Cumbrae Community Council Launches Local Place Plan to Foster Community Engagement
In an effort to empower local residents and give them a voice in land use decisions, Cumbrae Community Council (CCC) is excited to announce the publication of the island’s
Local Place Plan.
This document expresses the community’s shared vision for the island's future, and is an important tool to allow the community to democratically influence planning policies at North Ayrshire Council.
The Local Place Plan is a community-led project that aims to identify and protect places of significance while also proposing areas suitable for future development. Following the recent experience objecting to the proposed solar farm project at the highest point of the island, CCC realised the community needed to take more control of decisions about land use on the island.
Cumbrae Community Council proactively engaged the community through an extensive consultation process. This included an online survey launched in March 2024, which received an impressive 545 responses. CCC also organised drop-in sessions and stakeholder consultations to ensure that as many voices as possible were heard. The high response rate to the survey indicates a strong interest from the community in shaping the island's future.
In general, respondents felt positive about Cumbrae in relation to safety, community, the landscape and views. They were negative about the ferry service, North Ayrshire Council, business opening hours, some aspects of tourism and the proposed solar farm. They expressed a desire for improved amenities, fewer cars, better controlled motorhomes and camping, safer cycling and a greater proportion of people visiting the island as foot passengers.
The Place Plan distilled answers to the survey into a series of nineteen proposals. These have been shared with North Ayrshire Council to help shape the future planning policies affecting the island.
Cllr Alan Hill, Cabinet Member for Communities, Housing and the Islands said: “I think it is an excellent piece of work and incredible to achieve such a level of community engagement too.”
“The Local Place Plan is an important tool for our community,” said Gregor Harvie, advisor to Cumbrae Community Council. “It allows residents to express their aspirations for the island and work collaboratively to address the challenges we face. We are committed to ensuring that the plan reflects the needs and desires of our community and is followed through.”
The Local Place Plan will serve as a living document, updated over time to adapt to the evolving needs of Cumbrae. Where proposals include actions, these will be tracked and reported on at future meetings of Cumbrae Community Council.
The Local Place Plan will be considered by North Ayrshire Council when they are preparing their third Local Development Plan, ensuring that the community's voice is integral to future planning policies and developments for the island.
