Independent and not-for-profit with 30 years' expertise in planning, community planning and engagement
 

News

Planning Advice Outreach (Belfast)

Our next planning advice drop-in session will be held on Wednesday, 24 August 2022 at our offices at 2 Downshire Place, Belfast between 12 noon and 4.00 pm.

Our Planning Advice Service is part-funded by the Department for Infrastructure and enables us to provide free, confidential, impartial planning advice to people and communities who cannot afford to pay a private consultant. 

You can drop in to the advice session any time between 12 noon and 4.00 pm to get one-to-one confidential advice from one of our planners.  There is no need to make an appointment (but please call us in advance if you would like to book an appointment for a specific time).  We can give advice on: 

  • how the planning system works (applications; fees; enforcement; appeals);

  • planning policies;

  • your council’s decision making process; and

  • how to comment or object if you think a proposal or a development will have a negative impact on your home or your community.

You can also get advice by email (info@communityplaces.info) or by telephone (9023 9444 or 07783 649288).

 

15 August 2022

Planning Advice Outreach (Castlewellan)

We are resuming our series of drop-in planning advice outreach sessions across the region.  Our next session will be held on Tuesday, 21 June 2022 in The Lodge, Dublin Road, Castlewellan between 12 noon and 4.00 pm.

Our Planning Advice Service is part-funded by the Department for Infrastructure and enables us to provide free, confidential, impartial planning advice to people and communities who cannot afford to pay a private consultant. 

You can drop into the advice session any time between 12 noon and 4.00 pm to get one-to-one confidential advice from one of our planners.  There is no need to make an appointment.  We can give advice on: 

·         how the planning system works (applications; fees; enforcement; appeals);

·         planning policies;

·         your council’s decision making process; and

·         how to comment or object if you think a proposal or a development will have a negative impact on your home or your community.

You can also get advice by email (info@communityplaces.info) or by telephone (9023 9444 or 07783 649288). 

13 June 2022

Co-creating a PB Charter

Participatory Budgeting (PB) practice is continuing to develop and grow across the region, empowering local communities and supporting them to shape and have a genuine say in investment decisions in their areas.  As our experience in PB grows it is important to consider and share what ‘good’ PB looks like. Over the last two years PB Works has been advocating for PB processes which put people in the lead.

To ensure a focus on quality PB processes we have been learning from experience here and further afield and exploring what good PB looks like through a number of online PB Workshops.  This has helped us to think about what is different about PB and to consider some of the key aspects which we might want to see reflected in a PB Charter.

You are invited to join us for an in-room event to:

  • help shape a PB Charter to support quality PB;
  • consider what is unique about PB and how we hold on to and nurture that through a Charter;
  • reflect together and share PB experiences and learning;
  • join the PB Works Network.

The workshop – to be held on Tuesday, 14 June 2022 in Girdwood Community Hub, Belfast - will be an opportunity to reflect together on how far we have come on our PB journey.  There will be space to discuss, explore and shape the content of a PB Charter and to consider what a quality PB process looks and feels like.  A visual artist will capture and animate the conversations.  The workshop will begin at 10.00 am (with registration from 9.30 am) and will end at 1.00 pm with lunch.  Please register here to attend:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/co-creating-a-pb-charter-tickets-352487047247

For more information on PB Works and Putting People in the Lead through Quality PB contact Louise O'Kane (louise@communityplaces.info).

7 June 2022

Planning Your Place - Getting Involved

The Planning Engagement Partnership, established by Minister Mallon in October 2020, brought together a diverse range of interests from across the public, community, environmental, private and academic sectors to examine how community engagement in planning and place shaping processes could be improved.  The Partnership undertook desktop research to identify good practice; and held stakeholder and community workshops to explore how communities could be more meaningfully engaged with planning.  It explored and reflected on the learning from these activities and prepared a detailed report and series of recommendations to enhance and deepen the quality of community engagement in planning processes.  The Final Report of the Planning Engagement Partnership was published by Minister Mallon in March 2022 and is available to download here.

Community Places looks forward to working with the Department and Planning Engagement Partnership members to implement and take forward the report recommendations to ensure that communities have earlier and more meaningful access and engagement with planning processes to better shape local communities and place.

 

5 May 2022

Building Youth Voice

We are pleased to announce that the Youth PB Accelerator Project has launched the Youth PB Toolkit and DIY Manual.  The tools, resources, inspirations and materials offer detailed guidance and support for those who are new to PB and to those who want to deepen their knowledge and practice. The resources are the product of a two-year Erasmus+ research collaboration between five partners from across three countries.  The project is co-ordinated by the Polish Foundation Soclab, with collaborators from Field of Dialogue in Poland, the University of Granada’s Medialab in Spain, as well as Shared Future CIC in the UK and Community Places in Northern Ireland.

Visit the Youth PB Accelerator website to find out more about the project including blogs on youth participation, podcasts from PB practitioners and participants and case studies illustrating youth PB practice in school and community settings.  We would love to hear your feedback on the Toolkit and DIY Manual via our Facebook Page @YouthPbAccelerator.  The resources can also be found on the PB Works Website.

31 March 2022

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