Surrey Heath Borough Council is preparing a new Local Plan to cover the period up to 2038. Once adopted, the Surrey Heath Local Plan will play an important role in shaping Surrey Heath's future including how our town and villages develop, protecting and enhancing our natural environment, developing our local economy, improving leisure and visitor facilities, and supporting more sustainable forms of travel. Our Borough Councillors and our planning officers will use the Local Plan to help them decide whether to approve or refuse planning applications in our Borough.
Submission of the Local Plan
Surrey Heath’s Local Plan (Pre-Submission, also known as the ‘Regulation 19’ Version), along with all representations received at the Pre-Submission publication stage and the evidence supporting the Plan, was submitted to the Secretary of State for independent examination in public by a Planning Inspector on 10 December 2024.
A Submission Statement of Fact has been produced setting out details of the submission and where the Submission documents can be found.
The submitted documents and supporting evidence can be found in the Examination Library.
Further information on the Examination will be posted on our Examination webpage on the Local Plan Services website (external link).
A list of Representations received on the Pre-Submission Plan, in alphabetical order can be viewed on the Pre-Submission Surrey Heath Local Plan publication responses webpage.
Examination Process
The independent examination is the final stage of the Local Plan process before it can be legally adopted. The Planning Inspectorate will appoint an inspector to lead the examination of the Surrey Heath Local Plan on behalf of the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
The examination will assess whether the Plan has been prepared in accordance with legal and procedural requirements, such as the Duty to Cooperate, and whether it is considered ‘sound’, in accordance with paragraph 35 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), 2023.
The Council has appointed Ian Kemp as the Programme Officer who will independently undertake the administration of the examination under the direction of the appointed Planning Inspector. The Programme Officer will liaise between the Planning Inspector, Surrey Heath Borough Council and the interested parties for the duration of the Local Plan examination. Any matters that anyone wishes to raise regarding the Examination should be submitted via the Programme Officer.
Contact details
Ian Kemp, Programme Officer
Email: ian@localplanservices.co.uk (link sends email)
Mobile: 0772 300 9166
Address: PO Box 241, Droitwich WR9 1DW
Further information on the Examination process has been produced by the Planning Inspectorate:
View A Procedural Guide for Local Plans on the GOV.UK website (external link)
View Local Plans: taking part in examinations on the GOV.UK website (external link)
Previous consultations
Publication of the Local Plan
The Council published the ‘Pre-Submission’ or ‘Regulation 19’ version of the Surrey Heath Local Plan for comments between 7 August and 20 September 2024. Whilst the period for comments has now closed you can view the Pre-Submission Local Plan and associated documents on our Planning Policy Consultation Portal.
Evidence supporting the preparation of the Local Plan can be viewed on our Local Plan evidence base webpage.
Regulation 18 Draft Local Plan: Preferred Options (2019-2038)
The Council consulted on a Regulation 18 Draft Local Plan: Preferred Options version of the local plan for an eight-week period, from 12pm on Monday 14 March to Monday 9 May 2022. The consultation has now closed. However, you can find out more information about the consultation and the questions asked on our consultation portal.
Draft Surrey Heath Local Plan Additional Site Allocations for Gypsy and Travellers and Travelling Showpeople (2019-2038) Regulation 18
The Council consulted on additional site allocation options for Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople accommodation. The consultation ran from Monday 8 August, from 12pm to Monday 19 September 2022. The consultation has now closed. You can find out more information about the consultation on our consultation portal.
Timetable
Further detail on the Local Plan timetable can be found in the Local Development Scheme. The preparation of a Local Plan is a long process that goes through a number of key stages. Our Local Development Scheme (LDS) sets out the timetable for the preparation of the local plan through to its adoption.