Another council pauses local plan citing upcoming changes to National Planning Policy Framework
West Suffolk Council has become the latest council to delay the passage of its draft local plan in light of the upcoming changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
The Government launched a consultation on changes to the NPPF in December last year, noting that it intends to implement many of its proposed measures by Spring 2023.
A spokesperson for West Sussex said: "We are making a small adjustment to the West Suffolk Local Plan timetable. This is so the next stage of the draft can include changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), which are part of a national policy consultation announced by government shortly before Christmas."
Policy changes include a change to emphasise that the standard method for calculating housing need is "advisory", removal of the requirement for councils to continually demonstrate a five-year housing land supply, and new lines that stress councils are not required to revise Green Belt boundaries or build at densities out of character even if they are set to miss their house building targets.
Councils will also be able to include past over-delivery in their housing numbers, and the tests of 'soundness', which local plans are subject to at the examination stage, will be simplified so that they are no longer required to be justified.
West Suffolk now plans to consult on the submission draft plan in the latter half of this year rather than in the spring.
"The alternative to this would risk delays and increased costs further down the line with the council effectively having to add in the NPPF changes and then reconsult," it said.
The council later added: "This is a small adjustment; the council is over halfway through the process therefore the key decisions and policy direction will not be reviewed.
"The council continues to maintain a five-year land supply and deliver on its existing local plan sites. The adjustment is simply to ensure that the council is preparing a Plan in accordance with national policy."
At least eight councils have now moved to pause their local plans over the proposals.
The list includes Isle of Wight Council, South Staffordshire Council, North Somerset Council, Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council, Horsham District Council and Teignbridge District Council, and Mole Valley District Council.
Teignbridge was one of the first councils to pause its plan but has since adopted its local plan in line with recommendations from officers that warned a delay in adopting its local plan would leave the council relying on older policies and "exposed to applications for 'unallocated' sites".
In January, planning and development consultancy Lichfields reported that, in total, there are 28 local authorities (not including West Suffolk) that had paused local plan-making, resulting in an estimated loss of 11,200 homes per annum.
Adam Carey
Read our spotlight article on the changes to the NPPF here.
