The planning system in England has undergone major changes over the last few years with the introduction of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004.
This introduced the local development framework, which is a portfolio of documents that will set out our policies for development and land use.
As part of the local development framework we have prepared a local development scheme.
This document specifies which documents we will produce as part of the development plan for Cambridge, and the timetable for their preparation.
These documents are split into two categories - development plan documents and supplementary planning documents.
Development plan documents will set out our planning policies and proposals, while supplementary planning documents will expand on or add detail to these policies.
The documents to be produced by us are set out in the tables below.
Development Plan Documents - Real time information
| Document and purpose | Current stage | Next stage |
| Cambridge Development Strategy (Core Strategy) - Sets out the general spatial vision and objectives for the delivery of the Local Development Framework. | Preparation of informal Preferred Options Report: August 2007 - May 2009 | Consultation on informal Preferred Options Report: Autumn 2009 |
| Cambridge Site Specific Allocations - This will set out the allocation of land and sites for various types of development, for example residential development and employment land. | Pre-production background studies and information gathering: April 2008 - May 2009 | Identify issues and options including consultation: May 2009 - March 2010 (Issues & Options consultation expected November - December 2009) |
| Cambridge Development Control Policies - This will set out the detailed policies against which planning applications will be determined. | Pre-production background studies and information gathering: April 2008 - May 2009 | Identify issues and options including consultation: May 2009 - March 2010 (Issues & Options consultation expected November - December 2009) |
| North West Cambridge Area Action Plan - This document, which is being prepared jointly with South Cambridgeshire District Council, sets out the policies to guide development on land between Madingley Road and Huntingdon Road. | Additional round of consultation on the Inspectors' Larger Site Option: 9th March - 20th April 2009 Additional Examination session to consider Inspectors' Larger Site Option 9th June 2009 | Inspectors' Report Writing: January - July 2009 |
| Adopted Cambridge East Area Action Plan - Prepared jointly with South Cambridgeshire District Council, this document sets out the policies to guide development at Cambridge East (land at Cambridge Airport, land north of Cherry Hinton and land north of Newmarket Road). | Adopted February 2008 | |
| Adopted Statement of Community Involvement: A Consultation Strategy for Cambridge - This document sets out how the City Council will involve the community and key stakeholders in the preparation of its plans and guidance and planning applications. | Adopted September 2007 |
Supplementary Planning Documents - Real time information
| Document & Purpose | Current Stage | Next Stage |
| Adopted Sustainable Design and Construction SPD - This document adds guidance on the policies contained with the Cambridge Local Plan (2006) regarding sustainability. | Adopted June 2007 | |
| Adopted Affordable Housing SPD - This document gives advice on what is involved in providing affordable housing in Cambridge. It supplements, expands and adds detail to Local Plan policies 3/7 and 5/5. | Adopted January 2008 | |
| Draft Planning Obligations Strategy SPD - This document will provide a framework for the negotiation and use of planning obligation money across the city. | Consideration of representations from public consultation and revision of SPD (including additional round of consultation): May 2007 - May 2009 | Adoption and publication of SPD: Summer 2009 |
| Old Press/Mill Lane Site SPD - This document will provide guidance for the long-term and incremental redevelopment of the Old Press/Mill Lane site. | Draft SPD issued for public consultation: 23rd February - 6th April 2009 | Consideration of representations and revise SPD: April - June 2009 |
| Public Art SPD - This document will provide guidance on the provision of public art as part of new developments. | Preparation of draft SPD: October 2008 - mid March 2009 | Draft SPD issued for public consultation: |
| Historic Environment SPD - This document will expand on and provide guidance on historic environment policies in the Cambridge Local Plan. | Pre production background studies and information gathering: September 2008 - April 2009 | Prepare draft SPD: May - August 2009 |
To view further details on the progess of preparing both development plan documents and supplementary planning documents, please see the Local Development Scheme page.
These documents together will form the Local Development Framework, which will form part of the development plan for Cambridge. At present, the development plan for Cambridge consists of:
- The Regional Spatial Strategy (which includes saved policies from the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Structure Plan 2003) 2008;
- The Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Waste Local Plan 2003;
- The Cambridgeshire Aggregates (Minerals) Local Plan 1991;
- The Cambridge Local Plan 2006; and
- The Cambridge East Area Action Plan 2008
The new development plan for Cambridge will consist of:
- The Regional Spatial Strategy (adopted 2008);
- The Minerals and Waste Local Development Framework (currently being prepared by Cambridgeshire County Council);
- The Cambridge Development Strategy (Core Strategy);
- The Site Specific Allocations DPD;
- Generic Development Control Policies;
- The North West Area Action Plan; and
- The Cambridge East Area Action Plan (adopted 2008)
Annual monitoring report
The Annual Monitoring Report monitors the extent to which policies in the above development plan documents are being achieved. It also assesses the progress in preparing development plan documents and supplementary planning documents against the timetable set out in the Local Development Scheme. To view more details on the Council's Annual Monitoring Report, please select the link below:
Sustainability appraisal
In order to ensure that the principles of sustainable development are taken into account when preparing development plan documents and supplementary planning documents, Sustainabiliy Appraisals are undertaken. These appraisals identify and evaluate any likely social, economic and environmental effects of policies and site allocations in these documents. Consultation on the Sustainability Appraisal will occur at the same time as consultation on the development plan document or supplementary planning document to which the appraisal relates.
The first stage in the Sustainability Appraisal process is the preparation of a Scoping Report, which sets out the context and establishes objectives against which documents will be assessed. To view the Council's Scoping Report, please select the link below:
- Local Development Framework Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report (PDF, 1,008 Kbytes - please note due to the size of the file this version does not include maps)
Background studies
The policies and allocations set out in the Local Development Framework need to be formulated on the basis of a robust evidence base. To this end, a number of background studies have been commissioned to inform the preparation of policies. To view further details on these studies, please see the background studies page.
Contact us
If you have any queries with regards to the Local Development Framework, please contact the Planning Policy team:
Tel:
01223 457200
Fax: 01223 457109
Email: policysurveys@cambridge.gov.uk
Or write to us at: Planning Policy, Environment and Planning Department, Cambridge City Council, The Guildhall, Cambridge, CB2 3QJ.