Local Plan
Contents
Previous consultations
Following Cabinet approval on 1 December 2020 (opens new window), we held a consultation on the Wiltshire Local Plan review between 13 January 2021 and 9 March 2021.
The consultation was not on a draft Local Plan but on key components to inform one, including proposals for the scale and distribution of housing and employment growth across Wiltshire. It also sought views on the role of the Local Plan in helping the county adapt to and mitigate for climate change.
A report to Cabinet on 29 June 2021 (opens new window) provided an initial summary of the main issues that were raised through the consultation and the next steps.
A full consultation report has been prepared, along with all submitted responses, and is available on our Local Plan consultation statement (2021) page.
Live online consultation events - PowerPoint presentations and Q&A responses
As part of the 2021 Local Plan review consultation, we held a series of live online consultation events for communities and other stakeholders. These events summarised the content of the consultation, explaining the proposals relevant to each area while also explaining how to make comments.
Further information on the 2021 consultation can be found on our Local Plan Review consultation 2021 page.
During 2019 a series of workshops were held with Town and Parish Councils, as well as developers, to provide updates on the Local Plan review process. The focus for these sessions was largely centred on how the overall housing numbers could be distributed across Wiltshire, in line with the Settlement Strategy set out in the adopted Wiltshire Core Strategy. In addition, a Developer Forum meeting looked at the issue of development viability and market signals.
Reports on these events can be found below:
- Town Meetings Report - Autumn 2019 (PDF) [111KB] (opens new window)
- Appendices to Town Meetings - Autumn 2019 (PDF) [1MB] (opens new window)
- Rural Workshops Report - Autumn 2019 (PDF) [371KB] (opens new window)
- Rural Worksop Appendices - Autumn 2019 (PDF) [1MB] (opens new window)
- Developers Forum Report - July 2019 (PDF) [2MB] (opens new window)
Following the Issues and Options consultation in autumn 2017, a number of parish events were held in autumn 2018 to help develop our thinking further on planning for new homes to 2036. Specifically, the events helped to address the following questions:
- how can approximately 44,000 homes be distributed across Wiltshire, with a focus on Wiltshire's market towns and principal settlements, to maintain the role and function of those places and promote sustainable development?
- how can policies within the Local Plan support proportionate housing growth outside named market towns and principal settlements (the rural area) and support the role of neighbourhood plans?
A report on the events can be found below:
An initial consultation asked about the issues the Local Plan review should address in order to plan for the period to 2036. The consultation documents were prepared to stimulate discussion on how the review of the Wiltshire Local Plan should be carried out. The consultation documents along with the outputs from the consultation can be viewed below. An explanatory leaflet was produced as part of the consultation and that can be downloaded here: Wiltshire Local Plan Review (PDF) [248KB] (opens new window) .
A report on the Issues consultation, including a summary of the actions that were taken to raise awareness of the consultation and a summary of the comments received, can be found below. As part of the awareness raising process, informal consultation events were held and reports of these events can also be found below (this included meetings with Town and Parish Councils and a Developer Forum with developers and landowners).
- Scope of the Plan (Regulation 18 consultation) – Report of Consultation Process (PDF) [1MB] (opens new window)
- Scope of the Plan (Regulation 18 consultation) - Report of Consultation Process Appendices (PDF) [2MB] (opens new window)
- Scope of the Plan (Regulation 18 consultation) - Report of Parish Briefings (PDF) [1MB] (opens new window)
- Scope of the Plan (Regulation 18 consultation) - Report of Developer Forum (PDF) [2MB] (opens new window)
During the consultation, comments were invited on the Sustainability Appraisal Draft Scoping Report. Following consideration of comments, the final Scoping Report has been produced and can be viewed below.
- Wiltshire Local Plan Scoping Report (PDF) [1MB] (opens new window)
- Wiltshire Local Plan Scoping Report Appendix A (PDF) [1018KB] (opens new window)
- Wiltshire Local Plan Scoping Report Appendix B (PDF) [2MB] (opens new window)
The initial consultation asked about the issues the review should address in order to plan for the period to 2036. The consultation documents included:
- Wiltshire Local Plan Review: Consultation Paper (PDF) [441KB] (opens new window)
- Swindon and Wiltshire Joint Spatial Framework: Issues Paper (PDF) [1MB] (opens new window)
- Chippenham Housing Market Area - Individual Settlement and Housing Market Area Profile (PDF) [6MB] (opens new window)
- Salisbury Housing Market Area - Individual Settlement and Housing Market Area Profile (PDF) [3MB] (opens new window)
- Swindon Housing Market Area - Individual Settlement and Housing Market Area Profile (PDF) [4MB] (opens new window)
- Trowbridge Housing Market Area - Individual Settlement and Housing Market Area Profile (PDF) [4MB] (opens new window)
These were prepared to stimulate discussion on how the review of the Wiltshire Local Plan should be carried out.
Local planning authorities are legally required to co-operate with each other over issues that cross administrative boundaries.
Wiltshire Council and Swindon Borough Council are working together on an ongoing basis. In 2017 the intention was for a Joint Spatial Framework (PDF) [1MB] (opens new window) to guide the overall pattern of development across the wider area of the two councils, setting out a distribution of new jobs, homes and infrastructure to inform the councils' individual local plan reviews.
The National Planning Policy Framework in 2019 placed more emphasis on the role of a Statement of Common Ground. It became clear there was likely to be some overlap between the intent of the proposed Joint Spatial Framework and the intent of the new format Statement of Common Ground.
The authorities are, therefore, preparing a Statement of Common Ground which will establish the existence or otherwise of unmet needs for housing or economic development and lay the foundations for joint working between the two authorities.
Further information be be found on the Swindon and Wiltshire Joint Spatial Framework webpage.
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