RiverOak Strategic Partners has announced that their statutory pre-application consultation will start on Monday 12 June, directly after the General Election.

The consultation will last for six weeks and will close on Sunday 23 July. In order to give as many local people and organisations as possible an opportunity to participate this is two weeks longer than the minimum required for statutory consultation. The consultation will also be publicised widely, via letters to those closest to the site, leaflets to those further away, and local newspapers and other media for those in the rest of Thanet and beyond.

During the consultation copies of the proposed airport masterplan, detailed research reports into the demand for Manston as an airport, the economic and social impact of reviving the airport and the Preliminary Environmental Impact Report (PEIR) will all be available for inspection and comment. RiverOak Strategic Partners will also be holding consultation events across Thanet and East Kent, which anyone is welcome to attend.

The consultation is an opportunity for members of the public to scrutinise our proposals and suggest any changes to them. RiverOak Strategic Partners is also keen to hear any ideas about how to maximise the benefits to the region from reopening Manston Airport.

Full details of consultation events and how to participate in the consultation will be published in due course in local and national newspapers, online and via leaflets delivered to households in communities living around the airport.

Ahead of the consultation, RiverOak Strategic Partners has made several documents available that were previously submitted as part of the consultation on Thanet District Council’s local plan by way of background to the project. These documents are:

1. Azimuth Associates: Manston Airport a national and regional aviation asset – Volume I Demand in the South East of the UK

2. Azimuth Associates: Manston Airport a national and regional aviation asset – Volume II a qualitative study of regional demand

3. Azimuth Associates: Manston Airport a national and regional aviation asset – Volume III the forecast

4. Northpoint Aviation: The Shortcomings of the Avia Solutions Report and an Overview of RiverOak’s Proposals for Airport Operation at Manston

The Northpoint Aviation Report will not form part of the upcoming consultation, however updated versions of the reports by Azimuth Associates will be included in the consultation.