Development Plan documents

Local Plan Examination 2021

The East Northamptonshire Local Plan completed consultation under Regulation 19 of the Town and County Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 on 19 March 2021. On 29 March 2021 it was submitted to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government for independent examination, in accordance with (Regulation 22).

Examination 

Latest News

The Inspector wrote to the Council and provided initial questions (EXAM-05). The Council’s response has now been submitted and comprises of Documents EXAM-09 to EXAM-22. The Inspector will now consider the responses received and will finalise arrangements for the next steps in the Examination process. At this stage, it is anticipated that arrangements will be finalised in early 2022.

Latest Documents

From 13 December 2021 the following exam documents were added to the list of submissions:

• EXAM-09 - Council's response to Inspector's initial questions
• EXAM-10 - Neighbourhood Plan policies and relationship to submission Local Plan policies
• EXAM-11 - Council's legal advice letter - Rushden East SUE
• EXAM-12 - Irthlingborough West site plan
• EXAM-13 - Statement of Common Ground with Natural England
• EXAM-14 - Statement of Common Ground with Historic England
• EXAM-15 - Positional Statement with Bellway Homes Limited
• EXAM-16 - Positional Statement with Taylor Wimpey UK Limited and BDW Trading Limited
• EXAM-17 - Schedule of proposed Main Modifications
• EXAM-18 - Schedule of proposed Additional Modifications
• EXAM-19 - Response letter on Behalf of Taylor Wimpey UK Ltd and BDW Trading Ltd
• EXAM-20 - Background Paper 9 - Urban Housing (Update July 2021)
• EXAM-21 - Background Paper 10 - Rural Housing (Update July 2021)
• EXAM-22 - Garden Communities Toolkit

The Inspector

The Secretary of State has appointed Planning Inspector Elaine Worthington MTP MUED MRTPI to undertake an independent Examination into the soundness and legal compliance of the East Northamptonshire Local Plan Part 2. The Examination commenced upon submission of the Plan and will conclude upon the submission of the Inspector’s Report. 

The Inspector’s task is to consider the soundness of the submitted Plan, based on the criteria set out in paragraph 35 of the National Planning Policy Framework 2019 (the Framework).  The relevant soundness criteria are whether the Plan is: 

Positively prepared (providing a strategy which, as a minimum, seeks to meet the area’s objectively assessed needs; and is informed by agreements with other authorities, so that any unmet need from neighbouring areas is accommodated where it is practical to do so and is consistent with achieving sustainable development);  –

Justified (an appropriate strategy, taking into account the reasonable alternatives, and based on proportionate evidence);  

Effective (deliverable over the plan period and based on effective joint working on cross-boundary strategic matters that have been dealt with rather than deferred, as evidenced by the statement of common ground); and  

Consistent with national policy (enabling the delivery of sustainable development in accordance with the policies in the Framework).  

The Inspector will take into account the representations submitted upon the Regulation 19 Plan as far as they relate to soundness and legal compliance considerations. A number of informal debates are likely to take place on the principal matters identified by the Inspector these are termed Hearing Sessions.

At the end of the Examination, the Inspector will prepare a report to the Council with precise recommendations, these recommendations may include modifications to the Plan, if such a request is made by the Council.

Guidance Notes will be prepared by the Inspector to help people understand the process and will be available here in due course. Any queries people may have regarding the Examination process should be directed to the Programme Officer who will be happy to assist. 

The Programme Officer

The Programme Officer, Ian Kemp, will act as the contact for any person who has an interest in the Examination and as a liaison between the Inspector, Council and Representors. 

He is an independent Officer of the Examination and works on behalf of the Inspector to organise and manage the administrative and procedural elements of the Examination process. All statements will also be submitted through him.

Any matters that anyone wishes to raise with the Inspector should be submitted via the Programme Officer.

Contact details:

Ian Kemp
PO Box 241
Droitwich
WR9 1DW

Mobile: 0772 300 9166

Email: idkemp@icloud.com

Mr Kemp will be contacting all Representors with details of the Examination process in due course. 

Hearing Sessions and Timetable

A Programme for the Hearing Sessions together with further information will appear here once finalised. 

Evidence Base Documents

In preparing the Plan the Council both refer to and were informed by a number of documents that together form the 'Evidence Base' for the Examination. 
The Local Plan Part 2 and accompanying statutory submission documents may be downloaded through the following documents:

Index of Documents

Regulation 19 Consultation Representations

At the close of the Regulation 19 consultation the Council received responses from 61 organisations and individuals, raising approximately 350 representations, which were recorded as duly made.

Spreadsheets containing summaries and the Council’s responses to each of the representations received, are available through the following links:

• In order of representator
• In Plan section order

Redacted copies of original representations received, in full, are available to download through the following table.

Consultee	Reference Number	Representation
Individual 1	R19/001	Link
Individual 2	R19/003	Link
Individual 3	R19/004	Link
Individual 4	R19/005	Link
Individual 5	R19/006	Link
Individual 6	R19/007	Link
Individual 7	R19/008	Link
Individual 8	R19/010	Link
Individual 9	R19/012	Link
Individual 10	R19/018	Link
Individual 11	R19/032	Link
Individual 12	R19/038	Link
Anglian Water Services	R19/022	Link
Ashfield Land Development	R19/019	Link
Bellway Homes Ltd	R19/026	Link
British Horse Society	R19/034	Link
Brown & Co	R19/059	Link
CC Town Planning	R19/046	Link
Chelveston-cum-Caldecott Parish Council	R19/002	Link
CLH Pipeline Systems Ltd	R19/035	Link
Corporation of Oundle School, The	R19/033	Link
Cotterstock Parish Meeting	R19/011	Link
Countryside Properties	R19/036	Link
CPRE	R19/037	Link
Crown Estate, The	R19/044	Link
David Wilson Homes	R19/052	Link
Francis Jackson Homes Ltd	R19/021	Link
Gladman	R19/056	Link
Glapthorn Parish Council	R19/024	Link
Hallam Land Management Limited	R19/016	Link
Higham Ferrers Town Council	R19/014	Link
Highways England	R19/060	Link
Historic England	R19/0396	Link
Hollins Strategic Land	R19/061	Link
Home Builders Federation	R19/023	Link
Huntingdonshire District Council	R19/009	Link
IM Properties	R19/040	Link
Lagan Homes	R19/042	Link
Landowners of Millers Field	R19/041	Link
Lone Star Land Limited	R19/043	Link
Ministry of Defence	R19/045	Link
National Grid	R19/047	Link
National Trust	R19/027	Link
Natural England	R19/048	Link
Northamptonshire County Council	R19/049	Link
Northamptonshire Gardens Trust, The	R19/030	Link
Oundle School	R19/028	Link
Oundle Town Council	R19/025	Link
Persimmon Homes	R19/050	Link
Pilton, Stoke Doyle, and Wadenhoe Parish Council	R19/051	Link
Retirement Housing Consortium, The	R19/029	Link
Rose and Sons Ltd	R19/031	Link
Rula Homes	R19/053	Link
Rushden Town Council	R19/054	Link
Rutland County Council	R19/013	Link
Sport England	R19/020	Link
South Kesteven District Council	R19/055	Link
Taylor Wimpey UK Limited/ BDW Trading Limited	R19/057	Link
Vistry Homes	R19/058	Link
Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire Cambridgeshire & Northamptonshire, The	R19/017	Link
William Davis Ltd	R19/015	Link

Please note that this page is evolving.  Further documents will be added to this over the coming weeks and months, as the examination in public (which started upon submission of the Plan) progresses.