Public Consultation Update
This consultation has now closed.
We cannot guarantee that sites submitted from 9th January 2021 will be processed for this Local Plan Review. Sites submitted from the 9th January 2021 may be considered as part of a future Local Plan Review.
Click here to view the responses received to the Regulation 18b Preferred Approaches Consultation 2020. The publication of the representations for the Regulation 18 Preferred Approaches Consultation commenced on Wednesday 3rd March 2021.
Please note: there are still some outstanding processing and uploading to take place. These include uploading the remaining Local Plan Review and sustainability appraisal representations, as well as checking duplication and other anomalies. This will be completed as soon as possible.
The consultation on the Preferred Approaches (Regulation 18b) for the Local Plan Review opened on 1st of December 2020 and closed 8th of January 2021. This is the next stage of informal stakeholder and public involvement in the local plan review process.The consultation document sets out the preferred spatial strategy for future development, proposed amendments to existing strategic and development management policies and new development management policies for the period 2022-2037.
The Local Plan Review – Preferred Approaches document (Regulation 18b) and supporting documents are available to view and download below:
A consultation on the Sustainability Appraisal accompanying the Regulation 18b Preferred Approach ran simultaneously.
The Environmental Assessment of Plans and Programmes regulations (2004) requires that all Development Plan Documents are required to be subject to a Sustainability Appraisal. This is reiterated in the National Planning Policy Framework. The Sustainability Appraisal is required to consider and communicate the key sustainability issues and effects of emerging policies and any reasonable alternatives.
The Sustainability Appraisal is an iterative process which runs alongside the development of a plan and informs the ongoing decision-making process. The document being consulted on is a record of the appraisal work carried out to date.
The sustainability appriasal can be viewed here:
The consultation opened on Tuesday 1st December and will closed on 5pm Friday 8th January.
The publication of the representations for the Regulation 18 Preferred Approaches Consultation is expected to take place on Wednesday 3rd March 2021. This is so that interested parties can view all the responses that have been received. Published information will include the comment and responder name. All demographic and contact data will be removed. All data is processed in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018. The consultation responses will be used to inform the next stages of the Local Plan Review.
Habitats Regulation Assessment
A Habitats Regulation Assessment (HRA) is a distinct stage of assessment that are undertaken in accordance with the Conservation of Habitats and Species regulations 2017 (as amended) and the Conservation of Offshore Marine Habitat Species Regulations 2017 (as amended). The HRA determines, prior to adoption of a plan, whether it will affect protected features and habitat sites.
A HRA scoping was undertaken in June 2020, this was followed by a screening which was undertaken in November 2020.
Both the HRA scoping and screening can be found in the document linked below:
Alternative ways to access the consultation document.
The consultation document also has a read aloud function to assist access to it. This can be used via downloading the document as a PDF and opening it in Adobe Acrobat Reader. Once this has been done click view – read out loud – activate read out loud – then you can choose to read an individual page or the whole document.
Local plans must be consistent with national policy but can also take on board local planning issues that are important to Maidstone.
The adopted Maidstone Borough Local Plan provides a framework for development until 2031. It plans for homes, jobs, shopping, leisure and the environment, and provides infrastructure to support these. The plan was formally adopted at Full Council on 25 October 2017.
The Local Plan Review will ensure that the Local Plan remains up to date.
Local Development Scheme
We're required by government to prepare a Local Development Scheme (LDS). A LDS sets out the timetable for the delivery of planning policy documents like our Local Plan.
We adopted our Local Plan in October 2017 and intend to review it. The LDS sets out the timetable for our Local Plan Review.
The Local Development Scheme 2020 – 2022 (July 2020 edition) which was as approved by Full Council on 15th July 2020 has been amended. The LDS 2020-2022 (July edition) outlined that a preferred approaches consultation (emphasis on future growth strategies) was to take place in October 2020. Then consideration given to more detailed topic areas in February 2021. There have been changes to the Local Plan Review timetable, and subsequently the LDS, to help Maidstone Borough Council respond to government proposals which will change the planning system. Among the proposed changes is an update of the standard methodology used to calculate housing need, as well as proposed interim arrangements for the new methodology to come into effect. Changes in methodology will have implications for the number of houses the Borough is required to provide.
