Residents are still contacting the Holystone Action Group saying they are unable to register objections and comments on North Tyneside Council's CSPO (Core Strategy Preferred Options) consultation website.

Responses from residents are that the portal is slow and unresponsive with many saying that they have simply been unable to register - an arguably unnecessary and cumbersome requirement for residents simply wanting to post comments on the Council's CSPO proposal.

North Tyneside council is required to consult the community for their views on the Core Strategy proposals and with only 37% of residents reading all or nearly all of the "Widening Horizons" magazine and even less, 35%, ever having visited the council's website, it is highly questionable if the Council's chosen methods of public consultation are adequate or even capable of fully involving the community. [stats source: North Tyneside Residents Survey 2010]

Residents have said the consultation portal/website is difficult to access or find information on and no better when it comes to posting views and comments. Because of these difficulties residents are resorting to posting (or snail mailing) comments to the council, only for these to be later typed in manually by council/consultancy staff. Some residents have complained their view and comments are not being included on the councils consultation portal at all.

If you are unable to or have difficulty using the North Tyneside consultancy portal, you can either:

• Use the objections and comments template letter, provide by the Holystone Action Group - just fill-in, edit, print and post to North Tyneside. Or use the comments in the template letter to help form your own objections/comments letters/emails.
• E-mail your own objections and comments direct to North Tyneside Council at planning.policy@northtyneside.gov.uk.
• Post your comments and objections to Planning Policy, Development Directorate, North Tyneside Council, The Quadrant - North Silverlink, Cobalt Business Park, NE27 0BY.
• You can also telephone North Tyneside planners on 0191 643 2310 and ask for information and a Core Strategy questionnaire, this also allows you to add your own comments.
• You can also visit any of the council road-shows and obtain a questionnaire and question some of the planning folks. Please be warned despite this being a public consultation the planners appear reluctant to take note or write down anything you say

Don't be put off from giving the council your opinion - The council is telling people "nothing has been decided" and "you can still object when planning applications are made". Although this is technically correct, they haven't decided what to do, they've only decided what they want to do. You can scream and shout your objections to the inevitable planning applications as much as you like, but if they're like it says in the Core Strategy you will be wasting your time. The council knows this too, in their own words:

"...whilst you can have your say on individual planning applications as they arise, it is important to remember that these will be determined on the basis of the statutory planning documents in the Local Development Framework [including the Core Strategy]. That is why it is vital that you have your say early in the planning process - i.e. when the planning documents are being produced."
[source: North Tyneside Statement of Community Involvement (2010) - Page 8]

 

"Officers will consider all the information...but the policy documents that make up the Statutory Development Plan [including the core strategy] are usually the main basis for the determination of applications. This is why it is important to get involved at this stage in the planning process so that the content of these documents accurately reflect and take into account the views of your community."
[source: North Tyneside Statement of Community Involvement (2010) - Page 11]