ONH supported Bloxham Parish Council in objecting to a 95 homes site, which was successfully refused: The decision notice finds that the site is not allocated in the emerging Neighbourhood Plan and that the scheme's scale runs contrary to the plan's housing strategy, which had reached an advanced stage. That conflict sits alongside harm to the village's landscape setting in the first reason for refusal.

ONH's regular Guesswork to Gameplan seminars have been designed to give you the opportunity to step back, review the latest changes in planning, ask questions, and evolve your approach to planning to suit your council area. Our next online seminar, Guesswork to Game Plan 2026: Planning for Town and Parish Councils, is on 22nd October at 11.00am.

Breaking with tradition, and rumours that have abounded for months, the new version of the NPPF was published on 17th August 2026. As expected, the changes between the draft version first published in December 2025 are not particularly substantial, but any community who has not yet got to grips with the proposed changes in the intervening period needs to know that they must do so now, as the new NPPF applies to decision making straight away.

Those with eagle eyes might have spotted a soft launch of ONH's AI assistants through GovAssist earlier this year. The current versions launched at an event in Milton Keynes in July 2026 and work - though it seems immodest to say it - quite brilliantly at doing what they do. ONH Neighbourhood Planner exists to support you to write and evidence your own neighbourhood plan — with professional rigour built in.

The Blacon Neighbourhood Plan and Neighbourhood Development Order will now be made following their successful referendum on 20 August, with a resounding yes vote of more than 91% in favour... “The study was invaluable and went further in recommending we implement the plan’s allocation policy for the Hub idea using a Neighbourhood Development Order. Getting a planning permission would help us secure the funding for the project, estimated at £5m”, says Marc Hallows of the Allia

Although they may not advertise it, areas with the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) in place are able to use the 'neighbourhood' part of that funding towards anything that will 'address the demands' that development places on an area.

Last month, Leani and Neil attended the Consortium for Scenario Planning annual conference and Neil presented case studies of our XSP experiences on plan making projects for Buckingham and St. Neots... What struck us most at the conference was the scale and scope of the XSP work in the USA. It is being used by state and local governments across its urban and rural areas akin to our new Spatial Development Strategy geography.

The end of year has brought new planning appeal successes, Local Plan Representations and more Neighbourhood Plans passing referendum! Congratulations to all ONH's clients on their hard work positively influencing planning outcomes in their areas.

Town and Parish Councils: Have you considered planning in your 2026/2027 budget? After a turbulent planning year, does your Council have the right resources available to support them through more planning changes? How can you prepare for the future now?

Importantly, this appeal was determined as the Stoke Poges Neighbourhood Plan (with its Design Code) was being formally made by Buckinghamshire Council. We made clear this meant that the Plan carried full weight and the Inspector specifically referenced the conflicts with its policies. This is another example of the strength in neighbourhood plans and local design codes in shaping planning outcomes.

What is a Grey Belt Study? how does it work and how might it help your area?

We are delighted to announce that The Farnhams Neighbourhood Plan has passed its referendum, following a resounding 92% ‘yes’ vote. This marks a significant milestone for the community, ensuring that future development in Farnham Royal and Farnham Common will be shaped by local priorities and aspirations. The Plan has been the result of close collaboration between the Parish Council, a dedicated steering group of local residents, and the team at ONH.

ONH Planning was instructed by Ruscombe Parish Council to prepare a formal representation opposing a full planning application for a 66-bedroom care home ...The Planning Inspector concluded that the proposed development would result in a visually dominant building, inconsistent with the surrounding pattern of development. In particular, the Inspector noted that the scheme’s height, continuous roofline and minimal architectural articulation would erode the area’s open characte

Explore the stories of Hanslope and Penn's Made Neighbourhood Plans, utilising strategic planning and local knowledge in two areas for whom green spaces held particular importance.

Many areas across England are currently vulnerable to speculative development. The traditional answer has often been a neighbourhood plan, but with the loss of the Neighbourhood Planning support program your council or forum may be concerned about how to fund a neighbourhood plan project or review, or whether to look at alternative options. To help you guide your decision, we have updated and expanded the services page on our website to reflect our new and expanded range of

New research: While neighbourhood planning is fundamentally community-led, the study highlights how professional support is often crucial to translating grassroots energy into effective, deliverable plans.

ONH have travelled the country throughout June delivering interactive Q&As and hands on workshops about the latest changes to planning and the impact on town and parish councils.

The first digital design code produced by ONH, for Sandleheath in the New Forest, has now been published.

As planning application decisions by Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) and appeal Inspectors start to rack up in favour of housing schemes in the Grey Belt, so we have begun to deliver our first Grey Belt Studies for local communities.

In a significant victory for local place-making, Burghclere Parish's Modified Neighbourhood Plan played a pivotal role in successfully resisting a speculative planning appeal for a housing development outside the village boundary for a second time.