Planning & the Neighbourhood Plan
Planning Applications and the Shipley Neighbourhood Plan.
The Parish Council responds to planning applications in each Council meeting. The Parish Council has a duty to respond to Horsham District Council Planning officers within 21 days of receipt of the application. The Clerk prepares a report of all application decisions made by Horsham District Council to be reviewed by the Parish Council at each meeting.
If applications are received for larger housing developments, then the consultation process is often longer, with developers presenting housing plans to the Parish Council in advance of the planning application being submitted to Horsham District Council.
The files below are useful for information relating to planning applications within the Parish.
UPDATE - June 2026
Consultation on the joint Southwater & Shipley Neighbourhood Plan Area.
Shipley Parish Council has formally applied to Horsham District Council for the designation of a joint Southwater & Shipley Neighbourhood Plan Area following a positive resolution with neighbouring Southwater Parish Council in April 2026.
The proposed area covers both parishes entirely and reflects the increasingly close planning relationships between them, particularly where the outward growth of Southwater influences adjoining rural areas of Shipley and vice versa.
The designation request sets out the clear planning reasons for the joint approach, including, but not limited to:
- shared issues relating to the ongoing protection of the landscape and the countryside, movement and connectivity;
- the need for more coordinated infrastructure planning; and
- avoiding duplication and policy inconsistency across both parishes and around boundaries
Both councils have independently concluded that a joint neighbourhood plan would provide the most logical, effective and locally supported basis for planning.
The formal consultation notice can be found below.