Changes to the development plan system introduced in 2004 require us to prepare a new type of development plan for the borough. This new plan is called the Local Development Framework (LDF). The development plan documents that form part of the LDF will eventually replace all of the saved policies in the our UDP and form the development plan for the whole of the borough.
The LDF is a collection of documents which will guide and monitor the development of the borough over, at least, the next 15 years.
Hounslow’s Local Development Framework is made up of the following documents:
Local Development Scheme (LDS)
Statement of Community Involvement (SCI)
Development Plan Documents (DPDs)
Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs)
Annual Monitoring Report (AMR)
Local development scheme (LDS)
The LDS is a project plan for the production of the borough's LDF. It outlines what development plan documents we are proposing to produce and when, and at what stage you can expect to be involved in the planning process. Our current LDS took effect from 1 April 2007 and can be downloaded from this page. Please refer to the most recent annual monitoring report for an update of progress against existing LDS milestones.
The current LDS is in the process of being updated with publication due in April 2009.
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Statement of community involvement (SCI)
The SCI was adopted in September 2006 and sets out how we intend to involve you in the preparation of local development documents and in making decisions on individual planning applications. The SCI identifies the community groups to be involved and the techniques to be used to engage them in the planning process. It also shows how the process of community involvement will be resourced and managed effectively and how the results will feed into the preparation of local development documents. We are required to consult on proposals for community involvement and the SCI itself has been subject to an independent examination.
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Development plan documents (DPDs)
DPDs are statutory local development documents and will replace our Unitary Development Plan as the basis for development control decisions. All DPDs will be subject to rigorous procedures of community involvement and independent examination.
Adopted DPDs
We have adopted two DPDs as part of the borough’s LDF. The Employment Development Plan Document was adopted in November 2008 and the Brentford Area Action Plan was adopted in January 2009. Further information on the scope of these DPDs and copies of the documents can be downloaded from the relevant pages. The proposals map is in the process of being updated to reflect these new policies and designations.
DPDs under preparation
We are in the process of preparing four further development plan documents.
Site allocations DPD
Generic DC policies DPD
The core strategy is the primary development plan document. It will provide the overall spatial strategy for the borough for a least the next 15 years. This will be accompanied by a site allocations DPD which will identify future development sites across the borough and a generic DC policies DPD which will set out specific criteria for use in the assessment of planning applications.
Work has begun on our core strategy with an initial issues and options consultation in summer 2007. Information on future milestones for all three of these DPDs is contained within our Local Development Scheme.
We are working with the west London boroughs of Brent, Ealing, Harrow, Hillingdon and Richmond to produce a Joint Waste DPD. The existing proposals map will be updated to reflect changes as each of the new development plan documents are adopted.
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Supplementary planning documents (SPDs)
Supplementary planning documents (SPDs) will help when considering planning applications. We adopted SPDs on planning obligations and air quality in March 2008.
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Annual Monitoring Report (AMR)
Every local planning authority in England has a responsibility to produce an annual monitoring report (AMR) that presents an analysis of planning policy performance and effects, to assess whether objectives and policies are being achieved, as well as providing a review of Local Development Framework production.
Hounslow's AMR contains information on the implementation of the Local Development Scheme (LDS) and the extent to which local policies and targets in the Unitary Development Plan are being achieved. However, the AMR is not just a planning document. It includes the borough’s housing trajectory demonstrating the borough has a sufficient supply of ready to develop housing sites to deliver the minimum housing supply requirement for a rolling five year period. It also pulls together a broad range of factual information for topic areas such as housing, employment and retail. The report also considers money secured through section 106 planning agreements and where money received has been spent.
Our fifth AMR covering the period 1 April 2008 to 31 March 2009 was produced in December 2009. The document is available to download from this page.
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