Government planning changes force Dorset Council to take new Local Plan route

Dorset Council is proposing a new route to preparing its Local Plan after Government changes to planning rules, housing requirements and deadlines left the council unable to prepare a sound Local Plan under the previous system.

A Local Plan helps decide where new homes, jobs and infrastructure should go. It gives councils more influence over development and helps ensure roads, schools, healthcare facilities, and other services are planned alongside growth.

The council has spent several years preparing a Local Plan for Dorset, supported by extensive technical studies and feedback from more than 9,000 consultation responses.

However, while that work was underway, the Government introduced a new plan-making system, effectively doubled Dorset's housing requirement, and set a December 2026 deadline for plans being prepared under previous arrangements. These changes, together with further evidence and assessment work needed to ensure the plan is sound, mean it is no longer possible to complete the current Local Plan under the old system.

Cabinet is therefore being asked to prepare Dorset's Local Plan under the new national plan-making system. The council says making that decision now gives Dorset the best opportunity to carry forward work already completed. Research, technical studies and feedback from residents will continue to inform the new Local Plan, with more of that work able to be retained the earlier the transition takes place.

As a result of the Government's planning changes, Dorset Council is proposing to prepare its Local Plan under the new national planning system. The council says that producing a sound plan is no longer achievable under the previous arrangements, and that moving now offers the best chance of preparing a Local Plan as quickly as possible that can pass through independent examination.

The new system also includes a series of independent reviews during plan preparation, helping identify and address issues earlier rather than at the end of the process. The Government's new system is intended to enable Local Plans to be prepared in around 30 months, although that remains an ambitious timescale, particularly for large and complex areas such as Dorset.

The report also asks Cabinet to approve funding that has already been set aside to support preparation of the new Local Plan.

The council says it remains committed to keeping residents informed and involved throughout the process, with future opportunities for communities, businesses, and organisations to help shape the plan as it develops.

Cllr. Shane Bartlett, Dorset Council's Cabinet Member for Planning and Planning Enforcement, said:

"It is a statutory requirement that Dorset Council develops a Local Plan and takes into account the housing numbers demanded by the Government. These can be challenged provided we can present a strong reasoned argument before the examiner if we feel we cannot meet those housing targets.

“Part of the process is to enable residents to engage with consultations, and we have spent several years preparing Dorset's Local Plan. However, we now find that the situation has changed through no fault of our own.

"The reality is that the Government changed the planning system while Dorset and many other councils across the country were already a long way through preparing their plans. Housing requirements increased significantly, new plan-making requirements were introduced, and councils were given a deadline that has become increasingly difficult if not impossible to achieve while still producing a Local Plan that can pass independent examination.

"This is not the result of any failure by Dorset Council. It is the consequence of significant changes made at a national level during the preparation of the plan. Dorset is not alone in this position. Many councils are now having to move across to the Government's new plan-making system because of these changes.

"Continuing under the previous system would create a high risk that Dorset could spend more time and money on a route that may not successfully deliver an adopted Local Plan. Moving into the new system now gives us the best opportunity to build on the evidence, studies and consultation feedback that has already been completed and focus our efforts on producing a Local Plan that can pass independent examination.

"That does not mean the new system is without its challenges. Many councils across the country are expected to be preparing plans under the new system at the same time, and the system is still untested. Having enough Planning Inspectors and examiners to assess Local Plans will be a significant challenge nationally, and that is something individual councils cannot control. What we can do is put Dorset in the strongest possible position by moving into the new system now and building on the work already done.

"Importantly, the new approach is designed to be more transparent than the previous system. Information must be published at key stages, and there are independent checks throughout the process to help identify and resolve issues earlier.

"While the new system is still untested, it is expected to give more weight to a council's Local Plan earlier in the process. Under the previous system, many of those benefits, including demonstrating a five-year housing land supply, would not normally be realised until a plan had completed examination and been adopted.

"We are not throwing away years of work, and we are not starting again from scratch. The evidence, studies and consultation responses already received will continue to inform the new Local Plan. Our focus now is on making the strongest possible use of the work already completed and delivering a Local Plan that can stand up to independent examination and provide Dorset communities with the certainty they need for the future."

Cabinet will consider the proposal on 28 July. If approved, Dorset Council will formally begin preparing its Local Plan under the new system this summer, with an initial scoping consultation expected later this year.