Submission of the Local Plan 2037 - Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Local Plan?

A Local Plan sets out where new homes, workplaces and other developments should be built to meet the area's future needs, while conserving an area's most valuable environmental assets. The Local Plan provides policies and guidance on how planning applications are determined.

What will the Fareham Local Plan 2037 do?

The Fareham Local Plan 2037 covers the Borough of Fareham, excluding Welborne (which has its own plan) and will, when adopted:

• Provide the strategy for the use of land and buildings up to 2037
• Set out where future homes, employment areas and services such as shops and community facilities should be located
• Set out how the historic and natural environments should be conserved and enhanced
• Guide decisions on planning applications

Once formally adopted, the Fareham Local Plan 2037 will replace the policies in the current Local Plan Parts 1 and 2 and together with the Local Plan Part 3: The Welborne Plan, will form the development plan for the Borough.

When did you submit the Local Plan?

The Local Plan was submitted to the Planning Inspectorate on 30th September 2021.

What happens next?

After the Local Planning Authority (LPA) submits the plan to the Planning Inspectorate together with a complete, proportionate evidence base and the documents required by legislation, the Planning Inspectorate aims to appoint an Inspector within 3 weeks for plans containing strategic policies

In the initial weeks after the Inspector's appointment:

• The Inspector makes an initial assessment of the plan and makes contact with the Programme Officer (PO)
• The Inspector looks for any fundamental flaws in respect of soundness or legal compliance and may write to the LPA in the first instance if there are major concerns.
• The Inspector may write to the LPA with questions on other matters
• The Inspector determines the matters and issues for discussion at the hearings, and prepares the initial hearings timetable and a guidance note for participants.
• If the Inspector considers it necessary, the LPA (and other participants) are asked to submit information or statements on specific issues. These should not be submitted unless requested by the Inspector.
• The Inspector confirms the start date for the hearing sessions. The LPA must advertise the opening of a hearing at least 6 weeks in advance.
• The PO publishes the initial timetable for the hearing sessions, the matters and issues for discussion and the Inspector's Guidance Note.
• The LPA and other participants are allowed 2-3 weeks to prepare any statements or other information requested by the Inspector, and submit them to the PO.
• The PO checks that they have been received and placed on the examination website, so that all participants have access to them.
• The PO clarifies and confirms participants' attendance at the hearings.

Who is the Programme Officer and what is their role?

Kerry Trueman of Programme Officer Solutions Ltd has been appointed as Programme Officer. The role of the Programme Officer is to independently coordinate the administration of the examination and to liaise between the Planning Inspector, the Local Authority and the interested parties for the duration of the examination.  The Programme Officer should be contacted with any queries in relation to the examination, however, the Latest News webpage will be kept updated to assist.

Kerry is contracted by the Council for the purposes of this examination only. She is impartial and works under the Inspector's direction but uses a Council email address to securely exchange information.

The Programme Officer can be contacted as follows:

Kerry Trueman
Programme Officer Solutions Ltd
Email: programmeofficer@fareham.gov.uk
Phone: 07582 310364
Post: PO Box 229, Prenton CH26 9EY

What is the Examination in Public?

The purpose of the Examination is to determine whether the Inspector considers the submitted Plan to be "sound" in terms of national policy requirements, and compliant with the relevant legislation. The Examination process involves public hearings conducted by the Inspector, with relevant parties invited to attend to give oral evidence on a range of matters specified by the Inspector. The right to appear and be heard by the Inspector at a hearing session is limited to those persons who made a representation seeking a change to the plan within the deadline for one of the Regulation 19 consultation. The Inspector may invite any other person to attend a hearing session if, in the Inspector's view, their participation will assist in assessing the soundness of the plan. The Inspector has no power to summon a person to a hearing.

However, observers are permitted to attend the hearing sessions. At the hearings, the Inspector considers all evidence submitted in formal representations and hearing statements and given verbally at the hearings. We will have a timetable on our website in due course.  The hearings may take place in person or virtually, or a 'blended' mixture of the two.  

What is the role of the inspector?

The role of the appointed Inspector is to carry out an independent assessment of the overall soundness of the Local Plan and ensure that it satisfies the statutory requirements for its preparation.  In order to do so, the Inspector will assess the Local Plan, the evidence on which it was created, and all of the representations submitted during the Regulation 19 public consultations.

