Local Development Framework (North Wiltshire Development Plan)

The government has introduced a new form of plan making, which requires district councils to prepare Local Development Frameworks. These will in due course replace the adopted and emerging Local Plans, prepared by the District Council and the adopted Structure Plan, prepared by the County Council.

The Local Development Framework (LDF) will set out the Council's policies for meeting the community's economic, environmental and social aims for the future, where this affects the development and use of land.

The Local Development Framework will comprise the following parts:

Local Development Scheme (LDS) This document sets out the overall timetable for the production of the LDF. Please also view our statement regarding the future of the LDF in light of the One Council for Wiltshire.
Statement of Community Involvement (SCI). This document sets out how the Council will involve the community during the production of documents to be contained within the LDF.
- Local Development Documents (LDDs). Local Development Documents can comprise of a Core Strategy, Specific Allocations of land, Area Action Plans, Proposals Maps, General Development Control Policies and Supplementary Planning Documents such as Parish Plans
- Parish Plans
- Core Strategy
- Allocations DPD
- Affordable Housing SPD
- Sustainable Development SPD
- Open Space SPD
- West of Swindon Area Action Plan
- Bowood Estate Area Action Plan
Sustainability Appraisal / Strategic Environmental Assessment (SA/SEA). The policies and proposals contained in the Local Development Framework must be appraised to ensure that they contribute to the aims of Sustainable Development. The SA/SEA document will set out the results from this appraisal.
Annual Monitoring Report (AMR). This is a yearly report which assesses the implementation of the Local Development Scheme (LDS) and the extent to which policies in Local Development Documents are being achieved.

The Evidence Base comprises a range of work undertaken either by staff within the Spatial Planning Team or by external consultants. Work currently in progress includes:
- Housing Market Assessment
- The Retail Study (Update)
- The Employment Land Review
- The Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Needs Assessment (GTANA)
- The Gypsy and Traveller Site Search Methodology
- The General Site Search Information Project
- Five Year Land Supply
- Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment