Lambourn Neighbourhood Plan (Regulation 16 Consultation)

Background

Lambourn Parish Council, assisted by community volunteers, have prepared the Lambourn Neighbourhood Plan, formally known as a Neighbourhood Development Plan (NDP). The purpose of the Lambourn NDP is to provide planning policies to guide development in the designated Lambourn Neighbourhood Area. The neighbourhood area covers the Parish of Lambourn.

Lambourn Parish Council undertook a Regulation 14 consultation on the proposed submission version of the NDP between 6 September and Friday 18 October 2024. 

Following agreement at a meeting of Lambourn Parish Council on 4 February 2026, the NDP was submitted to West Berkshire District Council (WBDC) on 16 February 2026. Upon submission WBDC took on responsibility for taking the NDP forward.

What is being proposed?

The NDP contains a series of development management policies which cover the following topics:

• environment and landscape
• flooding and drainage
• the built environment
• housing.
• community and employment
• transport and infrastructure

The Lambourn NDP also includes three residential site allocations:

• land at Wantage Road, Lambourn: approximately 25 dwellings
• former Royal British Legion Sites, Lambourn: approximately 10 dwellings
• land at Collingridge Farm, Lambourn: approximately 10 dwellings

Why we want your views

In line with Regulation 16 of the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 (as amended), the Lambourn NDP must now be publicised and comments invited. This stage is known as the Regulation 16 consultation.

Since the Lambourn NDP was submitted to WBDC, legislative changes have been introduced through the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 (Commencement No.11 and Saving and Transitional Provisions). These changes amend some of the legal compliance requirements and Basic Conditions against which the Lambourn NDP will be examined. The Basic Conditions are a set of statutory tests which all NDPs must comply with.

These changes came into effect on 25 March 2026 and introduce the following new legal compliance requirements:

• Climate change: having regard to the subject matter of the plan, the NDP must be designed to ensure that the development and use of land in the neighbourhood area contribute to the mitigation of, and adaptation to, climate change; and
• Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRS): having regard to the subject matter of the plan, the NDP must be designed to take account of any local nature recovery strategy covering all or part of the neighbourhood area. LNRS are spatial documents that identify existing valuable nature habitats and opportunities for nature recovery and enhancement. The Berkshire LNRS, covering the whole of Berkshire, was published on 7 October 2025 and can be viewed online here.

The legislation also introduces the following new Basic Condition:

• the making of the NDP would not result in the development plan for the area of the authority proposing that less housing is provided by means of development taking place in that area than if the NDP were not to be made

This replaces the previous Basic Condition for NDPs to be in general conformity with the strategic policies contained in the development plan for the area.

A further Basic Condition relating to the new environmental assessment framework has been commenced. However, until a framework for the implementation of environmental assessment reports is in place, compliance with this Basic Condition cannot yet be assessed.

Lambourn Parish Council has prepared an addendum to their Basic Conditions Statement [228KB]  explaining how the policies in the NDP address the legislative changes.  Representations may also consider whether these changes have any implications for the submitted Lambourn NDP.

Consultation documents

The submission Lambourn NDP and its supporting documents are available to view/download below:

• Submission Lambourn NDP [12MB]
• Basic Conditions Statement [2MB]
• Basic Conditions Statement Addendum [228KB]
• Consultation Statement [13MB]
• Strategic Environmental Assessment and Habitat Regulations Assessment Screening Report (post-consultation version) [1MB]
• Strategic Environmental Assessment - Environmental Report [1MB]
• Habitat Regulations Assessment - Appropriate Assessment [499KB]

Reference copies of the documents are also available to view in the following locations:

• West Berkshire District Council Offices, Market Street, Newbury, RG14 5LD. The offices are open Monday to Thursday 8.30am to 5pm, and on Fridays 8.30am to 4.30pm.
• Lambourn Library, High Street, Lambourn, RG17 8XL. The library is open Tuesday's 2pm to 5.30pm, Wednesday's 10am to 1pm, Thursday's 3.30pm to 5.30pm, Friday's 10am to 5pm, and Saturday's 10am to 12.30pm.
• Lambourn Parish Council Office, The Memorial Hall, Oxford Street, Lambourn, RG17 8XP. The office is open Monday and Thursday between 9am and 12pm.
• St James the Greater Church, Church Street, Eastbury, RG17 7JL. The church is open daily between 10am and 4pm. 
• Woodlands St. Mary Village Hall and Bar, School Lane, Woodlands St Mary, RG17 7SL. It is open Thursday's, Friday's and Saturday's 7pm to 11pm, and Sundays 12.30pm to 4pm

