Regulation 19 Rutland Local Plan

Foreword to Regulation 19 (Pre-Submission) Rutland Local Plan

Rutland County Council is moving rapidly to complete its Local Plan and we are now at the final consultation stage prior to submission to the Planning Inspectorate for independent examination. The Local Plan will guide developers on where the Council expects development to take place; the extent and type of development we expect to see and demonstrates how the Council will meet the housing targets laid down by Government. However, a local plan is far more as it sets out policies to guide development; policies on matters such as design, the environment, location of employment land, open spaces, renewable energy and more.

This consultation, known as Regulation 19, is for the purpose of testing its "soundness" and legal compliance with planning legislation and regulation.

Rutland County Council had a very good response to the previous, Regulation 18, consultation and the cross party Local Plan Steering Group considered all the responses received. One site put forward at Regulation 18 stage does not feature in this Regulation 19 consultation following the consultation and the subsequent deliberations by councillors and Cabinet. There were objections to a number of sites, and significant numbers of objections to some sites, but Rutland's councillors, in their deliberations, had to consider whether the sites could be developed and balance objections with the mitigation measures put forward by the Council's professional staff to enable development; in other words, not remove sites that would satisfy the "soundness" and legal compliance tests.

In my introduction to the Regulation 18 Local Plan consultation, I said that a Local Plan must satisfy the requirements of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). The new Government has announced a consultation period on changes to planning regulation and the NPPF. RCC is far enough advanced in producing a Local Plan that a new NPPF and accompanying regulation won't immediately affect us. However, as soon as we adopt this Local Plan we will have to start a review of the plan in order to become compliant with new regulations, including setting a new, and early indications suggest, a much higher housing target.

Councillor Gale Waller

Leader, Rutland County Council