Local Plan work progressing

The new Local Plan will set out planning policies in the district up to 2031. It will make sure development meets strategic priorities in terms of housing, employment, community facilities, transport and other infrastructure needed to support development.

In September last year, Harborough District Council held a public consultation to seek feedback on Local Plan options which has now been collated.

The nine potential options consulted upon have now been reduced to four selected options for further analysis and work in order to progress the Plan.

These are:

• Option 2: Core Strategy Distribution – development distributed across the district with Market Harborough accommodating a significant number of the new homes required
• Option 5: a proportion of the housing required across the district allocated to a Strategic Development Area to the north east of Kibworth Harcourt with provision of a relief road for Kibworth.
• Option 6: a proportion of the housing required across the district allocated to a Strategic Development Area to the east of Lutterworth with provision of a relief road for Lutterworth
• Option 4 variation: a proportion of the housing required across the district allocated to a Strategic Development Area to the north of Scraptoft rather than to the east of Scraptoft/Thurnby.

No decision on final options was made at the Executive meeting.

However, the Executive did approve further tests to look into land availability, infrastructure, transport impact and a number of other issues, with a view to establishing a preferred single option or hybrid option in the Autumn.

In line with national guidance, the Executive also agreed a ‘buffer’ of an extra 75 homes a year should be factored into the council’s housing figures up to 2031 – a total of 550 properties per year – to allow greater flexibility in meeting housing targets and providing much-needed homes in district.

Harborough District Council thanked the public for their invaluable feedback in helping move the Local Plan forward.

The public will once again be invited to comment on the Local Plan later in 2016.

Once the new Local Plan is complete it will be submitted to the Government for examination in Spring 2017.

A Harborough District Council spokesman said: “Putting in place an up to date adopted Local Plan as soon as possible is very important for the Harborough District. It will enable the Council to ensure that development needed across the District in the period up to 2031 takes place in a managed way, guided by the provisions of the Plan.”