In 2014 members of the population in Wootton Wawen started the process to develop a Neighbourhood Development Plan (NDP). We were ill-equipped for the the process we were about to begin despite having some very well educated/trained persons within the team. 

Neil came to the rescue about 6 months into the process and provided help and direction that was much needed.  Neil was invaluable to our NDP team and there is no doubt that he provided guidance without which we could still be floundering. Neil was enthusiastic, helpful and knowledgeable and provided support and clarification as required without over emphasising the technicalities.

Neil has a very professional approach and works well within a team promoting discussion to achieve consensus within the team, as well as working well on his own. He delivered to plan and provided explanations in a way that lay people could understand. 

As Chair of the Wootton Wawen NDP, I have no hesitation in providing this testimonial and I would willingly recommend him for work with Parish Councils and similar bodies of people.

Peter Emberson

Chair, Wootton Wawen NDC Team & Vice-chair Wootton Wawen Parish Council

Warwickshire and West Midlands Association of Local Councils has 182 Parish and Town councils in membership. Parish and Town Councillors are volunteers representing their community and yet are faced with understanding and responding to complex planning applications. To assist our members with this task, we were looking for a specialist in planning.

Neil has helped a number of our members with the challenging process of creating a Neighbourhood Development Plan. He has also been asked by WALC to deliver training sessions to our members on varying aspects of planning and to run workshops at our Annual Briefing Day.

WALC appointed Neil Pearce of Avon Planning Services in May 2014. Since then we have only received extremely positive feedback from member Councils on the advice and assistance he has given. His responses have been prompt and explains planning issues in layman terms that volunteers, working on behalf of their communities, can understand. This has aided Councils to make informed responses to complicated planning applications and to increase their understanding of the planning world and the seemingly continuous changes to planning regulations.

 
John Crossling
County Secretary
Warwickshire and West Midlands Association of Local Councils 

Neil Pearce of Avon Planning Services has undertaken a number of assignments for Meriden Parish Council since 2007. These have included 2 large scale public inquiries necessitating writing and presenting of evidence on behalf of the Council to the hearings.

Less complex pieces of work have included helping the Council review planning applications where professional competence in planning law has been needed where there has been community concern over the potential outcomes.

Neil has a very professional approach and works well with Councillors and the public.  He has always delivered on time and in a way that lay people can understand what has been written and what arguments he is putting forward on our behalf. 

His knowledge of neighbourhood planning has helped us take forward Meriden's plan to the next level.
 
Barbara Bland
Parish Clerk
Meriden Parish Council 

Bidford-on-Avon Parish Council have retained the services of Neil Pearce on a number of occasions since 2007, and have been fully satisfied with the guidance given and work undertaken.  He has given sterling advice and has successfully represented the Council at an important Public Inquiry. 

In view of past performance, the Parish Council resolved to use his services when preparing its Neighbourhood Plan.

Elisabeth Uggerløse
Parish Clerk
Bidford-on-Avon Parish Council

The planning process affects all our lives and it is therefore vitally important that the parish sector remains a statutory consultee.  Equally, the parish sector must justify its right to comment and pass judgement by ensuring that its responses are valid and in accordance with national planning policies. Unfortunately, many councils find it extremely difficult to keep abreast of such specialist and often complicated legislation. 

Stratford-upon-Avon Town Council\'s Planning Consultative Committee confronted this issue in 2007 by obtaining the services of Avon Planning Services.  Founder, Neil Pearce, is a planning consultant specialising in the parish sector. The council has greatly benefited from his unobtrusive training methods which he incorporates into each session and his expertise and knowledge has guided members in their competent and pertinent decision making process.  Avon Planning Services have proven to be invaluable and are highly recommended.

Sarah Summers
Town Clerk
Stratford-upon-Avon Town Council

Neil’s practical advice and guidance has been greatly appreciated by parishioners and councillors alike since he first came to our attention in 2010 when he was running a WALC training session. He has represented the Parish Council during the Examination in Public of the Rugby Borough Council’s Core Strategy.

He has spoken to villagers at a Public Meeting regarding a sensitive housing development, having spent several hours, prior to the meeting, visiting and walking the site. He produced a response, on behalf of the Parish Council, objecting to the proposed development, having spoken at length, with councillors, to ensure that all concerns had been covered. He advised on strategy, when the developers submitted a revised plan, identified errors on the submitted plan, and highlighted these to the local planning authority.

Whilst this was going on he also made time to prepare a submission, on the Parish Council’s behalf, against a Quarry Development submitted for the other end of the village.

He was responsible for briefing the Parish Council’s barrister and expert witnesses in advance of the Public Inquiry, for the housing development. He was commended by the appellant’s barrister for finding errors on the developer’s submitted plans, which they had failed to find. He took great pains to guide us through the vagaries of the planning system and expressed clear arguments during public meetings, council meetings and planning meetings.
 
Tim Harvey-Smith
Chairman
Wolston Parish Council