RESIDENTS in Ashton Keynes will go to the polls next Thursday to decide whether to endorse the village’s Neighbourhood Plan.

The referendum represents the final stage of the plan, which has been given the go ahead by Wiltshire Council and an independent examiner, and is the culmination of four years of work by the parish council.

Urging residents to support the plan, Dave Wingrove, chairman of Ashton Keynes Parish Council, said: “Having a Neighbourhood Plan means that the local community can receive significantly larger financial contributions from developers.

“The whole community has been consulted at regular intervals, and feedback from these consultations has been vital in its formulation.

“Assuming residents agree to the plan, it will be formally adopted by Wiltshire Council and will be a prime document to be used in all future planning decisions over the next ten years.”

Residents will be able to cast their ballot in Ashton Keynes village hall between 7am-10pm on May 25.