Braintree District Council has reaffirmed its commitment to delivering an up-to-date Local Plan to help retain local control over development.
Braintree District Council has reaffirmed its commitment to delivering an up-to-date Local Plan to help retain local control over development and ensure the district's future growth is shaped by local priorities, evidence and need.
The Council continues to make strong progress on preparing its updated Local Plan, which will guide development across the district up to 2043. Alongside progressing this work, the Leader of the Council has written to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) seeking support through additional flexibility within the Government's current timetable, following recent legal developments elsewhere in the country which have highlighted the need for councils to ensure their plans can withstand potential legal challenge while remaining on track.
An up-to-date Local Plan is the most effective way for the Council to influence where new homes, jobs, services and infrastructure are delivered, while helping to protect the district from speculative development.
Last week’s Local Plan Sub-Committee meeting, held on 30 July, reported on the response to the recent Issues and Options (Regulation 18) consultation, which generated more than 2,700 comments. Feedback from residents, businesses, stakeholders and councillors is helping to shape the next version of the updated Local Plan.
Work is also continuing to complete the technical studies and supporting evidence required to support the plan, covering areas such as transport, infrastructure, flooding and water supply. This evidence will help ensure future decisions on homes, employment, services and community facilities are based on robust and credible information and can stand up to independent scrutiny at examination by a Planning Inspector.
The pre-submission Local Plan and supporting evidence will be presented to its Full Council in September. Subject to approval, the pre-submission version of the Plan (Regulation 19) is expected to be published this autumn, providing another opportunity for residents and stakeholders to comment before the plan is submitted for examination.
Councillor Gabrielle Spray, Cabinet Member for Planning at Braintree District Council, said: "We remain fully committed to delivering an updated Local Plan for Braintree district and continuing to make strong progress towards that goal.
"Having an up-to-date Local Plan is the best way to shape future development across the district, ensuring the right homes, jobs, services and infrastructure are delivered in the right places while helping to protect the Braintree district from speculative development. Our focus is on delivering a Local Plan that is thorough, robust and legally sound, ensuring decisions about how and where development takes place across the district in the years ahead are made locally and shaped by our communities."
The Council will continue to keep residents, businesses and stakeholders updated as work progresses on the Local Plan.
Residents can keep up to date with Local Plan news and consultation opportunities by signing up to the council’s planning newsletter and ticking the ‘planning’ box.
The letter to MHCLG can be viewed on the council’s website.