Final consultation stage for East Northamptonshires Local Plan

East Northamptonshire Council is seeking the views of interested parties on the pre-submission version of the district's Local Plan.

The Local Plan sets out planning policies for East Northamptonshire and helps to shape new housing opportunities and deliver community and green infrastructure to support future growth. It will also help to ensure future planning applications including up to date policy requirements adding local quality to development.

The council's Planning Policy committee approved the Pre-Submission Local Plan on Wednesday, 27 January which enables the start of the final consultation, known as Regulation 19. This particular regulation concentrates on whether the Local Plan meets the 'Test of soundness' – whether the plan is sound and has been prepared in accordance with all the necessary legal and procedural requirements and is positively prepared, effective and is justified by the evidence.

Cllr Steven North, Leader of East Northamptonshire Council said:

"There have been many consultations on the Local Plan since we started preparing it in January 2017, and this is the final stage where stakeholders can comment on the soundness of the plan.

"We encourage those who do respond to clearly state why they feel the plan may not be legally compliant, meet the assessed needs, be an appropriate and deliverable strategy or be consistent with national policy. These are the key areas that the inspector will consider."

Once the Regulation 19 consultation ends, responses will be compiled with the Local Plan and its supporting documentation before being submitted for independent examination by the Planning Inspectorate. If the Plan is found to be sound, it will be presented to North Northamptonshire Council for adoption.

This consultation will run for six weeks, from Friday 5 February to Friday 19 March 2021. Further details about how to respond and to view the consultation documents are available at www.east-northamptonshire.gov.uk/consultation

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, paper copies of the draft policy cannot be displayed in libraries or the Council's contact centre. Should you experience any difficulty in viewing the document, please contact the Planning Policy team on 01832 742140.