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Following the Call for Candidate Sites and consultation on the Candidate Site Register, the next stage in preparation of the Replacement Local Development Plan (RLDP) is to prepare the Preferred Strategy. The Preferred Strategy is the first formal stage of the plan preparation and will set out the preferred level of housing and jobs growth for the RLDP and the spatial strategy to deliver this growth. It will also identify those strategic policies which will inform the preparation of a Deposit Plan.
The RLDP needs to be underpinned by a robust and up-to-date evidence base. To ensure that the Preferred Strategy is informed by the latest evidence and is ‘sound’, the Preferred Strategy consultation will be undertaken later than originally planned, and will now take place in November 2023. A revised Delivery Agreement, reflecting this amended timeline will be submitted to the Welsh Government shortly.
The Candidate Site Register consultation is now closed!
In spring 2022 we invited submissions from developers, landowners and the public for sites for new development, redevelopment or protection in the Replacement LDP.
These sites are known as ‘candidate sites’*. All candidate site submissions contributed to the ‘Candidate Site Register’, which was consulted on between 21st July 2022 to 22nd September 2022 and can be viewed here.
What happens next?
All sites will be assessed against the Candidate Site Assessment Methodology (view here) and filtered as per the guidance. Comments received from the informal Candidate Sites Register consultation will be used to inform Stage 2 of the detailed Candidate Sites Assessment and discussions with statutory consultees / key stakeholders.
Delivery Agreement for the Neath Port Talbot Council Replacement Local Development Plan (RLDP) (2021-2036) - has been agreed by Welsh Government
The Delivery Agreement (DA) is a statutory requirement of the Plan preparation process under Regulation 9 of the Town and Country Planning (Local Development Plan) (Wales) Regulations 2005 (as revised by the Local Development Plan (Wales) Amendment Regulations 2015), and must be approved by resolution of the Council and the Welsh Government (WG).
Following consultation, a Draft Delivery Agreement (DA) was approved by Council on the 22nd December 2021 for submission to the Welsh Government.
The Delivery Agreement was subsequently approved by Welsh Government on the 11th January 2022, to allow NPT Council to formally commence preparation of the Replacement Local Development Plan (RLDP). The DA sets out a 3.5 year process to anticipated adoption of an RLDP in July 2025, with a plan end date of 2036.
The Delivery Agreement's purpose is to set out:
- The Council’s RLDP preparation timetable outlining the various stages of plan preparation, when these will be undertaken and when engagement will take place;
- Details of the Community Involvement Scheme (CIS), detailing who will be involved in the RLDP preparation process and how and when participation and collaboration will occur; and
- The resources the Authority will invest in plan preparation.
Hard copies of the DA can be found in all the deposit locations:
- Neath Civic Centre, Neath, SA11 3QZ
- Port Talbot Civic Centre, Port Talbot, SA13 1PJ
- The Quays, Brunel Way, Baglan Energy Park, Neath, SA11 2GG
Now formally agreed, the DA commits the Council to producing the RLDP in accordance with the timetable and CIS. This forms part of the LDP tests of soundness, which will be examined by an independent Planning Inspector at an Examination in Public.
Formal preparation of the plan has now begun and we welcome NPT community involvement in making our County Borough a better place.
If you wish to register your interest and be kept informed of the Replacement LDP process, please contact the Planning Policy Team
Integrated Sustainability Appraisal (ISA) Scoping Report
The RLDP will also be subject to Sustainability Appraisal incorporating Strategic Environmental Assessment, alongside a number of other impact assessments. It is intended to combine these assessments within one Integrated Sustainability Appraisal (ISA).
The first stage in this process is the publication and agreement of the ISA Scoping Report, setting out the baseline situation within the county borough and the methodology that will be followed for the assessments.
View the Integrated Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report Non-Technical Summary