Warwick District Council and Stratford-on-Avon District Council have agreed to work together on a new local plan for South Warwickshire. You can view Information on the preparation of the South Warwickshire Local Plan.

A number of policy documents are relevant in the decision making process for planning applications within Warwick district. The hierarchy of these policy documents, and their functions are summarised below.

Document Summary
National Planning Policy Framework The national policy framework set by government to guide local policy development and decision making.
Warwick district Local Plan 2011-2029 The Local Plan sets the development framework for the District. It sets out a series of strategic polices, allocates sites for development, and includes polices to guide the form of development.
Development Plan Documents Development Plan Documents focus on a particular topic or geographical area.  They are capable of allocating sites for development.
Neighbourhood Plans Neighbourhood Plans are designed by local communities, to guide development in their parish or other designated area. Once adopted (or substantially complete) these form part of the policy framework for the area. They can identify additional development sites (over and above that identified in the Local Plan) or can further guide particular aspects of development.
Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) SPDs can be used to provide further detail and guidance on policies in the Local Plan or other appropriate documents.

Other Planning Policy Functions

Function Description
Infrastructure Delivery Plan (IDP) The IDP is a live document. Its purpose is to identify infrastructure requirements arising from the Local Plan, and associated costs.
Monitoring The delivery of housing and employment development is monitored on an annual basis, allowing measurement of performance against the objectives of the Local Plan. Monitoring developer contributions by way of S106 and CIL is reported quarterly.
Self build register The self-build register allows individuals to identify that they have an interest in developing their own home. This forms part of the evidence designed to ensure that adequate self-build plots are brought forward.
Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) CIL evidence base and examination documentation for the charging schedule
Evidence Base The planning policy team is responsible for maintaining and developing an up-to-date evidence base to inform the drafting of emerging policy.
Brownfield Register A comprehensive list of previously developed sites which have potential to be developed for housing.

Local Development Scheme

The Local Development Scheme (LDS) sets out the Council's programme for updating and creating certain new planning policy documents, like the Local Plan. It identifies the main stages in their production and the opportunities for public involvement. It also lists all existing planning policy documents used by the Council to determine planning applications. 

The current Local Development Scheme was published in March 2024.

Contact us

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Reporting a breach

To find out what constitutes a breach and what the council can do, visit the report a potential breach page

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