Mendip Local Plan Part II – Sites & Policies - adopted 2021 with revisions December 2022
Published: 27 July 2023
Somerset Council is commencing a limited update to the adopted Mendip Local Plan Part II (Sites and Policies) Plan. Mendip Council became part of the new Somerset Council on 1st April 2023. The Mendip Local Plan Parts I and II remain in force for the determining Planning applications former Mendip District area.
Following a statutory review (Judicial Review) judgement upheld on 16th December 2022, Mendip Council was subject to a High Court Order to strike out and re-consider five housing sites in the Part II Plan totalling just over 505 dwellings. This obligation has now passed to Somerset Council which has started work to re-assess these and alternative sites across the former Mendip District. The remaining sites and policies in the Mendip Local Plan Part II are not affected by this update.
An update to the Order was made on 14th July 2023 that sets dates by which consultation will take place on proposed housing sites and policies These are:
· A preferred options sites consultation by 31st December 2023 (Regulation 18);
· Publication of proposals by 31st March 2024 (Regulation 19); and
· Submission to the Planning Inspectorate for examination by 1st July 2024.
Somerset Council is currently inviting submissions of suitable sites or confirm/update existing available land already in its records for consideration. This will be used as evidence in the re-assessment. See Mendip Local Plan Part 2 - Call for sites - Somerset Council - Citizen Space. The deadline for this Mendip call for sites survey is Monday 4th September 2023.
The call for sites is only for housing sites in the former Mendip District area and capable of delivery within the Mendip Local Plan Period to 2029. The scope of the review is defined by the High Court and it is not considered the Council will be looking to allocate more than 505 dwellings in this exercise. Existing and application sites may also count towards the 505 total. No changes to the growth targets or the adopted spatial strategy are planned, and the review of site allocations will focus on the towns and primary/secondary villages identified in the Local Plan Part 1.
Information and updates on the site allocations review and legal background can be found online – see Adopted Local Plans (somerset.gov.uk) (select Mendip area) . If you have any further enquiries or questions, please use this email address planningpolicyeast@somerset.gov.uk.
This review is separate from Somerset Council bringing forward new a development plan for the unitary authority area. This will replace the adopted plans in the former districts. Details on the timescales for the Somerset wide plan will be published later this year.