Dorset Council Local Plan Options Consultation 2025

Dorset is changing – help us shape it

Dorset Council is preparing a new Local Plan to guide development. The consultation looks at how we could meet development needs across the Dorset Council area and identifies opportunity sites for new homes, employment land and traveller sites. It also identifies areas of opportunity for wind and solar power.

We are required to identify development opportunities to help meet the needs of Dorset. In doing so, we invite landowners to submit land they consider to be developable to us. We are also required to consider other opportunities that we have not been informed about. If a landowner is no longer interested in their land being developed, they can simply notify us through the consultation, and we will remove it from further consideration. This is part of the reason we’re running the consultation – to identify availability and other deliverability issues.

We strongly encourage you to respond using the online consultation. Alternatively, you can request a paper response form:

• email planningpolicyconsult@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk
• write to us

Interactive maps

You can find interactive maps of the opportunity sites we are consulting on using the Dorset Council Local Plan Options Consultation layers on Dorset Explorer. Here, you can also view the opportunity areas for renewable energy, by selecting 'Local plans', then 'Dorset Council Local Plan options consultation 2025' in the Layers menu, and then opening 'Renewable energy opportunity areas'.

Versions of the consultation documents for downloading

The consultation document and appendices (including the site options) are also available to view.

• Dorset Council Local Plan Options Consultation 2025 main document 
• Appendix A: Opportunity sites for housing
• Appendix B: Opportunity sites for employment
• Appendix C: Opportunity sites for Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople
• Appendix D: Opportunity areas for renewable energy

Paper copies of the consultation document are available to view in Dorset libraries. Copies of all the documents can be viewed at County Hall, Dorchester during normal office hours. 

Supporting documents

There are a number of supporting documents that provide further detail and background evidence to the Local Plan consultation.

• Sustainability Appraisal Report August 2025 
• Sustainability Appraisal Report August 2025 - Appendices
• Habitats Regulations Assessment Report July 2025
• Equality Impact Assessment for the Dorset Council Local Plan Options consultation process
• Equality Impact Assessment for the Dorset Council Local Plan Options consultation document

Background papers

• Flexible Settlements Policy background paper
• Housing Numbers background paper
• Housing, Employment and Traveller site selection background paper
• Wind, solar, and battery storage opportunity areas background paper

Other evidence and information

• Weymouth Town Centre Masterplan refresh
• North of Dorchester Garden Community Masterplan
• renewable energy strategic assessments for resource and landscape sensitivity

Additional supporting information can be found at our Dorset Council Local Plan evidence page.

Drop-in events

You can come and talk to us at one of the events we are holding during September and October. 

Alternative formats 

If you are unable to respond online please use the following response forms.

• main document response form
• sites response form
• omission sites response form

If you need alternative formats, including an 'easy read' version, please contact us.

Previous Local Plan consultation

We have consulted on the Local Plan before and received valuable feedback. This is a new consultation as we have updated the plan based partly on feedback and included new options based on the new housing targets set by the current government. The Plan includes sites that could be identified for new homes.

If you need help with the survey, please contact the Planning Policy team.