Regulation 19 - Proposed Draft Local Plan Submission
The statutory development plan
1.7 This Local Plan is intended to replace the policies in our previous Harborough Local Plan 2011 to 2031 adopted in 2019 (these are listed in Appendix 1). Until it is adopted, the Harborough Local Plan 2019 remains the development plan for determining planning applications along with 'made' Neighbourhood Plans and the Leicestershire Minerals and Waste Plan as already explained. Comment
1.8 This Local Plan has been prepared and will be examined under the December 2023 National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) in accordance with the transitional arrangements set out in Appendix 1 of the December 2024 NPPF. This states that for plans that have reached Regulation 19 on or before 12th March 2025 and the housing requirement provided for within the plan is at least 80% of local housing need, the plan will be examined under the previous version of the NPPF. These circumstances apply to this Local Plan. Comment
Neighbourhood Plans
1.9 Neighbourhood plans are also part of the statutory development plan for Harborough District and are used for decision making on planning applications. Neighbourhood Plans are created by the community that lives and works in an area, not the District Council. Each Neighbourhood Plan is unique but all contain important policies on the community's requirements, such as: Comment
- Where they want new homes, shops, and offices to be built
- What any new buildings should look like
- Other local priorities.
1.10 Neighbourhood planning has been wholeheartedly embraced in the Harborough District. These plans are the culmination of a tremendous amount of work from our communities. They capture a local vision for development in succinct and creative ways. Harborough District's Neighbourhood Plans can be viewed at: https://www.harborough.gov.uk/planning-strategy. Comment
1.11 Chapter 9 explains more about the important role of neighbourhood plans and includes information for groups preparing neighbourhood plans. Comment
Minerals and waste development
1.12 For planning applications involving minerals and waste development, the latest Minerals and Waste Plan prepared by Leicestershire County Council will apply. Comment
1.13 For more information about planning policies in Harborough District see the Council's website: https://www.harborough.gov.uk/planning-strategy Comment
Using the Local Plan and understanding its structure
1.14 The planning policies in Part 1 set out the overall strategy for meeting the development needs of our area over the next 15 years – including the need for different types of development. These policies are to ensure that our development needs are being met and that, overall, the right type of development is in the right place. The policies in Part 2 are development management policies concerned with ensuring our standards for design are met and the impacts of individual developments are managed appropriately. Comment
1.15 The policies in Parts 1 and 3 of the plan are strategic policies as defined in national planning policy. This distinction is important if you are involved in preparing a neighbourhood plan as policies in neighbourhood plans need to be in general conformity with these strategic policies. Comment
Planning policies and supporting text
1.16 Planning policies are shown in bold text. They are identifiable by their title, which includes a letter and number prefix; for example, Policy DS11 Managing Impacts on Land and Water Quality. In some policies, we identify a specific area the policy applies to. We make this clear in the policy text by saying 'as shown on the Policies Map' and the extent of the area is shown on our detailed Policies Map. A glossary, which defines technical terms, is included at the end of this Local Plan. This gives the specific meaning intended in policies (which can be different to a dictionary definition). Comment
1.17 We deal with a single issue in a single policy and to avoid repetition of the same requirements. For example, traffic impacts may arise in relation to multiple different types of development and in different locations, but we set requirements in the same part of the plan. We have also avoided excessive cross referencing of policies – all policies apply. We have adopted this to avoid ambiguity about which policy applies or takes precedence. Comment
1.18 After each policy there is some text which gives the reasons for our policy approach. This explains our intent behind the policies and addresses the requirement of planning regulations to give reasons for our approach. Our website provides further guidance to help you implement the policies including: Comment
- Supplementary Planning Documents, which provide additional guidance to help you implement policies in this plan.
- Our list of requirements for documents we expect to be submitted with different types of planning applications.
- Other advice we have published to help you navigate submitting a planning application.
A practical guide to navigating the plan
1.19 We have tried to make this Local Plan as clear and concise as possible, but we know it is still quite long. National government policies for local plans, as set out in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), require us to cover a wide a range of matters. We also want to ensure the Local Plan contains enough detail to guide decisions on planning applications effectively and can be easily understood. Comment
1.20 A full list of planning policies is provided after the contents page at the beginning of this plan. If you are reading the document online, you can also view each policy in the navigation pane to the left of this text. All the policies need to be considered. Several policies may be relevant to a proposed development or its location. If you are not sure where to start, following on from the introduction, Chapter 2 outlines the big issues and opportunities faced by the area and Chapter 3 sets out our Local Plan's objectives in response to these. This will help you better understand Harborough and our ambitions. Chapter 4 responds to these issues and objectives and sets out our overall development strategy for the district including areas we have identified as integral to delivering this strategy. Use this section to determine if a development proposal aligns to our overall strategy for development. We want development in the district that helps us to deliver this strategy and avoids setting obstacles to it. Chapter 5 sets out the sites we have allocated for a specific use and scale of development (Site Allocations). If you are developing housing of any type, Chapter 6 outlines our detailed requirements for making sure that the type of housing being developed meets the needs of our community. Comment
1.21 The next step is to establish whether the proposed use is in the right part of our district. Chapter 7 is there to help you to assess whether the principle of the development in the location proposed is likely to be acceptable. It explains where we direct different types and scales of development to. Comment
1.22 Just because the proposed development use is acceptable, does not mean the design will be. The next step is to consider the detailed policy requirements for the design of a development and mitigation of its impacts as set out in Chapter 8. This chapter also contains requirements that protect certain valued community and environmental assets, such as conservation areas and community facilities. Comment
