Babergh District Council has started the process of replacing Babergh’s current Local Plan (adopted in 2006). The new Plan is to be called the ‘Babergh Development Framework' (BDF in short).
The Council has started work on the first part of this planning framework that will replace the adopted Local Plan, namely the ‘Core Strategy'. This document will set out the broad vision and policies for Babergh in the future. It relates mainly to the development and use of land and will outline the strategy for delivering broad development needs in housing, employment, leisure, transport, retail and other important areas in Babergh. It will also address critical matters on how essential infrastructure will be delivered. Please note that the Core Strategy looks at the ‘bigger picture’ for the District, not just in terms of land use planning but from social, economic and environmental perspectives as well. The Core Strategy will not consider the specific, fine details of any issue or individual development (such as site specific allocations or development control issues) but will instead look strategically at these matters.
The Core Strategy will be developed in stages and we would like to encourage as many people as possible to become involved. Babergh has completed consultation on the on the broad spatial planning issues to be addressed in the Core Strategy and a range of possible options to address these issues during April and May 2009 (Issues and Options document) as the first stage in producing the Core Strategy. Work has commenced on the preparation of the draft Core Strategy (Preferred Options) and this will continue over the winter/spring. We will consult the public on the draft Core Strategy and again on the final Core Strategy. After the final round of consultation the Core Strategy will be submitted to the Secretary of State for examination by an independent Planning Inspector. The Inspector will then produce a binding report.
It is anticipated that the next round of consultations on the draft Core Strategy (Preferred Options) will be in March/April 2010. More information regarding the following will be published on the website in due course:
- Consultation period dates
- Material to be issued for inspection and availability of documents
- Publicity arrangements and public consultation events
- Information on how to submit responses
- Information on the process from this stage onwards
All submissions received on the Issues and Options Core Strategy can be viewed via the The development plan online planning pages.
Please telephone 01473 826678 or email us on ldf@babergh.gov.uk if you have any questions.
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