Councils’ future plan takes next step forward 

A plan for the future in South Oxfordshire and the Vale of White Horse has taken its big next step forward. 

The two district councils have been working together to produce a Joint Local Plan (JLP), which aims to help meet their local communities’ need for affordable housing, jobs and infrastructure while tackling the climate emergency. 

Following a series of successful public consultations, which produced strong and positive feedback, the plan has now been submitted to the Government for the examination stage. 

The Planning Inspectorate will examine the JLP and assess whether it has been prepared in accordance with legal and procedural requirements. 

At the end of the public examination, the Inspector will conclude whether or not the plan is sound. In most cases the Inspector’s report will recommend some changes that would allow the plan to be adopted. 

If successfully adopted, the plan would replace the existing Local Plans for both councils. 

In the new draft Joint Local Plan, the councils have shown that there are enough new homes in the pipeline already. This means that there is no need to build on any extra new greenfield sites over the next 15 years, beyond what has already been allocated. Only one area of expansion has been earmarked, which is on the brownfield land owned by the Ministry of Defence at Dalton Barracks near Abingdon. 

Crucially, the plan also sets out new firmer environment policies so that development is net zero carbon and delivers twice the national level of biodiversity net gain to help with the recovery of nature. 

Councillor Anne-Marie Simpson, South Oxfordshire District Council Cabinet Member for Planning, said: “A lot of hard work has been put into to getting to this stage and I’d like to thank our officers for their herculean efforts to produce a plan that really reflects our communities and safeguards our future. 

“I’d also like to thank the public for their feedback and support which were vital in producing this plan.” 

Councillor Andy Foulsham, Vale of White Horse District Council Cabinet Member for Policy and Programmes, added: “This plan is ground-breaking in its climate ambitions – maximising our commitment to biodiversity and providing the homes we need while protecting the green belt. 

“I look forward to hopefully adopting the plan as soon as we can.” 

More information on the examination process can be found on the our Joint Local Plan webpage.