Agenda item

The Senior Devolution Lead for Planning Policy, Strategic Growth and Housing presented the report to the Committee.

The Local Development Scheme (LDS) was a timetable for the production of the Council’s planning documents – it was intended that it would assist the understanding and involvement in the plan-making process and enable the development industry, infrastructure providers and other key stakeholders to coordinate their investment programmes.

The Council last published the current LDS in February 2022.  This was the seventh LDS that the Council had formally produced and the first one since the adoption of the Local Plan for Bolsover District in March 2020.

The current LDS had set out a programme of work to cover the carrying out of a Local Plan Review, the preparation of Growth Plans for Shirebrook and Creswell and the preparation of Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs).

The document had also outlined the timetable for the remaining stages of the preparation of the Tibshelf Neighbourhood Plan.

Since the publication of the current LDS, the Council had carried out several stages of preparation on the Shirebrook and Creswell Growth Plans, seen the adoption of a new Local Parking Standards SPD and progress on preparing drafts of the updated Successful Places and the Historic Environment SPDs, together with progress on several Local Plan Implementation Projects and other

statutory monitoring work.

Crucially, the Council had completed the Local Plan Review work and this had been reported to the Committee at its meeting in February 2025.

Based on the outcome of the First Review, it was concluded that the Local Plan for Bolsover District had been very successful in delivering development within the District.

While fundamental changes to national policy (e.g., increased Local Housing Need targets, the operation of Green Belt policy, etc.) meant that it could not be concluded that the Council’s strategic policies could be carried forward for a further five years – an update was necessary though not immediately.

The Council was working on a number of non-statutory Growth Plan documents that were intended to sit on top of the Local Plan for Bolsover District and identify where additional growth would be acceptable to the Council.  These Growth Plans were intended to ultimately be adopted as material considerations in the planning processes.

The timetables for the remaining stages of the Growth Plans were as follows:

• Shirebrook Growth Plan:

o   April 2025 – Engagement with infrastructure providers and landowners on how preferred Growth Plan option; and,

o   December 2025 – Adoption of Shirebrook Growth Plan

• Creswell Growth Plan (following considerations earlier in the meeting):

o   April 2025 – Pause awaiting progress on new Creswell GP surgery;

o   October 2025 – Review of progress on new Creswell GP surgery; and,

o   December 2025 – Potential adoption of Creswell Growth Plan.

The Local Plan for Bolsover District advised that the Council would prepare a number of SPDs.  The remaining documents to be prepared were:

• Successful Places;
• Historic Environment; and,
• Section 106 Planning Contributions (covering affordable housing provision and green space and play provision).

Work had progressed on the first two of these documents.  Work was due to commence on the third summer 2025.

The next steps would be to seek the authority to commence public consultation exercises on each of these documents – this would be reported to the Committee at future meetings.

Based on the conclusions of the First Review of the Local Plan for Bolsover District, the Council had decided it would not seek to update the Local Plan under the existing legislative framework before the UK Government’s deadline of December 2026.

Instead, it was planned to commence work on an updated / new Local Plan mid-2027 under the provisions of the UK Government’s intended new plan-making system as introduced by the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023.

At present, this new plan-making system was expected to be implemented later in 2025.

One aspect of the new plan-making system was expected to be the need to have plans prepared and adopted within a 30-month timeframe.  This would result in the proposed timeframe:

• June 2027 – Commencement of plan-making work;
• October 2027 – Initial public consultation on Local Plan;
• October 2028 – Pre-submission public consultation on Local Plan;
• February 2029 – Submission of Local Plan for Examination;
• June & July 2029 – Potential dates for Examination Hearings;
• October 2029 – Potential date for receipt of Inspector’s Report; and,
• December 2029 – Potential date for Adoption.

It was intended that work would take place on updating the Council’s Statement of Community Involvement in advance of commencing plan-making work (as set out in the timetable above).  Work on updating the Statement of Community Involvement would start March 2026 and be completed November 2026.

In December 2024, the UK Government asked all local planning authorities to produce an updated LDS and to submit this to them no later than 6^th March 2025.

In accordance with this request, following consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Growth, this proposed LDS and work programme was submitted to the Government on 5^th March 2025.  Whilst acknowledged, no feedback on the contents and work programme was received.

Behind this formal timetable, the Council would need to carry out further evidence based work to ensure it would be able to meet the expected gateway assessment prior to commencement on a new Local Plan.

This evidence based work would focus on the assessment of all of the sites across the District promoted to the Council.  However, it was also clear that a new Green Belt Review assessment would be required in the immediate term to help the Council respond to the changes to national planning policy – a project plan to ensure that the Council would be ready for commencement in June 2027 would be prepared.

The Planning Policy and Housing Strategy Team had undertaken a large number of statutory planning monitoring tasks for the Council (works to deliver the planning components of the Housing Strategy and led on a range of Local Plan Implementation Projects).

The demands on the team had increased recently as the team also led on the Council’s obligations under the Environment Act 2021.

Moved by Councillor Tom Munro and seconded by Councillor John Ritchie

RESOLVED that Planning Committee approve the adoption of the new Local             Development Scheme (as attached at Appendix 1) so that it takes effect on 17^th     April 2025 and be publicised on the Council’s website.

The Chair thanked all those in attendance.