News

Hi Everyone,

Just to let you know the RMNF trustees have reviewed all the comments made during the “pre-submission consultation” and our unanimous decision was to make some slight changes and to submit the Plan to the Local Planning Authority (Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council), which has now been done.

During the review it became apparent from some of the comments that a small number of people have misunderstood the role of our forum in planning.

Our forum DOES NOT make planning decisions – This has always been done by the local planning authority – Please see the “Planning Decision Process” map below, which is an existing process; the only difference being that if the Plan is adopted, it would be included in the process.

Our Forum DOES NOT make new legislation. The Plan wording is merely a reflection of the majority view of people in the community. The policies are taken from existing legislation and reflect the communities view in a form of words that are acceptable for the Plan, if adopted, to form part of Rochdale’s Local Plan.

Next Steps. The Plan will now go to the October Township meeting where the Township Committee will either approve or decline having the Local Planning Authority publicise the Plan for another six weeks and arranging an independent examination. It would be great if as many people as possible from our community could attend this meeting and we will let you know the date as soon as it is available. This meeting will also be a great opportunity for people to have their say if they support or object to the Plan.

The examination process is an independent check carried out by an Inspector appointed by government. If certain ‘basic conditions’ are met, the Plan can go to a local ‘Referendum’ for approval. When the referendum takes place, if 50% or more of those who vote support the Plan it can be declared ‘made’ and it becomes part of the statutory Local Plan and will be included for the process of determination for planning applications and appeals in our area.

We hope you agree we are fortunate to have RMNF, a registered charity, focused on benefiting the area in which we live. If the Plan is adopted our forum will be in a great position to consider delivering some of the projects identified in the Plan. A charity is very different from a commercial organisation, all trustee time and effort is given for free, no trustee should have any personal gain from forum activities and members of the forum, YOU, are best place to direct forum activities by telling us what is important to the majority of people in the area.

Another great benefit of the forum is that we are a consultee to planning applications in, or affecting our area. This doesn’t stop individuals making their own representations in the usual manner and where an application is outside the scope of our neighbourhood plan (if adopted), forum trustees are able to arrange meetings to seek the views of the community and feed that information back through the consultation process. The forum is also able to seek expert advice on particular matters.

We hope you support our neighbourhood forum and Plan and we look forward to seeing you at our next AGM that will be in late August or early September, we’ll let you know the date soon as it is available.

Copies of the submitted plan and consultation statement can be found on the home page of our website.

Kind regards,

Rooley Moor Neighbourhood Forum Trustees

1. It’s the biggest change to UK data privacy law in 20 years – Thanks to technological advances the amount of personal data being generated is rapidly increasing – every time you shop online, use your favourite app or ‘like’ a photo on Facebook you generate data – which is why the law needs updating to better protect people. As part of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) organisations have to review how they manage all personal data – from email addresses to bank details – and ensure they are GDPR-ready by 25th May 2018.
2. It will give you more control over your personal data- GDPR is all about giving you more control on how your personal data is used. You’ll have greater visibility and control over the personal data organisations hold about you – whether it’s something as simple as your name, or as complex and sensitive as medical information. This means you can have greater confidence that information about you is accurate, up-to-date and properly managed.
3. You can choose who contacts you, and how – You’ll probably notice a lot of organisations asking for your consent so they can contact you about offers, products or services they think you’ll find useful or interesting. To comply with GDPR, these requests need to be really clear and straightforward. You get to choose who contacts you and how, for example by email, social media or phone.
4. You can change your mind at any time – If you give an organisation permission to contact you, it doesn’t mean you can’t change your mind in the future. Under the new rules, it should be easier to update your preferences on what you want to receive and how.
5. Your data will be better protected – GDPR also aims to make sure that all organisations holding personal data have the right processes in place to protect it. Organisations who put customer data at risk will face hefty penalties.

• We use your personal data to contact you with information about our neighbourhood forum and area that is relevant, useful and timely.
• We respect your privacy and work hard to ensure we meet strict regulatory requirements.
• We DO NOT sell your personal data to third parties.

May

• Friday 4th May – Neighbourhood plan pre-submission consultation ends
• Saturday 12th May – Prickshaw and Catley Lane Head village clean up. From 10am to Noon for litter picking and a general tidy up
• Sunday 13th May – Whitworth Skyline Walk will include the Cotton Famine Road and pass down Knacks Lane and through Prickshaw to the finish at Lobden Golf Club
• Friday 25^th May – General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) come into force.
• Sunday 27th May – NFBA Annual Rendezvous Ride – Catley Lane Head, 12:30pm in “Win’s Field”. Cosima Towneley (Mary Towneley’s daughter) will be at the event and Rosettes will be presented by The Lord Lieutenant of Greater Manchester, Warren Smith. The ride will also raise money for North West Air Ambulance

June & July

• In Bloom – June & July will be bursting with planting projects to bring dazzling colour our area ready for Rochdale in Bloom.
  • Catley Lane Head theme: “Our Natural Neighbourhood” to include:

• 4 half barrels, sponsored by local businesses, at the following points:

1. Fern Hill entrance
2. Centre of village at the old phone box, will include a refurbished Victorian bench
3. By the side of the BBC Cotton Famine sign, and
4. The corner of Smallshaw Road

• Plans also include:
  • Agricultural themed planting on the hill by Brown Hill Farm
  • Children’s fairy garden at the side of the refurbished bench detailed above (local children and parents will take charge of this)
• Feature planting around:
  • The water trough well, opposite the Doldrums, “Well Dressing“ with Willow and plants, and
  • At the steps to the footpath alongside the site of the old chapel where a rustic cross will be in place to remember site
  • Willow ornaments to walls and trees and planters
  • The bus terminus turning circle – There’s a large tree trunk across from the Black dog on the corner of Caldershaw estate. We think it would make a great feature at the old bus stop – People and tractor power needed to move – Can anyone help?
• Friday 22 Jun to Sunday 24 Jun – The Great Get Together

August

• Rochdale Township in Bloom Judging Day (Dates TBA)

RMNF is a registered charity No. 1165601. We welcome donations to help run our organisation and various projects. To make a donation, please follow the instructions on the “Donate” page of our website: http://www.rmnf.org.uk/donate/

Elizabeth White, “A Timeless Landscape” – Images of the Pennines includes the Cotton Famine Road. Elizabeth is launching her exhibition at Hollingworth Lake TIC, starting this Saturday 28th April, Elizabeth will be there from 2-3.30 on Sunday.