WHAT IS A NEIGHBOURHOOD PLAN?
In 2007, residents of Mawgan-in-Pydar parish produced a Parish Plan describing how we would like our area to evolve in the ten years to 2017. Changes to legislation have replaced Parish Plans with Neighbourhood Plans.
A Neighbourhood Plan has legal status and must be taken into account by planners and others responsible for the economic, social and environmental health of our area. To promote sustainable and sympathetic development, to shape the future of the parish for the betterment of the community, we must create a Neighbourhood Plan now. That’s where you come in.
Developing a Neighbourhood Plan is a lengthy process with set stages which must be followed. It is important that there is community support at every stage. We need you to tell us what you want for the future of Mawgan-in-Pydar so a Neighbourhood Plan can be implemented as soon as possible to ensure that happens!
Vision
The parish of Mawgan-in-Pydar will remain a thriving, resilient, and inclusive community, celebrated for its rich heritage, welcoming atmosphere, and forward-thinking approach. It will continue to provide a safe and supportive environment for
residents, workers, business owners, and visitors, ensuring it remains a highly desirable place to live, work, and visit for generations to come.
Our objectives:
Housing
Provide Affordable Housing Options:
Ensure a variety of affordable housing choices through small developments that align with the local scale and character and meet the needs of the local community, enabling local people to live within their home parish.
Promote Locally Distinctive Design: Advocate for housing designs that respect the surrounding environment, reflect the area's character, and, where feasible, incorporate natural and locally sourced materials.
Natural Environment
Support Sustainable Development: Prioritise environmentally sustainable practices and biodiversity conservation in all planning and development decisions.
Protect Natural Areas: Ensure that all development conserves the natural environment and avoids encroachment on floodplains, coastal areas, and cliffs.
Historic Environment
Preserve and Enhance Local Character: Protect and enhance the architectural and historic character of the area while promoting high-quality design in all development and changes within the plan area.
Climate Change
Acknowledge Climate Change Vulnerability: Recognise Mawgan Porths' susceptibility to climate change impacts, including rising sea levels and natural cliff and coastal erosion, in all planning decisions.
Address Causes and Impacts: Develop and implement strategies to tackle the causes of climate change and adapt to its effects, focusing on long-term resilience and coastal protection.
Economy
Preserve Mawgan Porths Character: Maintain the unspoiled, family-friendly nature of Mawgan Porth as a coastal resort, ensuring a balance between tourism, the needs of the year-round local community, environmental sustainability, and the area's unique sense of place.
Support Economic Growth: Promote a diverse and thriving local economy by enhancing employment opportunities and supporting businesses at all stages, from start-ups to established enterprises.
Community Services and facilities
Enhance Public Services: Protect and improve public services, including better public transport links, access to local medical facilities, and support for community-focused businesses.
Modernise Educational Facilities: Ensure that educational facilities meet contemporary standards while preserving the parish's rural character and addressing environmental concerns.
Strengthen Community Connections: Foster stronger community bonds by enhancing local amenities, promoting regular local produce markets, and encouraging greater self-sufficiency to reduce dependence on distant urban centers.
Ensure Adequate Infrastructure: Require that infrastructure for drainage, surface water disposal, and sewage is fully in place and capable of supporting new development before it is approved, to safeguard the local environment.
Local Business Survey
Our Mawgan in Pydar Neighbourhood Plan is progressing well, we are continuing to work on the draft plan and we are receiving technical support to produce a Design Guide to inform new developments in the parish.
We are continuing to collect thoughts, views, and experiences from everyone living and working in the parish. Currently, we are running a brief business survey, which is open to everyone operating a business in the parish, whatever the business,
however large or small. So that includes self-employed people, small businesses, farms, leisure, and retail - in fact, anyone who runs a business located in the Parish or who lives in the Parish and runs a business from their home.
Your information, as a small business owner or self-employed person, is as important as the larger companies and hotels. We need to know your experience of running a business in Mawgan in Pydar, what are the benefits, what are the drawbacks and
what could be better. Your input is crucial for shaping the future of our parish. Thank you in advance for participating in this survey, which you can access online at:
https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/HU0P1V/
If you’d like to hear more or get involved the Neighbourhood Plan meeting dates for November will be 14th and 28th, from 6 - 7 pm in St Mawgan Community Hall.
