Wheatley Neighbourhood Plan 0.3 2023

In November 2023, a referendum took place on a revised Wheatley Neighbourhood Plan. The community voted in favour of the plan (514 votes for Yes, 72 for No with 1 void ballot paper, 16.39% turnout).
The local planning authority, South Oxfordshire District Council (SODC) then adopted the plan in December 2023.

The ‘made’ plan will now be used by Wheatley Parish Council and SODC when considering planning applications. Copies of key documents are available at the bottom of this page.

Wheatley Parish Council is grateful to the Neighbourhood Plan Committee, led by John Fox and Roy Gordon for getting us to this point and for their work over the last eight years.

Wheatley Parish Council will continue to follow the developments of the Joint Local Plan between South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils and will consider when further reviews may be necessary, in the coming months or years.

Map depicting area covered with Wheatley Neighbourhood Plan

Map depicting area covered by Wheatley Neighbourhood Plan

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Neighbourhood Plan?

Due to the national housing shortage the need for additional housing development in our area is inevitable. The Wheatley Neighbourhood Plan (WNP) provides an opportunity for the village to influence where new housing will be located. The Localism Act 2011 gives the community greater legal say in planning policies. Aligned with the District Local Plan [LP] it provides planning policies for an individual community. The WNP is not a Planning Application. It is a set of planning policies, based on local opinion.

What area is covered by WNP?

The area of the Plan is the parish of Wheatley including Littleworth and the built-up part of the Oxford Brookes University site (see map above). For this reason Holton Parish Council were also involved.

What was the process?

In writing and developing the WNP there were numerous process thes had to be undertaken, and the community were involved and kept informed throughout. The community has provided key information, insights, opinions and ideas. The process was well worth the effort because the plan has become part of local planning policy and gives us all an opportunity to influence how our community develops over the next 20 years.

What was the scope of the plan?

WNP is a set of planning policies, based on local opinion. It does not address traffic/highway issues or concerns.

Who created the plan?

In 2016 Wheatley Parish Council tasked The Wheatley Neighbourhood Plan Committee to write a Neighbourhood Plan All committee members were local residents and volunteers, who were recruited at public meetings. Wheatley Parish Council reviewed the final plans, in 2019 and in 2023, approving them before they were presented to the community through local referendums.