In 2023 the Parish Council decided to prepare a Neighbourhood Plan to cover the whole of Shimpling parish. Since that time a small group of volunteers and Parish Councillors, assisted by professional consultants, have been working to gather information and views to inform the content of the Plan.

What is a Neighbourhood Plan?

It’s a Plan agreed by local people to decide how their parish should develop - or not - over the next decade or so. Whether the Plan is approved will ultimately be decided at a Parish Referendum when, if a majority of residents that vote agree with the Plan, Babergh District Council will be required to adopt it.

When complete, it sits alongside the Local Plan for Babergh and national planning policies and is used by the District Council when making decisions on planning applications.

Current Status of Plan

This page will provide an information on the current status of the work to deliver the plan.  On the left-hand side are links to more detailed information about events that have occured and documents produced.

PUBLIC CONSULTATION ON DRAFT PLAN

We’ve now reached a major milestone and are consulting widely on the Draft Plan until Monday 2 March. You now have the opportunity to say whether or not you support the content of the Plan or would like to see some changes and so influence planning and development policy for Shimpling for the coming years.

We have distributed a summary leaflet to every household in the Parish and the Plan itself can be viewed or downloaded below.

Link to Neighbourhood Plan

If you don’t have access to the internet, paper copies of the Plan will be available to borrow for a short period by contacting Claire by Whatsapp/Text on 07976 817593 or email clairehdh@gmail.com

How to comment

We would welcome your comments. These can be submitted online or by completing the form below and returning it as instructed on the form. Comments must be received by midnight on Monday 2 March. We cannot receive comments outside this period.

Online Comments Form

Download Comments Form

We want your comments, even if you support everything in the Plan!

Supporting Documents

In addition to the Plan itself, there are a number of supporting documents referred to in the Plan. These can be found below:

Shimpling Residents’ Survey Results Booklet - 2025

Shimpling Design Guidance and Codes – July 2024

Shimpling Parish Landscape Appraisal Character, Sensitivity and Key Views - May 2025  

Drop-in Event

We held a well attended drop-in event on Saturday 17 January to launch the public consultation. The display from the event is available here to view:

Shimpling NP Drop-in Event Display January 2026

LOOKING AHEAD

Once the consultation ends, all comments received will be reviewed and the Plan will be amended as necessary. It will then be submitted to Babergh District Council who will carry out a second round of consultation before the Plan is assessed by an Independent Examiner. The Examiner will decide what changes are required to meet the national neighbourhood planning requirements and recommend that the Plan is subject to a Parish Referendum open to all on the Electoral Register. There is no minimum turnout for the Referendum and a simple majority in favour of the Plan will mean that it can be used by Babergh District Council when making decisions on planning applications.

Last Stage:  Open day to let people know the outcome from the parish survey. (February Survey Feedback Open Day)

Next Stage:  All comments received during the consultation will be reviewed and any necessary amendments to the Plan will be made. The Plan, together with supporting documents will then be submitted to Babergh District Council.

Plan Step By Step