Marnhull Neighbourhood Plan was made (adopted) on 21 April 2026.
The neighbourhood plan was prepared by Marnhull parish council. It has undergone examination by an independent examiner and has received a positive result at a local referendum.
Referendum
The referendum took place on Thursday 19 March 2026. The referendum asked: “Do you want Dorset Council to use the neighbourhood plan for Marnhull to help it decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area?” The result was a majority in favour (615 ‘yes’ votes and 55 ‘no’ votes). See the full referendum results.
The documents published at the start of the referendum period were:
- Marnhull Neighbourhood Plan 2024 to 2038 (referendum version)
- the Examiner's Report
- the Decision Statement which includes a statement by the local planning authority that the plan as proposed meets the basic conditions
- a summary of representations submitted to the examiner
- the Information Statement, which includes information regarding the referendum
Plan examination
The independent examination was undertaken by Andrew Mead BSc (Hons) MRTPI MIQ. The examiner’s report was issued on 6 January 2026.
Correspondence during the examination between the examiner, Dorset Council and the parish council is set out below:
- Letter from examiner (15 October 2025)
- Letter from examiner (21 October 2025)
- Response from Marnhull Parish Council (3 November 2025)
- Response from Dorset Council (4 November 2025)
Plan submission and Regulation 16 consultation
The submitted neighbourhood plan is:
It is supported by the following documents:
The plan is also accompanied by the following evidence base documents:
- Marnhull - Design Guidance and Codes
- Marnhull - Views Report
- Marnhull - Village Traffic Survey
- Marnhull - Conservation Area Appraisal
A regulation 16 consultation took place between 8 August and 19 September 2025. Representations received during the consultation period have been compiled into the following report: