Can you take a half hour to make a comment on the Draft Local Plan?
The Local Plan for an area guides all decisions about planning and land development. It has to be pulled together with evidence, and by consulting with residents and groups. Currently, Herefordshire's draft Local Plan is being consulted on.
The Food Alliance has looked at Herefordshire's Local Plan, against what we have agreed we are working towards in Herefordshire.
As you know - we are a broad network of groups, organisations and individuals working towards a sustainable local food economy for healthy lives, communities and environment.
Our consultation response to the draft Herefordshire Local Plan 2021-2041 takes into account our agreed aims for Herefordshire, and the six strands of Sustainable Food Places that we have agreed as an alliance to link ourselves with. These aims and strands are reflected within many other county-wide networks, and networks that stretch across borders and river catchments.
We need a county that is both producing food, and nature-friendly and we are looking to see that the local plan includes this while making lives better for communities too.
We have commented on a number of policies, but we're looking for specific things that support good food for everyone so we hope you can use this document to help you respond to the consultation too.
Just pick a section that appeals to you, have a look at out notes and make your own comments in the consultation.
A brief summary of our conclusions:
Soil is important. We're excited by the acknowledgement in the document of how important our natural resources are - knowing the importance of soil in the alliance's goals of food production and positive impact on nature, the local plan would need a stronger objective around this
Producing food is great for all of us. access to community growing, in both rural and urban locations is an essential part of wellbeing - it should be included as such in objectives and all the places that talk about the essential elements for residents' wellbing.
Farming and Food Growing Sustainably are Green Jobs. We need to see them as that and support them with the infrastructure and the context that will help these jobs thrive.