Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan

Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan area comprises the following 10 Parishes which are situated in the south-west part of Blaby district, Leicestershire:
Parish Councils: Croft, Huncote, Sapcote, Sharnford, Stoney Stanton and Thurlaston
Parish Meetings: Aston Flamville, Leicester Forest West, Potters Marston and Wigston Parva.

The Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan was made on 17 June 2021.

The 2011 Localism Act has given communities a new right to draw up a Neighbourhood Plan.

This new right is aimed at giving local communities genuine opportunities to influence the future of the places where they live.

Decisions on planning applications must take account of neighbourhood plans.

Details of all the Neighbourhood Plans across Leicestershire are available via the Leicestershire Communities website.

The Fosse Villages area amounts to 5,311 hectares, representing 41% of the District of Blaby. In administrative terms, the area shares a common boundary with parts of both Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council and Harborough District Council in Leicestershire and with Rugby Borough Council in Warwickshire along a short length of its south-western boundary.

The Fosse Villages include lively, highly active communities which share common concerns which provide a cohesive basis for neighbourhood planning.

The 10 settlements within the area each have their own character, although they are generally small to medium scale communities, ranging from hamlets such as Potters Marston (population 30) to Stoney Stanton (population 3,460).

The total population of the area amounts to an estimated 11,930, giving an overall population density of 2.2 persons per hectare. It is, therefore, predominantly a rural area.

The Fosse Villages were designated as a Neighbourhood Area on 21 February 2013.

The Plan was prepared by the parish councils and meetings within its boundary through the Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan Joint Working Board.

Since 2012 we have consulted those living and working in the Fosse Villages, together with key stakeholders, asking them how they would like to see the area develop to 2029. The feedback from these events and information about the area have helped us prepare a first version of the Neighbourhood Plan that sets out the key issues and options for the future development of the area.

A summary newsletter for each of the Fosse Villages has been prepared and will be delivered to households in February/March 2017. You can download these newsletters below as well as the full Issues and Options document.

Alongside the newsletters there is a short questionnaire survey. We welcome your answers to the survey as they will help us prepare the Pre-submission version of the Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan.

Sapcote Parish Council, as a qualifying body on behalf of the ten parishes known as the Fosse Villages, submitted the "Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan" to Blaby District Council for Examination in accordance with the neighbourhood planning regulations. Following an independent examination, the Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan and the Examiner's Report was presented to Council on 20 February 2020. Council accepted all of the Examiner's suggested modifications and for the Plan to proceed to referendum. The Regulation 18 Decision Statement can be viewed on the Neighbourhood Planning section of the Blaby District Council website.

A referendum on the Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan was held on 6 May 2021 - the Referendum was delayed due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Following a positive referendum result, Blaby District Council is publishing its decision to 'make' the Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan part of Blaby District's Development Plan. The decision statement is available to view on the Neighbourhood Planning section of the Blaby District Council website.

During the process of preparing the Neighbourhood Plan, several Local Green Spaces were deleted by the independent Examiner primarily due to a lack of supporting evidence. The evidence has now been reviewed and Local Green Spaces have been restored and added in the parishes of Huncote (extending into Croft), Stoney Stanton and Sharnford.

An update to the Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan incorporates these new Local Green Spaces at Policy FV5 and the related policy maps. Other than consequential revisions, there are no further main modifications to the Neighbourhood Plan.

In accordance with Planning Policy Guidance, the Qualifying Body needs to take a view on the changes and whether they are so substantial as to change the nature of the Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan. We believe that the modifications do not change the nature of the Plan because the objectives and broad strategy of the Plan are unaltered. If the Planning Authority and Independent Examiner agree, a referendum is not required.

A six-week pre-submission consultation period on the proposed Neighbourhood Plan amendments ran from Monday 31 January to Tuesday 15 March 2022. All the comments received have been considered by the Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan Joint Working Board. A Consultation Statement, including a summary of all comments received and how these were considered, can be downloaded below.

On 6 February 2023, the Updated Plan was submitted to Blaby District Council for publication and a further six-week public consultation took place between 16 June and 28 July 2023, before it was sent to an Independent Examiner.

The Fosse Villages Neighbourhood Plan (2024) was made (adopted) by Blaby District Council on 30 January 2024. Full details of the new, made documents can be found at https://www.leicestershirecommunities.org.uk/np/fosse-villages-np.html.