We are also publishing online for information the following reference documents which Lambourn Parish Council have used to inform the submission version of the NDP:

• Appendix A - Relevant Local Plan Review Policies [214KB]
• Appendix B - Housing Site Allocations Development Plan Document [888KB]
• Appendix C - Historical Development [2MB]
• Appendix D - Parish Profile [911KB]
• Appendix E - Local Character Areas and Landscape Character Areas [780KB]
• Appendix F - Lambourn Parish Character Appraisal [129MB]
• Appendix G - Lambourn Parish Design Code [33MB]
• Appendix H - Lambourn Parish Local Green Space Assessment [19MB]
• Appendix I - Lambourn Parish Important Views Assessment [89MB]
• Appendix J - Biodiversity [544KB]
• Appendix K - Flooding [4MB]
• Appendix L - Eastbury Flood Alleviation Scheme [513KB]
• Appendix M - Heritage [938KB]
• Appendix N - Sustainable Construction, Resources and Climate Change: The Almshouses Example [67KB]
• Appendix O - Lambourn Housing Needs Assessment [1MB]
• Appendix P - Site Specific Housing Allocations Selection [318KB]
• Appendix Q - Community Facilities [974KB]
• Appendix R - Racehorse Training Industry [781KB]
• Appendix S - Accessibility, Road Safety and Sustainable Transport [557KB]
• Archaeology Assessment [8MB]
• Business Survey [2MB]
• Housing Needs Survey for Racing Staff and Trainers [1MB]
• Landowners Survey [2MB]
• Landscape Character Appraisal to inform the Lambourn NDP [34MB]
• Residents Survey [12MB]
• River Lambourn Drone Survey [47MB]  
• Site Assessment [4MB]
• Thames Valley Environmental Records Centre Biodiversity Report [809KB]
• Youth Survey [201KB]

How to take part

A representation form can be downloaded online here [269KB] . Paper copies of the representation form are also available at West Berkshire District Council Offices in Newbury, Lambourn Library, Lambourn Parish Council Office, St James the Greater Church in Eastbury, and Woodlands St. Mary Village Hall and Bar in Lambourn Woodlands. 

Completed forms can be submitted in the following ways:

• Email: planningpolicy@westberks.gov.uk.
• Post: Planning Policy Team, Development and Housing, West Berkshire District Council, Market Street, Newbury, RG14 5LD.

Please note: all submitted representations will be made publicly available on the Council's website, with the person/organisation making the representation being identified. Address details will not be made publicly available. All personal data will be handled in line with the Council's Privacy Policy on the Development Plan. You can view the Privacy Notice here.

All representations must be received by 11.59pm on Tuesday 30 June 2026.

If you have any questions about the consultation, please contact the Planning Policy team.

What happens next

Once the consultation ends, the Lambourn NDP will undergo independent examination. The representations received to the consultation will be forwarded to an appointed examiner. The representations will also be published on our website here.

The opportunity for further comments at this stage would only be at the specific request of the examiner. Most neighbourhood plans are examined without the need for a public hearing. If you think the neighbourhood plan requires a public hearing, you can state this in your comments, but the examiner will make the final decision.

At the end of the examination, the examiner will issue a report, which may include recommended modifications to the NDP to ensure it meets the Basic Conditions. The examiner's report is not binding; it is the responsibility of WBDC to determine whether the Basic Conditions are met. This will be set out in a Decision Statement, which must be endorsed by Councillors at a meeting of Council. If this stage is successful, the process will move on to the referendum. If the Lambourn NDP is successful at Referendum, then it will form part of the statutory development plan, and will form the basis for determining planning applications in Lambourn Parish.