Locals’ plan will form part of Tavistock's development decisions

Formal adoption means it must now be taken into account

A planning document complied with input from residents will influence the future of Tavistock.

The Tavistock Neighbourhood Plan has to be considered when West Devon Borough Council determines planning applications from now on.

The council’s ‘hub’ committee formally adopted the town council’s plan this week, following a referendum last month in which nine in 10 people (88 per cent) of people who took part voted in favour of it.

It hopes this successful outcome will provide encouragement to other areas  preparing their own local plans.

It takes seven years on average to complete a neighbourhood plan but Tavistock did it within 30 months, the period government guidance suggests.

The process includes two rounds of public consultations and an assessment by a planning inspector.

Committee members praised the “dedication and hard work” of former borough councillor Ursula Mann, who sits on the town council, and the neighbourhood plan team in getting it through.

They said to do it so quickly was “no mean feat”

“A lot of committees crash and burn. Ursula held it all together and got it through,” said council leader Mandy Ewings (Ind, Tavistock South West).

The plan, which runs until 2034, features housing, business, community facilities, the environment, green spaces, transport and connectivity, heritage and tackling climate change.