The Referendum on the Neighbourhood took place yesterday (Thursday 27 Aug 2026)

• The turnout was just shy of 30%.
• 85.5% of those voting said “Yes” to the plan.
• 14.2% of those voting said “No”

The Plan now goes forward to Cherwell District Council to formally adopt at the next available meeting

From that moment, planning officers and inspectors must give weight to its policies when determining applications in the neighbourhood area.

It sits alongside the Local Plan and any other development plan documents.

Developers will be expected to align proposals with the plan’s design, layout, and location expectations although whilst Cherwell District Council have planning responsibilities removed from them a “tilted balance” will likely give less weight to the plan. Nonetheless it remains important as going forward it should last for up to 16 years. (The previous one lasted a decade.)