Councils urged to ensure Local Plans are up to date

Councils are being urged to update their Local Plans to ensure that the country gets on with building the homes it needs and in the right places.

Housing Minister Christopher Pincher said that councils should consider that an up-to-date plan will put them in the best possible position to deliver the homes that the country needs. He pointecd to the Planning for the future white paper consultation published last year, which set out proposals to deliver a significantly simpler, faster and more predictable planning system.

Nine in ten local planning authorities have now adopted a Local Plan, but the government says that many of them are not being kept up-to-date. In March 2020, the government set a deadline of December 2023 for all councils to have up-to-date Local Plans in place.

Pincher said: “Despite the significant challenges caused by the pandemic, I know the majority of councils are doing all they can to build much-needed homes across England. I would like to thank them for the important work they do to deliver the homes, jobs and supporting infrastructure that make such a difference to their local communities.

“However, a number of councils are not keeping plans up to date and I urge them to avoid any unnecessary delays and maintain progress on plan making. Local Plans not only unlock land for development and ensure the right number of new homes are being built in the right places, they also provide local communities with an opportunity to have their say on how their local areas will change. It is critical work should continue to advance Local Plans through to adoption by the end of 2023 to help ensure that the economy can rebound strongly from the Covid-19 pandemic.”