Neighbourhood Forums are a construct of
Local government in England
Local government in England broadly consists of three layers: regional authorities, local authorities and parish councils. Legislation concerning English local government is passed by Parliament, as England does not have a devolved parliament.
Th ...
and are defined in the
Town and Country Planning Act 1990
The Town and Country Planning Act 1990c 8 is an act of the United Kingdom Parliament regulating the development of land in England and Wales. It is a central part of English land law in that it concerns town and country planning in the United Ki ...
as a body that organises the production of a neighbourhood plan.
Where town or
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
councils exist those bodies may apply to the
local planning authority
A local planning authority (LPA) is the local government body that is empowered by law to exercise urban planning functions for a particular area. They exist in the United Kingdom and India.
United Kingdom
Mineral planning authorities
The role ...
(usually a district or borough council) for the devolution of neighbourhood planning powers. Where an area is ''unparished'' (usually because it is within a city or urban area) then local people may seek to create a neighbourhood forum and then apply to the local planning authority for its formal ''designation''.
A designated neighbourhood forum is an organisation empowered by local planning authority to lead the neighbourhood planning process in the absence of a town or parish council.
References
{{UK planning
Housing in the United Kingdom