The new local plan will set out how Bristol will develop over the next 20 years. It is important that we get the balance between the three interdependent, overarching economic, social and environmental objectives right so that it delivers sustainable development pursued in mutually supportive ways and that opportunities are taken to secure net gains across each of these objectives.
The National Planning Policy Framework (the Framework) expects local plans to deliver sustainable development and that:
‘... the planning system has three overarching objectives, which are interdependent and need to be pursued in mutually supportive ways (so that opportunities can be taken to secure net gains across each of the different objectives):
a) an economic objective – to help build a strong, responsive and competitive
economy, by ensuring that sufficient land of the right types is available in the
right places and at the right time to support growth, innovation and improved
productivity; and by identifying and coordinating the provision of infrastructure;
b) a social objective – to support strong, vibrant and healthy communities, by
ensuring that a sufficient number and range of homes can be provided to meet
the needs of present and future generations; and by fostering well-designed,
beautiful and safe places, with accessible services and open spaces that reflect
current and future needs and support communities’ health, social and cultural
well-being; and
c) an environmental objective – to protect and enhance our natural, built and
historic environment; including making effective use of land, improving
biodiversity, using natural resources prudently, minimising waste and pollution, and mitigating and adapting to climate change, including moving to a low carbon economy.
These objectives should be delivered through the preparation and implementation of plans and the application of the policies in this Framework.’
The current Local Plan, adopted between 2011 & 2014, is under review. The final stage of the consultation will soon be released. It is planned that Councillors will then vote on the final version this November before it is sent to the Planning Inspectorate for examination and approval.
The review process started in early 2019 with the publication of the following documents:
- The local plan’s draft policies
- The draft site allocations
- The proposals for protection of open space
- Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report
Our detailed response to the proposals for the protection of open space is published here:
Response to the 2019 Open Spaces and Local Plan Review
A summary of all the responses to the consultation is set out below:
There was then a gap until 2022 when the council published the following updated consultation documents:
Our detailed response is published below:
Response to the 2023 Local Plan draft consultation
We have also made recommendations for updating the policies dealing with the replacement of trees lost to development:
Proposal for a new Bristol Tree Replacement Standard using Biodiversity Metric 4.0
We understand that a new tree strategy is also being drafted. Hopefully, it will form part of the new Local Plan. Here are our recommendations for what it should contain:
Developing a Tree Strategy for Bristol
We await the next stage of the review process.