St Mawgan Parish Council Update
Regular Dreckly readers will remember the concerns raised by the residents about the speed of traffic through Trevarrian. As a result a number of traffic calming measures were implemented, after a successful bid by the Parish Council to the
Community Highways scheme. As well as the gateway signs that were installed there are now speed monitors there and at various other locations around the Parish.
One of the residents’ requests was for 20mph speed limits to reduce traffic speeds around the village. Cornwall Council is now in the process of rolling out its ’20 is plenty’ initiative at various locations around Cornwall and St Mawgan Parish is
one of the latest areas to be included. The proposed locations have been put out for
consultation, which commenced on October 9th, concluding on November 1st. Unfortunately the Parish Council was only notified of this on 7th October, so no time to give advance warning in Dreckly! However the PC have publicised it in other ways and it has been advertised in local press, so hopefully you were able to have your say.
We’ll have to wait and see the outcome of the consultation to find out where the 20mph restriction will be implemented.
Future of COrnwall Airport Newquay
Are you aware of the plans for the future of the Airport? Cornwall Council have been running a consultation during September - the deadline for feedback was 26th September. There were two public consultation events on 14th September, at the Truro Council offices and in Newquay Library. If you missed those you can still see what is being planned if you visit https://letstalk.cornwall.gov.uk/airport.
Neighbourhood Plan Update
Last month we reported that there were 237 responses to the questionnaire. Of
these, 93% were in favour of developing a Neighbourhood Plan, only 2% were not
and 5% were unsure.
The rural nature of the parish was strongly valued by respondents, with features
such as wildlife and natural habitats, natural cliffs and coastline, clean rivers and
ponds scoring highly. People also valued open and green spaces, woods and
copses, trees and hedges.
The majority of respondents (95%) had concerns about housing development in the
parish, with damage to rural and coastal areas being their greatest concern. People
were also concerned about the pressure on local infrastructure such as roads, the
sewage network, schools and other facilities.
We’ll continue to provide updates in Dreckly, here on the website and on our social
media on Facebook and Instagram.
Thoughts on a Vision for Mawgan in Pydar Neighbourhood Plan
Mawgan Porth provides a haven of relaxed calm. This ethos is enhanced because the chaos of anything for sale not connected to a family beach holiday is left in Newquay. Sports like wind surfing, kite surfing, jet skiing or polo on the beach take place at Watergate Bay. At Mawgan Porth lifeguards watch swimmers, surfers
and body boarders. On really calm evenings at full tide a paddleboarder or canoe may slip into the smooth sea from laughing groups on the beach.
Turn your back on the beach and everywhere is green, speckled with sheep and cows or horses. After high cliff coastal walks, there is a gentle stroll down the valley, by the river, over a wooden bridge, or through the fields and a style, to the village. Church and pub and village shop, with a craft shop by the bridge. a ford
beside the village school with a cricket ground and childrens' playground at the back of the community hall, near the Japanese Garden. It hasn't changed forever.
We owe it to our children to make the changes in our living carefully. The changes will happen because they have to, but this place is rural and it is the release from urban strain of survival in a grey concrete city. Cornwall has walls of green; Cornish stones hiding beneath trees and flowers with a gentle ditch beside to gather the rainwater that runs through the holes and earth between to feed the plants.
Our Neighbourhood plan will enable the residents to tell Cornwall Council, planners and the government in London what we think is our heritage, as well as encouraging the safe and comfortable environment that will allow and support progress.
Neighbourhood Plan Questionnaire feedback.
The responses from the questionnaire showed that people value the beach at Mawgan Porth, with over 85% of respondents saying they and members of their family use the beach daily. People said they value the natural environment and opportunities for cliff walks along the coast path, as well as the lack of commercialism. The cleanliness of the beach, the river and the sea were seen as very important, as well as beach safety and lifeguard protection to support activities on the beach and in the sea.
Mawgan Porth is greatly treasured by residents who would like to see a joined-up community approach to the environment, considering natural habitats (such as the dunes), areas of natural beauty and rare species. This may include rewilding and an increase in green spaces and extension of Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) to cover the cliff tops of Trenance to protect the rare species (choughs, adders, nesting birds - corn buntings and the unique flora).
Our Neighbourhood Plan can help to protect all the precious aspects of our local area.
More Thoughts on a Vision for Mawgan in Pydar Neighbourhood Plan