Positive change in your local community
Why should you do a Local Place Plan?
Local Place Plans give your local community the power to create proposals for positive development of land and the urban area.
With an approved Local Place Plan, your local land strategy becomes part of the wider planning strategy that Local Authorities adhere to.
This is your chance to be heard and make your local area a better place to live and work.
How does it work?
Building up your Local Place Plan is about getting your community together to agree on what's important, and mapping it.
Building up your Local Place Plan is easy. Parish Online (the mapping software used by thousands of local councils in England and Wales) has been adapted for this Community Map Scotland project.
Simply draw out areas on the map where you want things to be protected, areas that are suitable for housing and infrastructure, and where the cultural and social hot-spots are. These, among other themes, define your draft plan than then goes to proposal.
The mapping software makes it really easy to produce interactive maps to share with your community for review.
How do you get started?
It’s easy to start mapping your Local Place Plan. However, before you do you'll need to:
- To nominate a representative within your community to lead the project (that's probably you!)
- For your Community Council chair to sign a mapping licence from Ordnance Survey (we can help you with this)
- Create working group for your Local Place Plan
- Find funds to cover incidental costs to conduct the project.
Before you do that, you might like to create a mapping account and play around with drawing out some drafts yourself.
Once your account is set up there’s a wealth of information on our Knowledge Base and Community Forum to help you with the policy and technicalities of building up your plan. Don’t worry, we’re here to help!
How much does it cost?
Parish Online is fully funding the Community Map Scotland project for your first 12 months.
When signing up, use the code cms12 when subscribing.
There's no catch, it's just something the Parish Online team believe in. Of course, after 12 months you may wish to continue using the mapping for your Community Council, and that's great, but it's not required. Parish Online will not use your data or sell it without your express permission.
Our software is charged on an annual subscription basis.
We band our subscription on your Community Council population so it's fair for all sizes of community.
Pricing starts from £30 per year, and the average price is £100 per year. You'll see how much your account is when you sign up for a free account.
What support do you get?
You’re not alone in this process. You can lean on us to get the help you need:
Powered by Parish Online software
With a Knowledge Base and rapid email support, the team are on-hand to help.
Data from Improvement Service
Information such as recent planning applications, development plans from local authorities, and green belt land.
Map Licences through PSGA
Advice and training from PAS
Support from Scottish Local Authorities
Some forward-thinking Local Authorities, such as Fife, have already built-up guidance and support for helping you with your plan. Get in touch with your Local Authority to find out how they can help.
What features are in the Community Map Scotland software?
Your Community Map Scotland subscription includes:
- Mapping Functions
- Ready-to-use maps to add your information into. No configuration needed.
- Create, edit and delete map features
- Unlimited attachments to assign to map features
- Unlimited Print to PDF and Image files
- Measure distance and areas
- Calculate travel times
- Administrative Functions
- Multi-user accounts (share access with your team)
- Interactive map publishing tool (to publish to your website)
What should you include in your Local Place Plan?
As part of your Local Place Plan you should add the following themes. The mapping software has these themes built into the software to make it quick and easy to get started.
Theme |
|---|
Assets of Community Value |
Biodiversity Corridors |
Cycle Routes |
Housing Allocation |
Important Views and Vistas |
Local Gaps |
Local Green Spaces |
Local Open Spaces |
Plan Boundary |
Recognised Village Envelope |
Renewable Energy Project Sites |
What other benefits of the mapping software are there?
The Parish Online mapping software isn't just for building your Local Place Plan. It's designed as an essential resource for the long-term planning and improvement of your area.
It can also be used for other community projects, such as:
- Assessing local planning applications
- Building a local climate emergency plan
- Building a local resilience plan and creating printed maps
- Reducing plastics usage in local area
- Promoting local events and services to the public
- Initiatives to improve watercourse quality
Check out case studies from local councils in England and Wales for inspiration.
Ready to get started?
If you're ready to start exploring the maps in your area with a view to start your Local Place Plan, click the link below to sign up.
Select 'Subscribe' when prompted, instead of 'Trial'.
Use the code cms12 to get your 12 months free.