In 2003, Snainton Parish Council first became aware of a grant scheme introduced by the Countryside Agency to encourage rural communities to prepare their own Parish Plan.

It was decided that such a plan would be a valuable tool for both the Parish Council and the wider village community. It would also be a document of importance to the Borough Council and other service providers in identifying local priorities and in the development of future plans.

In August of 2004 a public meeting was held in Snainton to discuss the possible implementation of such a plan. This preliminary meeting led to the establishment of a steering group comprised of local volunteers aided by Ms Annie Hadfield who was at that time Community Link Officer with the Economic and Community Development Unit based at the Town Hall. The group applied for and was awarded a grant and then went on to design a questionnaire, which they hoped would be locally appropriate and meaningful to the community. The questionnaires were then distributed to every household in the village during the spring of 2005.

Yorkshire Rural Community Council were then commissioned to collate, analyse and present the returned data from the parish questionnaire into a preliminary report. The final survey results were then discussed by the steering group and used to produce the resulting plan.

Snainton Parish Plan aims to address the needs of the entire community and although the results can only reflect the opinions of those who responded, everyone has had an opportunity to contribute. It covers issues relevant to the people who live and work in the parish from housing and play areas through business and local services; enabling them to be linked with existing or future plans from outside organisations like the County Council, Borough Council, Police and Health Authority. All of these bodies have an impact on the development of local services and facilities including amongst others, roads and traffic, planning and development, crime, the environment and health issues and the body of evidence contained in this document provides an important lobbying tool.

Our Parish Plan is more than just a report on the survey results; it is a blueprint for action to improve village life and a chance for us to produce a vision for the future of Snainton.

An electronic copy of the Parish Plan is available by clicking here.