Proposed changes to Chelmsford Local Development Scheme

Chelmsford City Council is considering an update to its Local Development Scheme, a document which sets out the overall process and timetable for preparing its Local Plan.

A number of factors outside the council’s control require a change to the timetable. In particular, Government changes to the way local housing need is calculated, and the implications of the Government cancelling the A12 (Chelmsford to Marks Tey) widening scheme.

In order to respond to these challenges, the council undertook an assessment of how quickly some strategic sites in the Local Plan can be ready for development. This work revealed that the target for homes that must be built within the next five years cannot currently be met. The council must address this before the revised Local Plan can be submitted to the Planning Inspectorate for formal examination.

Responding to changes to the National Planning Policy Framework

To help ensure a steady supply of new homes, the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) requires councils to demonstrate a pipeline of development sites that can provide five years’ worth of housing for their area. The amount of new housing each council must provide each year is calculated using the Government’s standard method formula, revised earlier this year.

The Government’s new standard method, which was implemented when Chelmsford’s Local Plan became five years old in May this year, has seen the district’s target number of new homes increase by 79% to 1,437 dwellings per year from when the Local Plan was adopted in 2020. The Government argues this is necessary to address the worsening housing crisis, where over 540 Chelmsford families are homeless. 

With more homes needing to be built, assessments of the council’s housing land supply took place in August. This work indicated that some sites are moving more slowly than anticipated, others have seen changes to their allocations and some are no longer viable. These changes mean there won’t be sufficient sites ready in the short term to meet the increased five-year housing supply required by the NPPF and the council will need to address this before submitting the revised Local Plan to the Government. 

Councillor Rose Moore, Cabinet Member for a Greener Chelmsford, said:

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“Several changes in planning policy and the housebuilding market have led us to this pinch point, where the demand for housing and development sites is increasing more quickly than supply. With our Local Plan in the final stages of review, it’s important we assess the situation and take decisive action.
Our Local Plan will guide development to 2041 and is shaped with the realities of the housing crisis and need for sustainable communities in mind. We remain committed to a path that balances urgent housing needs with the protection of our shared spaces, towards a fairer, greener future for everyone”

Cllr Rose Moore, Cabinet Member for a Greener Chelmsford

Preparing for the next steps

To ensure the Local Plan can continue to progress smoothly, the council is proposing a review of development sites which can be added to the five-year land supply. This could include sites which may be ready sooner than anticipated, changes to existing sites or new sites coming forward. The focus is on small to medium sized sites as these are more likely to be developed within 5 years.  

The council will also continue discussions to try to mitigate the cancellation of the widening of the A12 from Chelmsford to the A120 by the Government in July. The decision to cancel the proposed works, which included significant improvements to Junction 19 (Boreham Interchange), has impacted the availability of development land included in the Local Plan. Talks with National Highways and Homes England to explore smaller-scale options that could help unlock the land for development to continue.

To support this work, the current Local Development Scheme (LDS) will be updated. This document is the council’s timetable for preparing and revising documents relating to the development and use of land in the district, including the Local Plan. An additional Regulation 19 consultation will also be added to the LDS so the public can give their feedback on the proposed changes to the Local Plan that will result from the review of development sites. 

Find out more about the proposals

Papers submitted to the Chelmsford Policy Board regarding the proposed changes can be read on the Chelmsford City Council website.

You can also register on the council’s Planning Policy Consultation Portal to be notified about future planning policy consultations. Once registered, you can sign up for alerts to future consultations of the Local Plan, read and save consultation documents and make comments online.