Decision details

That the Director of Planning and Environment uses his delegated powers to declare that the Cuddington Neighbourhood Plan be made part of the
Buckinghamshire Development Plan in accordance with Regulation 18A of The Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 as amended and under section 38A (4) of the 2004 Act

Following its successful examination, on the 30th June 2022 the Cuddington Neighbourhood Plan was put to a referendum of eligible voters within the parish of Cuddington.

Under the regulations the referendum had to ask the following question –
Do you want Buckinghamshire Council to use the Neighbourhood Plan for Cuddington to help it decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area?
“Yes” or “No”

If, following a referendum, 50% or more of those voting voted in favour of the plan the Council is under a statutory duty to ‘make’ the plan within 8 weeks of the
day after the referendum took place unless the plan would be in breach of European legislation or the Convention on Human Rights.

Following the close of the referendum for the Cuddington Neighbourhood plan,the votes cast were counted giving the following result:
Yes – 173 No – 11
This represented a 94% Yes vote from those who turned out to vote, above the 50% threshold required.

The Council has also considered the European and human rights implications of the Neighbourhood Plan as part of its consideration of the draft Plan and the Examiner’s report and it is not considered to contravene those rights.

Anyone aggrieved by the conduct of a neighbourhood plan referendum can make a legal challenge to that process within 6 weeks of the referendum result being announced. If such a legal challenge is made the Council is not bound to the 8- week deadline for making the neighbourhood plan. Six weeks have now passed (on 12th August 2022) since the referendum on the Cuddington Neighbourhood Plan and there have been no legal challenges lodged.

Therefore, the Council is under a statutory duty to ‘make’ the Cuddington Neighbourhood plan by 26th August 2022.

The Council is legally required to ‘make’ the plan, subject to any legal challenges.
Failure to ‘make’ the plan could in turn lead to legal action from the Parish Council and/ or the Secretary of State. as such there are no alternative options at this stage in the nighbourhood planning process