Bracknell is gearing up to go to the polls for a referendum that will set the agenda for future development in the town for the next 15 years.

Residents are set to vote in the Bracknell Town Neighbourhood Plan referendum.

The Neighbourhood Plan has 36 policies which will govern what the town may look like in the future.

The policies are divided into six key objectives which provide a vision for the town. These are:

  1. Improve social, community and leisure facilities and preserve listed buildings and heritage assets
  2. Ensure the range of available housing is appropriate for current residents and for growth, while reducing carbon footprint and preserving the character of the area
  3. To continue to improve the economic vibrancy of the town centre, and the attractiveness of the town as a whole
  4. To strengthen the employment base and attract a wide variety of businesses to Bracknell
  5. Strengthen the town’s transport infrastructure to ensure that the growth of Bracknell is sustainable
  6. To maintain and improve the quality of the environment for residents

These objectives will lay out the future for Bracknell Town until 2036.

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Although Bracknell Town Council is only a planning application consultee, with planning decisions being made by Bracknell Forest Council’s planning department and committee, the policies contained within the neighbourhood plan have to be considered when Bracknell Forest Council determines planning applications.

Councillor Chris Turrell, chair of the neighbourhood plan steering group, which has overseen the plan, said: “The plan policies cover many benefits for residents, such as protection for green space, improvements to pedestrian and cycle links, protection of community facilities and support for environmental improvements.

“On behalf of the steering group, I urge residents to use their votes on or before September 9.”

Cllr Turrell is also the leader of Bracknell Town Council and a Conservative representative for the Harmans Water ward.

The plan covers the Bracknell town wards but excludes urban parts of Warfield and a stretches of the east of the town which are in Winkfield Parish.

PIC

You can observe the Bracknell Town Neighbourhood Plan in full by clicking this link here.

The referendum will ask residents whether they think the plan should be adopted or not.

Ballot papers have already been dispatched to postal voters. Alternatively, you can vote in person at your nearest polling station on Thursday, September 9.

Here is where you can vote:

  • Birch Hill Community Centre, Leppington, RG12 7WW
  • Bullbrook Community Centre, Bay Road, RG12 2NL (two stations)
  • Crown Wood Community Centre, Opladen Way, RG12 0PE
  • Bracknell Methodist Church Hall, Shepherds Lane, RG42 2DD
  • Great Hollands Community Centre, The Square, Wordsworth, RG12 8UX (two stations)
  • The Pines Community Centre, Hanworth Road, RG12 7WX
  • St Paul’s Church, The Square, RG12 9LP (two stations)
  • The Parks Community Centre, 8 – 10 Nicholson Park, RG12 9QN
  • Easthampstead & Wildridings Community Centre, Rectory Lane, RG12 7BH
  • Easthampstead Baptist Church, South Hill Road, RG12 7NS
  • Priestwood Community Centre, Priestwood Court Road, RG42 1TU
  • Jennett’s Park Community Centre, 1 Tawny Owl Square, RG12 8EB
  • Bracknell Central Library, Town Square, RG12 1BH
  • Open Learning Centre, Rectory Lane, RG12 7GR

Councils which make neighbourhood plans receive 25 per cent of future Community Infrastructure Levy payments (CIL), rather than the standard 15 per cent that areas without plans get.

These payments can then be used by the council to pay for infrastructure and mitigate the impact of new developments on the community.