Rutland County Council has issued a 'Call for Sites' as one of the very first steps in the process to develop a new Local Plan.

Local Plans are important documents that help to determine the outcome of planning applications and other planning decisions. Every Planning Authority (including Rutland County Council) must have a Local Plan that states what can be built and where building should take place over a period of at least 15 years.

By setting the pattern for future development in a particular area, Local Plans also help to decide where investment is needed for infrastructure like roads, schools and health services.

A 'Call for Sites' is one of the very first stages of developing a new Local Plan. During the Call for Sites, individuals, landowners and developers are asked to suggest areas of land which they think may be suitable for future development like new housing or space for businesses, depending on the county's needs.

Submitting land as part of the Call for Sites only places that land in front of Rutland County Council for consideration, ahead of formal public consultation. Submitting land for inclusion in the Call for Sites does not mean it will automatically become part of the Local Plan or receive planning permission.

Rutland's Call for Sites was issued on Friday 4 February and notification has been sent to all those on the Council's Local Plan mailing list. This will be followed by the 'Issues and Options' stage of Local Plan-making, which is due to take place in spring 2022.

This is critical to the development of the Local Plan and will outline the long-term strategic planning issues facing Rutland, such as housing, employment, services and facilities, climate change and carbon reduction, and impact on infrastructure.

An Issues and Options consultation will ask residents, businesses and other stakeholders whether they agree with the issues that have been identified and, importantly, which options provide the best solutions to those issues.

The process to develop a new Local Plan for Rutland that will cover the period up to 2041 is expected to take around four years.

More information about local corporate plans can be viewed here.

If you have any questions about the Call for Sites or would like any further information about the Local Plan process at this early stage, please visit the Rutland County Council website or email [email protected].

Alternatively, find out about the Council opening times and how you can get in touch both in person and over the phone here.