Decision details

Background / Decision Summary:
Decision
This decision is to ratify the Heworth Without Neighbourhood Plan Area Designation application.

Background
Heworth Without Parish Council submitted a Neighbourhood Plan Area Designation Application to City of York Council on 18th December 2025.

The application consists of the following documents:
• Heworth Without Neighbourhood Plan Area Designation Application (Annex 1);
• HWPC Terms of Reference for the Working Party (Annex 2).

Section 5A (Designation of the whole of the area of a parish council) of the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 (as amended) states that:
• if a local planning authority receives an area application from a parish council, and
• the area specified in the application consists of the whole parish council area, and
• if any part of the specified area is part of a neighbourhood area, none of that neighbourhood area extends outside the parish council area
then the local planning authority must exercise their powers under Section 61G of the 1990 Act to designate the specified area as a neighbourhood area.

Where the above regulation applies, regulations 6 & 6A do not apply (Publicising an area application – to include advertising it on the Council’s website and in such a way that brings it to the attention of people who live, work or carry out business in the area to which the application relates, such as a public consultation exercise).

The Area Designation Application as submitted includes a plan showing the proposed area to cover the whole of the Heworth Without Parish boundary (not Ward). The application area therefore reflects the existing administrative boundary of Heworth Without Parish, as a recognisable and cohesive community. The boundary does not overlap or conflict with any other Parish boundary.

Therefore, as the proposed application is made by Heworth Without Parish Council and the application area is the parish boundary, then Section 5A applies and no public consultation exercise on the application is necessary.

Following ratification, Heworth Parish Council can commence plan-making for their area, supported by CYC officers.

Further information is available via the dedicated webpage:
https://www.york.gov.uk/planning-policy/heworth-without-neighbourhood-plan

We have a statutory duty to ratify the submitted area designation.

Section 5A (Designation of the whole of the area of a parish council) of the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 (as amended) states that if a local planning authority receives an area application from a parish council, the area specified in the application consists of the whole parish council area, and if any part of the specified area is part of a neighbourhood area, none of that neighbourhood area extends outside the parish council area then the local planning authority must exercise their powers under Section 61G of the 1990 Act to designate the specified area as a neighbourhood area.
Therefore, if the Council does not designate the specified area as a neighbourhood area, it will not be fulfilling its statutory obligations and will be vulnerable to legal challenge.

To not ratify the submitted Neighbourhood Plan designation.
The Council would be failing in its statutory duty if it did not designate the specified area as a neighbourhood area, as aligned to Section 5A of the of the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 (as amended).