Changes to the planning system in the pipeline
The Government has promised a radical reform the planning system
and is proposing a simple and consolidated national planning
framework.
Up-to-date information about the current national situation is
available on the
Communities and Local Government website (new
window). |
The previous Government introduced wide-ranging changes to the
planning policy system in England and Wales through three
main pieces of legislation:
The changes meant that local planning authorities in England and
Wales replaced their existing
Local Plans with a new set of planning policy
guidelines called Local Development Frameworks.
The planning policy system introduced by the previous
Government had three tiers:
- Planning Policy Statements, Planning Policy Guidance
Notes, National policy circulars - produced by the
department
for Communities and Local Government (new
window).
- Regional Spatial Strategies - in our
region this was the
East of England Plan (new window), produced
by the East of England Regional Assembly. (The Secretary of
State for Communities and Local Government has told all councils
that regional targets for new homes (included in the Regional
Spatial Strategies) will be abolished and that each council
should now decide how many new homes and jobs are needed in
their area).
- Local Development Frameworks - produced by
district & borough councils except in relation to minerals and
waste which are county council responsibilities. In Suffolk, the
Minerals & Waste Development Plan is produced by
Suffolk County Council (new
window).
The Local Development Framework
The Local Development Framework is like a 'folder' which holds a
number of documents - see the diagram below. These documents
contain the policies, proposals and actions that affect the future
of the district.
Also included in the 'folder' are the:
Development Plan Documents
There will be five Development Plan Documents as shown below.
The most significant of these will be the Core Strategy, as this
will establish the context for the remainder. The timetable for the
preparation of each document can be found in the
Local Development Scheme.
-
Core Strategy and Development Management
Policies - document setting out the vision, objectives and
spatial strategy for the district as well as containing the
policies that will be used to determine planning applications.
-
Site Specific Allocations & Policies -
document containing policies that apply to specific sites,
locations or areas.
- Felixstowe Area Action Plan - document
containing a planning framework for the future development and
regeneration of the town centre, employment area and the resort of
Felixstowe.
- Leiston and Saxmundham Area Action Plan -
document containing planning frameworks for the future development
and regeneration of the towns as retail and employment
centres.
- Proposals Map - map giving geographical
expression to adopted policies.
Supplementary Planning Documents
These elaborate upon the policies and proposals in Local
Development Documents without having the same status. A number
of Supplementary Planning Documents are scheduled as set out
in the Local Development Scheme.
Sustainability Appraisal
Local Development Frameworks place a greater emphasis on
sustainable development. As a result, all Local Development
Documents will be subject to
a Sustainability Appraisal to assess their
predicted impact upon social, environmental and economic
issues.
Consultation
Local authorities have to undertake a series of
consultation stages as each Development Plan Document progresses.
The methods by which the Council will consult with the community is
contained in the
Statement of Community Involvement and the
timetable for the stages of consultation for each Local Development
Framework document is set out in the
Local Development Scheme.
Local Development Framework evidence base
The Council has created an
evidence base for the production of the Local
Development Framework which includes published and newly
commissioned studies on housing, employment and other issues,
agendas and minutes of Council task group meetings, summaries of
workshops and annual monitoring reports.
What happens in the mean time?
Until their replacement with new documents the
current Suffolk Coastal Local Plan will contain
'saved policies' that will be used for the purposes of
development control.
Supplementary Planning Guidance, adopted by
the Council and currently in operation, will also continue to be
used in the determination of planning applications.
On 15 December 2011 the
Core Strategy was formally agreed for
Pre-Submission consultation at a special meeting of Full Council,
which also agreed that the Pre-Submission Core Strategy, as
amended, wholly replaces all previous Core Strategy versions with
immediate effect.
The Core Strategy and the policies it contains are now a
'material consideration' to be taken into account when considering
planning applications. They do not replace the 'saved policies'
from the Suffolk Coastal Local Plan but sit alongside them and the
other documents which form the Development Plan.
Parish plans
Parish plans enable local communities to work together
discussing and addressing issues which are of particular importance
to that community. The plans can be submitted to the Council to
inform the production of the Local Development Framework where
practical and possible. This represents a ‘bottom up’ approach to
the development plan making process.
Suffolk ACRE (new window) is the principle
organisation promoting and supporting parishes across Suffolk to
produce their parish plans.