Decision Details

1. Approved the Local Development Scheme (Appendix A of this report) and agrees to its publication, replacing the Council’s existing Local Development Scheme, and that this will take effect from Friday 14th March 2025.

2. Approved the content of the Interim Housing Position Statement (Appendix B of this report) and agreed that this is published.

3. Approved the content and conclusions of the Addendum to the Review Assessment of the East Suffolk Council – Waveney Local Plan (Appendix C of this report) and agreed that this was published.

4. Authorised future technical updates to the Interim Housing Position Statement to be undertaken by the Head of Planning and Building Building Control  in consultation with the Cabinet Member with responsibility for Planning and Coastal Management.

5. Authorised the Head of Planning and Building Control, in consultation with the Cabinet Member with responsibility for Planning and Coastal Management, to make any typographical or presentational changes to the Local Development Scheme, Interim Housing Position Statement and Addendum to the Review Assessment of the Waveney Local Plan, prior to their publication. 

The East Suffolk Local Development Scheme was last updated and published in March 2024, setting out an indicative timetable for preparation of the East Suffolk Local Plan, beginning in Spring/Summer 2025. On 12th December 2024, the Minister of State for Housing and Planning asked all local planning authorities to update their Local Development Schemes and to submit updated information on Local Plan timetables within 12 weeks (by 6th March 2025).

Also on 12th December 2024, revisions to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) were published, along with accompanying changes to Planning Practice Guidance. Of significance, is the change in the standard method for calculating housing need, which has been changed in the context of the Government’s aim to deliver 1.5 million new homes before the end of this parliament. The result is a significant increase in the housing need figure for East Suffolk (as well as many local authorities across the country).

 In the short term there were implications for housing land supply. Under the NPPF, where Local Planning Authorities are unable to demonstrate at least a five year supply of housing land, the ‘presumption in favour of sustainable development’ applies to decision making. This means that greater weight has to be given to housing delivery over some other considerations in decision making. The most recent Statement of Housing Land Supply was published in November 2024 and demonstrated a supply of 6.39 years in the Suffolk Coastal Local Plan area and 5.16 years in the Waveney Local Plan area. This has been revisited following the introduction of the revisions to the NPPF. In summary, in the Waveney Local Plan area supply has dropped below 5 years (3.33 years). In the Suffolk Coastal Local Plan area, the housing land supply position is expected to fall below five years once the Local Plan is over five years old from 23rd September 2025.

An Interim Housing Position Statement had therefore been prepared to set out the position on decision making for housing in the absence of a five year supply in the Waveney Local Plan area. This will be of relevance to planning application decision making in the District going forward.

 Accompanying this is a partial update to the 2024 Waveney Local Plan Review Assessment, reflecting the change in housing need figure.

 The update to the Local Development Scheme also reflected the increase in housing need figure. Given the housing land supply position outlined above, and therefore the heightened need to get a new Local Plan in place, whilst the detail of the new plan-making  system is still awaited the Local Development Scheme sets out a timetable to begin work from Spring 2025. It is anticipated that the Local Plan would be adopted in early 2029.  

Cabinet could have decided not to publish an updated Local Development Scheme. This would however fail to meet the expectations of the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, and would not set the basis for beginning the preparation of a new East Suffolk Local Plan.

Cabinet could have decided not to publish the Interim Housing Position Statement. However, as set out in the Risks section above, this would be a missed opportunity to provide clarity on the housing land supply position following the introduction of higher housing need figures. 

Cabinet could have decided not to publish the Addendum to the Waveney Local Plan Review Assessment, however this would not be reflective of paragraph 34 of the NPPF as described above.