Welland ward has formed a second neighbourhood forum for Market Harborough

The Welland Plan Neighbourhood Forum meets every second Thursday of the month to discuss local issues and welcomes residents or business owners in the area.

It is the second of five wards across Market Harborough to have a forum established by the Harborough Town Hub, a non-party political volunteer group, with support from Harborough District Council. Little Bowden Forum (who meet at 6.30pm, every third Thursday of the month) was formally designated in January.

The formation of the forums will allow residents to have more of a say in planning and land use in their community as well as tackling issues such as flooding, traffic and the care of green spaces.

The established forums are compiling ‘neighbourhood priorities statements’ which is a list of key issues within the community which can form the basis of a neighbourhood plan which has greater statutory powers and is used by Harborough District Council alongside the Local Plan.

Cllr Simon Galton, Harborough District Council’s Cabinet lead for Planning, said: “The formation of this forum will offer a place for people to go and discuss local issues, highlight problems in their neighbourhood and see what others think. It is important we give communities the chance to shape future development in the areas that matter to them.”

Chris Durham, chair of Harborough Town Hub, has said that further meetings will be held in the Logan, Arden and Town Centre, which he hopes will be equally well supported. A minimum of 21 members are required in each area to form a neighbourhood forum.

Market Harborough residents are not represented by a town council in the same way some towns and villages are in the district. Neighbourhood planning was started under the Localism Act of 2011 and since then 29 neighbourhood plans have been adopted by parish councils across Harborough district. These forums, however, are part of a wider government pilot scheme encouraging communities to develop neighbourhood plans in a simpler way. 

If you live or work in Market Harborough and would like to know more about the neighbourhood forums being set up or details of where they meet, please contact Simon Hobbs at neighbourhoodplans@harborough.gov.uk

More information about neighbourhood planning can be found at www.harborough.gov.uk/neighbourhood-planning