Stockport Local Development Scheme

Introduction

The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 requires councils to prepare and maintain a Local Development Scheme (LDS). The purpose of the LDS is to inform the public about the current planning policies for Stockport as well as to set out the programme for the preparation of the Local Plan.

When preparing new planning policies or policy documents, the council must do so in accordance with the timetable set out in its LDS so that stakeholders and the community are informed about when they can become involved in the production of planning documents, in particular, when there will be periods of consultation.

Effects of changes to planning at a national level

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act (LURA) gained Royal Assent on 26 October 2023 and introduces a new system for the preparation of Local Plans. The government has indicated that there will be transitional arrangements for the ongoing preparation of plans, with a deadline of the end of 2026 for plans to be submitted under the current (pre-LURA) system. The secondary legislation required to guide the preparation of plans under the new system is yet to be published.

Over recent years there have been multiple changes made to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) as successive governments have sought to impose their national agenda onto planning at a local level. Each time the nature of the amendments proposed has had significant implications for how several key planning issues are addressed in Stockport, causing uncertainty and, consequently, delay to local plan-making activity. Key elements of the plan which the council have had in draft form for several years have had to be revisited on multiple occasions to align with changing national policy. The latest NPPF has been published in December 2024 and the council considers that there is now at least adequate certainty to be able to produce this updated LDS. The council has consistently sought and been guided by legal advice to ensure that our processes are fully compliant and will continue to do so through the plan preparation process and to adoption of the plan.

You can read more about the scheme on the next pages. You can also download the scheme document: