to ratify it. Also the NPlan would only stand temporarily and may be contradicted by the next B&NES Local Plan and so it is likely that we would have to carry out a fully NPlan process every 5 years which would involve substantial work by the PC and the Clerk.
This situation may be reviewed at any time, such as as result of the B&NES Local Plan Review in 2021 (see above) and the change of ownership of Sleight Farm.
See Major Planning Sites & Applications
Maps
Green Facilities & Infrastructure
Parish Map Aerial View
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(courtesy of Bing Maps)