As part of the new planning system in England, local authorities were to have prepared a 'local development framework' by 2007. But this proved impossible and each authority has had to set a timetable approved by the Government Office. This can be found in the Local Development Scheme. The new system replaces existing development plans, such as local plans and unitary development plans, which provide the basis for determining planning applications and future development in your area.

The new ‘two-tiered’ plan system consists of

These replace the old three tier system of Regional Planning Guidance, Structure Plan and Local Plan.

The framework will include the policies, proposals and other documents about land use and spatial planning in your area.

The local development frameworks will be critical for the future of our towns, countryside and quality of life. It is vital that we all campaign to get policies and proposals adopted in our area that genuinely value the countryside and the environment - policies and proposals about the conservation of places, energy, resources and nature, landscapes, housing, design, quarries and much more.

Your local development framework will shape those aspects of quality of life that can be improved by the way land is used. It will guide how much development there is in the area, and where it is located. Development can be encouraged in the places it will do the most good, and discouraged where it would cause harm. Developments will also be expected to contribute to the economic, social and environmental well being of the area.

If the framework system works well - and we need to make sure it does - it should mean positive planning that:

The framework is made up of a number of different sections some of which are required by the Act and some which are optional.

The optional items are:

Supplementary planning documents which expand or add detail to policies in the development plan documents or a saved policy (saved from the existing development plan). These, can be design guides, area development briefs, a master plan or issue based documents. These documents can use illustrations, text and practical examples to set out what it is the Local Authority’s policies can be taken forward.

These are required to support the policies and proposals in all the documents.

The sustainability appraisal (SA) tests each LDF document to see how well it meets sustainable development criteria. Strategic environmental assessment although technically a separate process deriving from an EU Directive , concentrates on the environmental impacts and is usually undertaken alongside the SA. This appraisal process requires genuine alternatives options to be considered and assessed and should inform the preparation of development plan documents throughout the process. SA/SEA reports are made public and available for comment during the consultation periods.

The Statement of Community involvement must show how and when planning authorities intend to consult local communities and other stakeholders when preparing documents. The SCI also addresses the authorities’ process for consulting/publicising and notifying on planning applications.

Consultation should begin early in the process of developing each document. This is what the Government calls ‘front loading’. The aim is to ensure that communities are given the fullest opportunity to participate in plan making and to make a difference.

All the statements must provide open access to information and actively encourage contributions of ideas and representation from the community also and provide regular feedback on progress.

The Statement of Community involvement must ensure active meaningful and continued involvement throughout the process and should address the following

It is an important part of the new process that communities get involved. It is important to get planning right for the people who are going to live with the consequences of proposals.

This is essentially two things a) a contents list for the LDF, covering the next 3 years, detailing any LDF document expected to be produced in that time. If the Authority thinks of another it wants to produce later it must revise the LDS and get it approved by the Government Office and b) Sets out the timetable for the production of each LDF document, including consultation and Examination stages The Local development Scheme should be the starting point for people to find out about where the process is. All local Authorities submitted their LD Schemes by the end of March 2005.

This is the report which has to be submitted to Government by the Local Planning Authority. It is used to assess the progress and effectiveness of a Local development framework. The Report will include a range of local and standard (core output) indicators.

The report will assess whether:

What these must include:

These contain the key development goals of the Local development Framework. These are classed as Development Plan Documents and are subject to rigorous procedures for community involvement, consultation and independent examination. They are statutory documents and together with the regional spatial strategy form the Development Plan for an area. Once adopted any development control decisions by the Planners must be made in accordance with these unless material considerations indicate otherwise. These documents are also subject to Sustainability Appraisal.

There may also be additional optional development documents such as:

This sets out the general spatial vision and objectives for delivery and plays a key part in the delivery of the Council’s community strategy. Setting out as it does the spatial aspects and setting the long term vision for the area. The core strategy should express the parts of the community strategy which relate to land use and outline the council’s strategy for delivering strategic development needs including housing leisure and retail. The core strategy has to be kept up to date and all the other development plan documents must conform to it and also the regional Spatial Strategy. The Core Strategy cannot set out site specific polices.

Land allocated for specific uses must be set out in this development Plan Document. This is a separate document from the Core Strategy, so that it can be updated when changes occur or plans are implemented. Sites need to be identified which are suitable and accessible for the particular uses or mixture of uses intended.

This Map illustrates all the site-specific policies in all the adopted development plans. Also it should identify areas of protection such as nationally protected landscape and local conservation areas and greenbelt land. There may be separate inset maps for the various area action plans and the Maps have to be revised when each new development plan document indicates anything site specific including designated land which has boundaries which can be shown on a map.

A Development Plan document focused on a specific location subject to significant change. For example; a major project such as a new settlement with multiple sites development areas or regeneration areas. It may contain specific proposals for environmental enhancement as part of that development.

The Action Plan as its name implies focuses on implementing policy. This is an important mechanism for ensuring development is of an appropriate scale, quality and mix, in the key areas of opportunity, change or conservation.

It should outline protection for areas sensitive to development pressures and aim to resolve any conflicting objectives. These are also subject to independent examination.