The revised Local Development Scheme 2020 – 2022 (September 2020 edition) was approved by Full Council on 30th September 2020 and took effect the same day. The public notice can be viewed here.
The Council is currently complying with the timetable.
Statement of Community Involvement 2020
The Statement of Community Involvement 2020 sets out when and how stakeholders and the local community can get involved in the preparation of local plans, neighbourhood development plans and supplementary planning documents, and be involved in the process of decision making on planning applications.
There is a temporary addendum in relation to Covid 19 which can be viewed here.
The Sustainability Appraisal assessment process communicates significant sustainability issues and effects of emerging plans and policies. The appraisal informs the plan-making process by helping refine the contents of documents. This will help maximise the benefits of sustainable development to avoid or minimise adverse effects.
A Scoping Report has been produced to provide context and determine the scope of the Sustainability Appraisal. It sets out the assessment framework for undertaking the later stages of the Sustainability Appraisal.
The report has been published for consultation to the bodies of Historic England, Natural England and the Environment Agency. The consultation will run for 5 weeks between 4 February 2019 and 11 March 2019.cx
A Sustainability Appraisal of the Topic Paper Options has been produced to consider the four Spatial Approaches identified through the topic papers.
The Sustainability Appraisal of the Options for Spatial Strategy, Site Allocations and Garden Settlements appraises the overall strategy of the Local Plan Review and appraises the plan on a site by site basis. This underwent consultation in December 2020.
Interim Sustainability Appraisal of Maidstone Local Plan Review Regulation 18b assesses the draft regulation 18b Preferred Approaches consultation document.
The Authority Monitoring Report (AMR) for Maidstone provides a framework with which to monitor and review the effectiveness of Local Plan Policies.
MBC initially ran a call for sites exercise between March and May 2019. The purpose of the Call for Sites is to establish what land is potentially available in the Borough. The land that is submitted will form an important part of the evidence base that underpins the spatial pattern of development included in the Local Plan.
We cannot guarantee that sites submitted from 9th January 2021 will be processed for this Local Plan Review. Sites submitted from the 9th January 2021 may be considered as part of a future Local Plan Review.
For more information visit our Call for Sites page.
The document below details duty to cooperate with neighbouring authorities since the adoption of the Local Plan in 2017. This document will be updated on a regular basis as discussions continue.
Maidstone Strategic Housing Market Assessment
Maidstone Economic Development Needs Study Stage One
Maidstone Economic Development Needs Study Stage Two
Draft Strategic Land Availability Assessment
Strategic Land Availability Assessment, Appendix A - Green Site Assessments
Strategic Land Availability Assessment, Appendix B - Red Site Assessments
SFRA Level 1 update and Level 2
SFRA Level 1 update and Level 2 Appendices
Integrated Transport Strategy indications
Transport Modelling Draft Technical Note
Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report
Sustainability Appraisal of the Topic Paper
Sustainability Appraisal of the Options for Spatial Strategy
Interim Sustainability Appraisal of Maidstone Local Plan Review Regulation 18b
Social Infrastructure Spatial Topic Paper
Retail and Leisure Spatial Topic Paper
Transport and Air Quality Spatial Topic Paper
Further to the evidence base listed above, the ‘Local Plan Review – Regulation 18 Preferred Approaches Consultation (Dec 2020)’ refers to additional Maidstone Borough Council studies that have been published previously. These publications are included below for ease of reference.
Landscape Character Assessment 2013
Draft Climate Change and Biodiversity Strategy 2020
Economic Development Strategy 2015
Parks and Open Space Strategy 2017
Metropolitan Green Belt Review 2016
Green & Blue Infrastructure Strategy
Integrated Transport Strategy 2011-31
Infrastructure Delivery Plan 2020
Kent Downs AONB Management Plan 2014-2019
Air Quality Planning Guidance 2017
Maidstone Borough Council Strategic plan 2019 - 2045
Between 19th July 2019 and 30th September 2019 we consulted on the Local Plan Review Scoping, Themes and Issues (Regulation 18a). .