Council Cabinet approves next step in Local Plan review

At a meeting tonight (Wednesday 20 December), at Grimsby Town Hall, (pictured), North East Lincolnshire Council’s Cabinet discussed the updated Local Plan, which is currently in draft form, and approved that it be put out to consultation.

During the discussion it was made clear that members were not giving their views on any elements of the document. Instead, they wanted to ensure people were invited to use the consultation process to comment on a whole variety of potential ways forward for future development.

The meeting heard how a review of the adopted Plan is a Government requirement and work has been progressing since 2022. The publication of the draft updated Local Plan for public consultation is the next step in that review process, and until that is complete the current Local Plan remains in place.

The consultation is being planned to run for eight weeks from mid-January and the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Transport, Cllr Stewart Swinburn, had the following message to people.

“Please remember this consultation will be open for everyone who lives and works in North East Lincolnshire. If you want to understand how our borough is likely to develop, whether it is housing, green spaces, the environment or industrial and business, then please do get involved.”

All local authorities that have responsibility for planning must have Local Plans to provide the framework for future development across their areas. A crucial element is that the Plans must be supported by evidence to determine things such as the predicted jobs growth and associated housing needs. Data and analysis is used to ensure this is as accurate as possible, and meets all the necessary Government requirements on things such as housing growth.

As agreed at a Cabinet meeting to approve the launch of the review back in 2022, the updated Local Plan outlines how the council wishes to keep a ‘pro-growth’ strategy that supports its economic vision. It must also ensure development will be ‘viable and deliverable’ with a focus on the design quality, climate change and the environment.

Cllr Swinburn said: “As a council we wish to remain ambitious. We want to create a borough that brings opportunities for our people in terms of jobs, skills, and housing - supporting new development, including green energy and renewables. This draft updated Local Plan reflects those ambitions and I and my fellow cabinet members look forward to January and the engagement with the public.”

North East Lincolnshire Council is now planning the consultation, which will include public events and detailed explanations of key priorities, such as jobs growth and where that is likely, and the homes that will be needed to attract people to either move into, or stay, in the borough to live and work.

Following a recommendation from a recent Economy Scrutiny Panel, when the draft updated Plan was also discussed, the consultation will endeavour to ensure that more technical aspects of the document are explained to encourage more engagement from local people. Look out for that in January.