These may be thematic in scope e.g. on housing, employment retail and so on. They may also include generic development control policies on such things as on wind power.

Local authorities are meant to engage with local people in this process, (SCI) and to try to produce policies that really reflect the views and aspirations of the community. If you want to make sure that the countryside in your area is protected, that towns and cities are regenerated, or land used the way you think it should be, then you must not miss this crucial opportunity to involve yourself in local planning policy.

First of all express your interest up front, all LPAs have LDF mailing lists usually electronic on which they will be pleased to register your details both of individuals and organizations who wish to be notified about LDF events or significant milestones.

Press the local authority to conduct all its meetings about the framework in public, not in some kind of private working group.

Urge them to put enough staff and resources into the process. Supplementary planning documents in particular may not get the attention they need without resources and leadership.

Find out how they plan to deal with difficult issues that may affect other local authority areas as well.

There are certain documents that local authorities must include in their local development framework, but otherwise they can choose what documents to prepare. They must include this information in their local development scheme, reviewed annually. They will not be able to produce anything not listed in their scheme. It is worth letting them know from the outset what you think should be included. For example, you could propose that there should be:

Decide what you want the policies and proposals to say and put forward your own proposals. Be prepared to back them up with arguments and evidence. Here are some possible issues to consider:

Encourage your local authority to take a conservation-led approach by making the best use of historic buildings and features and ensuring new development enhances, rather than distracts from, your area's natural and built heritage. Reusing construction and demolition waste conserves resources, reduces the amount of waste needing to be disposed of and can contribute to development that is sympathetic to traditional local styles and materials.

Have your say about housing policy. Overall numbers of new housing are largely fixed by the regional spatial strategy, so the time to lobby about numbers is when the regional spatial strategy is being prepared. But it is the local development framework that sets out policies on affordable housing, about where houses should be built and what they will look like. You might have ideas about how houses should be designed, so that the development is in keeping with local character and uses local materials. Or you could argue for policies in your area that would enable housing to be built in places that do not spoil the countryside. You may be able to suggest suitable brownfield sites and it is important to consider windfall allowances to see if these are adequate, these are sites which may become available but could not be foreseen. Ensuring the Plan makes allowances for these ensures that there isn’t over provision of sites in the Plan.

When you suggest policies, suggest ways they could be implemented and monitored. Argue that policies that cannot easily be evaluated by numerical monitoring are just as important as those that can. Suggest other ways of evaluating both the quality of the environment and how well the planners are doing their job implementing policy. For example, suggest they carry out a survey of new development 'on the ground' and monitor the success - or otherwise - of conservation policy and joined-up planning. Ask your local authority how it is going to monitor how well other agencies are implementing policies and proposals they signed up to. Try to obtain monitoring information as soon as it becomes available, without waiting for the annual monitoring report.

The local development scheme is, really, a timetable and program setting out how the different parts of the framework will be created. Local authorities had to prepare their schemes by April 2005. They specify:

The scheme is assessed every year through the annual monitoring report, so you'll have a chance to put your comments in when it is up for review. There is no formal requirement to consult the public on the scheme, although some local authorities may well do so, so it is important you volunteer your ideas as early as possible. The secretary of state has the power to direct the local authority to change their scheme, so you can write to the secretary of state to ask for changes, but this should be a last resort it is better to persuade LAs to change their scheme.

There are two opportunities to input to the SCI

An independent examination will be held. It is likely that this will take the form of an inspector considering written representations, rather than holding a public hearing.

At the survey/evidence-gathering stage
The local authority must draw up an evidence base and consult people on this. Make sure that the evidence base takes into account matters such as landscape character and heritage. Suggest to your local authority that it draw up a list of significant local features, perhaps as part of a broader state of the environment report

Many authorities ask people to respond online and all consultations documents and background documents will be available online and also in hard copy at Council Offices and the major libraries. However, don’t expect to be sent hard copies without having to pay for them although some LPAs will provide these for Parish Councils. Documents may also be prepared on CDs. On development Plan Documents if you are considering objecting you need to show which of the nine tests of soundness the policy fails. The guide to soundness can be found on the Government Planning Portal website (www.planningportal.gov.uk)

When the submission version of a Site Specific Allocations DPD goes out for consultation there will always be landowners or developers who object that their pet sites have not been allocated by the Authority. The additional sites put forward are called ‘omissions sites’ or ‘alternative site locations’, this also happened with local plans, the difference in this new process is that, these sites also have to go to public consultation where people can support or object to them, giving reasons. Responding to the omissions sites does not give a right to appear at the Examination, but the Inspector will have regard to any comments received on them.

1.1 The Tests of Soundness

1.1.1 PPS12 sets out nine tests which a Development Plan Document (DPD) should meet if it is to be sound (paragraph 4.24). This guidance sets out a framework for the assessment of soundness which will be carried out by Inspectors at the independent examination. It provides advice to aid understanding of the overall context for assessing soundness and to assist

those who are seeking to make representations on submitted DPDs.

1.1.2 The PPS12 soundness tests fall into three categories:

• Procedural Tests;

• Conformity Tests; and

• Coherence, Consistency and Effectiveness Tests.