Lewes Neighbourhood Plan

Referendum News, 8th March 2019

 

It’s a resounding “YES!”

 

The referendum votes on the Lewes Neighbourhood Plan have been counted (Friday 8th March) and the community has registered a very loud “Yes!” to the question:

 

“Do you want the South Downs National Park Authority to use the neighbourhood development plan for the Parish of Lewes to help it decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area?”

 

Just under 25% (3276) of the electorate turned out to vote and the result was as follows:

 

YES = 2993 (92%)

NO= 268 (8%)

Spoiled papers = 15

 

Lewes Mayor, Cllr Janet Baah, said:

 

“This is a fantastic result. The Lewes Neighbourhood Plan started with a launch event in February 2013, so it has been a long and sometimes slow road, but this shows confidence in our belief that it has been one well worth travelling. If you voted ‘no’ – we hope that you will start to see the real benefit of the plan as it must now be used as a statutory reference by developers; planning officers, and planning committees, before deciding planning applications in the parish. It also means that the town is entitled to a much greater share of Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funds which can pay for a wide range of useful projects."