Local Plan Timetable May 2026
Plan Mid Devon – Local Plan Timetable – May 2026
1. 0 Introduction
1.1 Mid Devon District Council is required to prepare a “local plan timetable” through Schedule 15B of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 and Schedule 7 of the Levelling Up, and Regeneration Act 2026. Part 2 Plan Timetables of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning)(England) Regulations 2026 also places further specific requirements for the form and content of a local plan timetable and when that timetable is revised.
2. 0 Matters which the local plan will deal with
2.1 The Council is preparing a new local plan which will be known as “Plan Mid Devon”.
2.2 The local plan will be a plan for the future development of the Council’s planning administrative area. The provisional period for the local plan will be from 2026 to 2046. It will contain a vision, objectives, spatial strategy and policies and proposals to achieve sustainable development through meeting the objectively assessed development and infrastructure needs of the area, protecting the natural and built environment and responding to climate change, and can show these on a map of proposed local plan policies. The local plan will be informed through evidence and technical studies, and will be subject to a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Equality Impact Assessment (EIA). The local plan will be capable of being used to inform planning applications for the development and use of land and buildings in Mid Devon that are submitted to the Council for determination and also the decisions made on these.
2.3 Once adopted, the new local plan will form part of the statutory development plan for the local plan area, together with the adopted Devon Minerals and Waste plans, a Spatial Development Strategy (once this has been prepared by a strategic planning authority and is operative) and neighbourhood plans in Mid Devon which have been approved at referendum and have been ‘made’ / adopted by the Mid Devon District Council. The new local plan will not contain minerals or waste planning policies but may show the extent of minerals consultation areas on its map of proposed local plan policies.
3.0 Geographical area to which the local plan relates
3.1 The new local plan (“Plan Mid Devon”) will cover the geographic area of Mid Devon district, excluding the part of the district that is situated with the boundary of the Dartmoor National Park.
4.0 Supplementary Plans
4.1 No supplementary plans are proposed at this stage. However, in the event the Council may choose to prepare a supplementary plan this will be reflected in a future update to this local plan timetable.
5.0 Design Code
5.1 The Council will rely on relevant national planning policy and the National Design Guide and National Model Design Code and their successors to achieve good design in development, but may set out locally specific design policies or standards in the local plan. The Council may consider a need to prepare supplementary plan for design, which will be reflected in a future update to this local plan timetable.
6.0 Joint Plans
6.1 The Council is not proposing to prepare a joint local plan, or joint supplementary plan with one or more other local planning authorities.
7.0 Timetable for the preparation of the local plan
7.1 The following Table 1 sets out the timetable for the preparation of the local plan. The timetable will also be published in a format that that meets the requirements of the Planning Data (England) Regulations 2026 and associated statutory guidance.
Table 1 timetable for the preparation of the local plan | |
Stage of plan preparation | Date |
Date on which the local planning authority will make their notice of intention to commence local plan preparation available | 26th May 2026 |
Date on which the local planning authority will make a notice of scoping consultation available | 26th May 2026 |
Date on or before which representations will have to be received by the local planning authority (scoping consultation) | 10th July 2026 |
Date on which the local planning authority will make their (gateway 1) self-assessment summary available | 19th October 2026 |
Date on which the local planning authority will make a notice of plan content and evidence consultation available | 22nd January 2027 |
Date on or before which representations will have to be received by the local planning authority (consultation on proposed local plan content and evidence) | 8th March 2027 |
Date on which observations and advice will be sought (gateway 2) | 1st November 2027 |
Date on which the local planning authority will make a notice of proposed local plan consultation available | 21st January 2028 |
Date on or before which representations will have to be received by the local planning authority (consultation on the proposed local plan) | 20th March 2028 |
Date on which observations and advice will be sought (gateway 3: prescribed requirements assessment) | 3rd July 2028 |
Date on which the local planning authority will submit their proposed local plan to the Secretary of State for independent examination | 4th September 2028 |
Date on which the local planning authority will consider adopting the proposed local plan | 1st April 2029 |
8.0 Statement that the timetable is to have effect
8.1 This local plan timetable is accompanied by a statement that the timetable is to have effect.
9.0 Keeping the local plan timetable up to date
9.1 The local plan timetable will be updated no later than one month from when it is first published, and each month thereafter. It will also be updated on the same day that a relevant plan preparation stage occurs (these include the three Gateway Assessments and other occurrences).
Mid Devon District Council