Help shape Castle Point’s future
Every person who lives or works in Castle Point is being asked to help shape how it grows in the coming decades.
Castle Point Borough Council’s Full Council gave the go-ahead to begin consultation on the Issues and Options phase of creating the Castle Point Plan at their meeting on Wednesday (17 July).
Engagement will now begin on the detailed options that have been developed by the Council using insight gained from in-depth studies on key aspects of the local area and feedback from residents given during the first phase of engagement in the spring and summer of last year.
Cllr Warren Gibson, Deputy Leader and Chair of the Castle Point Plan Board, said: “We want Castle Point to prosper and to do this we must ensure we have the right housing, infrastructure, green spaces and services to meet our communities’ needs as they change and grow.
“That is what the Castle Point Plan will do and from the start we pledged we would ensure that the development of this document would be resident led. We have kept that promise with a programme of comprehensive engagement both online and in person in the form of a series of workshops for both residents and businesses.
“This isn’t just a process. It is something which will have a direct impact on all our lives and the experience we have of where we live. It is therefore vital that as many people as possible have their say.”
During the initial engagement more than 1,500 people gave their views and told the Council what matters to them about their communities; what is good, what needs to improve, and what needs to change.
The Issue and Options consultation, which takes place between 22 July and 16 September, builds on this and asks for feedback on the detailed proposals.
Once the engagement is complete, the feedback will help guide the creation of the Plan itself.
Members will then vote to approve the draft Plan before it is published for consultation, with any comments from the public sent with that Plan to the Planning Inspectorate for examination and approval.
Once approved and adopted by the Council, which is expected to be at some point during 2025, it will act as a framework to meet the Borough’s needs up to 2050.
More information and access to the online consultation portal can be found on our Castle Point Plan page.