People in the City of Durham Parish area have asked why they have received two polling cards for the May 6th election. One is for the local elections and the other is for a referendum on the Durham City Neighbourhood Plan. The referendum is NOT about the County Plan, which is the strategic plan for the whole of County Durham and already in operation.
The referendum will be held to determine whether the Durham City Neighbourhood Plan will be adopted. This is a Plan developed by volunteers to deal with matters of concern in the City in finer detail than was possible in the County Plan. It has been many years in the making, devised by local people for local people and in consultation with local people.
The referendum will ask the simple question: “Do you want Durham County Council to use the Neighbourhood Plan for Durham City to help it decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area?”
Those entitled to vote are people registered in the City of Durham Parish area. If a simple majority of those who do vote support the Plan it will come into effect and help to make a difference the planning decisions made about Durham City.
More details can be found in a special website https://dh1.org.uk/ that gives a brief summary of the Plan with live links to the document itself.
PLEASE VOTE “YES” ON THURSDAY 6 MAY