Derbyshire Dales District Council has begun a review of its Local Plan and between 8 November and 20 December will undertake a ‘Call for Sites’.
It means developers, landowners, parish councils and members of the public can put forward potential residential or employment development sites or both.
The District Council is the local planning authority for that part of its area that sits outside of the Peak District National Park and in December 2017 the Derbyshire Dales Local Plan was formally adopted. It sets out the policies and proposals for the use and development of land over the next 20 years.
Local planning authorities are obliged by law to undertake a review of their Local Plans within five years from their adoption date to ensure that policies remain relevant and effective in addressing the needs of the local community.
The National Planning Policy Framework requires local planning authorities to maintain an up-to-date evidence base of potentially available land. The Call for Sites will feed into the preparation of a new Strategic Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment (SHELAA).
A SHELAA seeks to identify land primarily suitable for housing and employment uses. It is an important source of evidence to inform the plan-review process and provides information on the range of sites which are available to be developed. The SHELAA is an evidence document only and does not in itself allocate land for any specific purposes; allocations will be determined through the review of Local Plan.
The District Council is also undertaking a Call for Biodiversity Sites. This follows the introduction of new national Government legislation which requires biodiversity net gain from new development. Biodiversity net gain aims to leave the natural environment and wildlife habitats in a measurably better state than before the development took place. The call for sites seeks to identify possible sites that could contribute to improving biodiversity and the natural environment in the Derbyshire Dales.
A District Council spokesperson said:
“We are inviting farmers, landowners, land managers, communities, businesses, conservation and wildlife groups to put forward possible sites in the Local Planning Authority area of the District which could be identified for biodiversity creation or enhancements and allocated within the Derbyshire Dales Local Plan.”
Find out more and submit a site via the Call for Sites webpage.