After the hearing sessions, the examination remains open until the Inspector has completed his or her report. 

Throughout the examination, the Inspector will explore the potential for Main Modifications to resolve any soundness and legal compliance issues he or she has identified. All proposed Main Modifications must be subject to public consultation and, where necessary, SA and HRA.  The Inspector will consider all the representations made on the proposed Main Modifications before finalising the examination report and the schedule of recommended Main Modifications.

The Inspector will produce his or her report which will normally contain the following sections: Summary: summarising the outcome of the examination and, where appropriate, the principal changes to the plan made by the Main Modifications and why these are necessary.

There are three possible outcomes to the examination:

• The Inspector finds that the plan is sound and legally compliant as submitted: in these circumstances the Inspector must recommend that the plan is adopted;
• The Inspector finds that the plan is unsound and/or legally non-compliant as submitted, but that it is possible to make it sound and legally compliant by making main modifications to it. In these circumstances the Inspector must recommend the necessary main modifications, if requested to do so by the LPA. The main modifications must relate directly to the reasons why the Inspector has found the plan unsound or legally non-compliant;
• The Inspector finds the plan unsound and/or legally non-compliant as submitted, and that it is not possible to make it sound and legally compliant by making main modifications to it. In these circumstances the Inspector must recommend non-adoption of the plan. In practice, the LPA would be asked to consider withdrawing the plan before any such recommendation was made.

How has the Local Plan been prepared?

he preparation of the Fareham Local Plan 2037 has been informed by:

• National policy and legislation
• Extensive evidence gathering and technical assessment
• Ongoing liaison with neighbouring authorities, statutory bodies and infrastructure providers
• Feedback gained through formal consultation

Three rounds of public consultation were undertaken in accordance with Regulation 18 of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 and the Localism Act 2011. These sought views and comments on:

• The Draft Local Plan in 2017
• Issues and Options in 2019
• The Local Plan 'Supplement' in early 2020

All consultations have been carried out in compliance with the Council's Statement of Community Involvement and a summary of comments and main findings for each of the consultation stages can be found on our website.

A public consultation on the Publication Local Plan took place in late 2020 in accordance with Regulation 19 of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 and the Localism Act 2011. This consultation sought views and comments on the Publication Local Plan 2037 specifically related to the three tests which will be considered by a Planning Inspector:

• Legal Compliance – does the plan meet the legal requirements for plan making as set out by planning and environmental laws?
• Soundness – has the plan been positively prepared, is it justified, effective, and consistent with national policy?
• Meeting the Duty to Cooperate – has the Council engaged and worked effectively with neighbouring authorities and statutory bodies?

A further Regulation 19 consultation took place between 18 June and 30 July 2021 on a Revised Publication Plan.  The consultation focussed on the changes that were made to the plan.  It is this plan that has been submitted to the Planning Inspectorate.

I submitted comments during the proceeding consultations. What was the outcome of those consultations, how have my comments been taken into account?

The Statement of Consultation (CD005) sets out the comments received during the previous consultation stages, and the Council's responses to them. It is available to view and download on the Council's website.  All comments made on the Regulation 18 consultations and the previous Regulation 19 consultation have been considered. Together with the latest evidence studies, with Government policy and guidance, these informed the preparation of the Revised Publication Plan.

The Council assessed the comments received during the Revised Publication Local Plan regulation 19 consultation to ensure the plan's soundness before submitting it for independent examination.  Representations received during both Regulation 19 consultations are sent to the Inspector to be considered as part of the Examination in Public.

How is my data managed?

The data protection privacy statement for the Regulation 19 Consultations can be viewed here (142 KB). The Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 requires that, when the Council submits the Local Plan and associated documents to the Secretary of State, for examination in public, the responses made to the consultation on the Local Plan must also be submitted. This includes the personal data collected, such as name, address and contact details. As data controllers, the Local Planning Authority and Inspectorate each retain responsibility for protecting the personal information they hold. This includes ensuring appropriate and proportionate organisational and technical measures are in place for the processing of personal information. The Planning Inspectorate's Privacy Notice can be viewed here.