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Local Plan update - frequently asked questions

Aerial image of town

The frequently asked questions cover the following topics:

  • the current Local Plan (see Questions 1 - 5)
  • the new Local Plan (see Questions 6 - 12)
  • changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (see Questions 13 - 18)

The current Local Plan

1. What is our current Local Plan made up of?

Our Local Plan is made up of two parts: The Local Plan: Strategy and Sites (LPSS) which was adopted in 2019 and the Local Plan: Development Management Policies (LPDMP) which was adopted in 2023.The LPSS serves as a framework for the future development and improvement of our community. It includes site allocations and policies that guide planning applications on development including housing, infrastructure, transportation, environment, and other aspects crucial to our well-being. Our LPSS sets out how we'll manage developments until 2034. An up-to-date Local Plan directly and indirectly contributes to achieving a range of the Council's strategic priorities across the areas of housing, jobs, environment and community. 

The LPDMP contains more detailed policies in relation to aspects such as design, heritage, biodiversity and climate change which help to guide decisions on planning applications.

2. Why does the existing Local Plan: Strategy and Sites (LPSS) need to be updated? 

We are required to review our Local Plan at least every five years to decide if an update to the Plan is required. The LPSS was reviewed shortly before its fifth anniversary with a decision taken by Council in February 2024 that an update was necessary. 

We identified a number of changes in circumstances which supported the decision to update the LPSS. These include: 

  • an increase in the level of local housing needed based on Government's standard method calculation 
  • changes in the economy over the past five years including: 
    - a change on shopping habits; more online shopping 
    - a change to employment patterns; more working from home 
    - a strong demand for storage space
    - a change in the residential property market, which is strongly influenced by interest rates and the cost of development 
  • slower progress toward delivery of several strategic sites than anticipated 
  • changes in planned delivery of supporting infrastructure such as the Guildford A3 scheme

To be effective and deliver the right results, Local Plans need to be kept up-to-date. Having an up-to-date Plan helps us to resist speculative, unplanned development that may not be accompanied by the necessary supporting infrastructure due to the piecemeal way in which it comes forward. We also have a legal duty to maintain an up-to-date Local Plan.

3. Will the process of developing a new Local Plan mean the policies in our existing Local Plan: Strategies and Sites (2019) are now no longer useful or redundant? 

No. The existing Local Plan is not redundant. It remains the primary consideration in determining planning applications in the borough until it is replaced by a new Local Plan, although changes in National Policy since its adoption also need to be taken into account. See Question 18.

4. Is the housing requirement in our existing Local Plan: Strategies and Sites (2019) now out-of-date?

Yes. As the Local Plan: Strategy and Sites (LPSS) plan is older than five years old, the housing requirement in the plan is no longer used as a basis to understand whether we have enough sites coming forward in the next five years to meet our need - known as our 'five-year housing land supply' (see Question 5). Instead, we need to use the Government's standard method for calculating local housing need.  

The LPSS included a need for 562 new homes a year. This figure was reached using the methodology previously set out in national policy. Government policy has since changed, and we now need to follow the standard method. This is based on a much simpler calculation using readily available Office for National Statistics data and no longer considers population projection figures as an input. The aim is to increase the number of homes planned for across the country as well as reduce the time it takes to debate local housing need when examining Local Plans. Our local housing need using the Government's standard method is 1,168 homes per year.

The standard method for calculating local housing need uses a percentage uplift on building stock as the starting point with a further uplift based on affordability data. This means that areas which are least affordable have a greater local housing need figure.

5. Do we have a five-year supply of housing?

No. Since the housing requirement figure used to calculate this increased from 562 homes per year to 1,168 homes per year, we no longer have a five-year supply of housing. The latest published figure from 1 April 2025 is 2.98 years. This is available to view here. Not having a five-year housing land supply makes it much more difficult to resist speculative development. See Question 15.

The new Local Plan

6. What will the difference be between our existing Local Plan and a new one? 

We are at an early stage of preparing our new Local Plan, so we are not yet sure what it will look like. We do know that it will be a single Local Plan that will replace both parts of the current Local Plan. We are considering the changes in circumstances outlined in Question 2 and have begun preparing the necessary evidence that we will need to support the new Local Plan.

We will also need to prepare the new Local Plan under the Government's new Plan-making system. Whilst some detail has been published in relation to this, we are still awaiting the Regulations which will specify exactly how the plan will need to be prepared. We expect these to be made available in early 2026. The new Local Plan will also need to be prepared in accordance with the new National Planning Policy Framework - see Question 16.

7. What do we know about the new Plan-making system?

The aim of the new system is to try to speed up the process of Plan-making and ensure that it is more regularly updated so that councils always have an up-to-date Local Plan. The new system introduces an expectation that we produce a single Local Plan (which would replace both the Local Plan: Strategy and Sites and the Local Plan: Development Management Policies) within a 30-month period. This link provides an overview of the new process (opens new window).

We also know that the new Regulations, once published in early 2026, will specify a sequence of tasks that will be required to produce a new Local Plan. This link sets these out (opens new window).

8. What work needs to be carried out to prepare the new Local Plan? 

There is a lot of work to be done before a new Local Plan is adopted. The key steps that we will be carrying out under the new system are: 

  • evidence gathering (we are currently at this stage)
  • publish a new timetable and give at least 4-months' notice of our intention to commence with preparing a new Local Plan
  • run a first phase of formal public engagement on a scoping consultation when we will seek views on how we will engage with residents and other interested parties throughout the plan-making process and what the plan should contain
  • prepare a draft version of the Local Plan
  • run a second phase of 6-week public consultation when residents and other interested parties will be able to view the draft Local Plan and have their say
  • drafting a final version of the Local Plan that will be submitted to the Secretary of State
  • run a further phase of 8-week public consultation
  • if no major changes are needed, finalising and submitting that plan to the Secretary of State for examination in public by an independent planning inspector
  • hearing sessions
  • consultation on any main modifications to the Local Plan required by the Planning Inspector
  • receive the inspector's report with final recommendations
  • adoption of the Local Plan by the Council

9. How long will it take to prepare the new Local Plan?

The most recent timetable is set out as part of the Council's Local Development Scheme (LDS). This was adopted by Executive on 27 February 2025. This timetable was produced using the existing Plan-making process. It will therefore need to be updated once the new Plan-making Regulations are published. The new timetable will be published at the same time as we give notice of our intention to commence Plan-making (a requirement under the new system). See Questions 7 and 8.

10. Will I get a chance to have my say on the new Local Plan? 

Yes, and on more than one occasion. Once the Government publish the Regulations regarding how 'new style' Local Plans are to be prepared we will be able to plan and publish our new timetable. This timetable will indicate when we expect to undertake public consultations on the new Local Plan. The first formal consultation called the Scoping Consultation will also set out in more detail how we will engage with residents and other stakeholders throughout the plan-making process. Further information regarding the consultation stages is in the answer to Question 8.

We will contact everyone on our consultation database to let them know when the consultation period is open. We will also engage with the media and other interested parties such as parish councils.

You can register to take receive notifications regarding our Local Plan and Policy consultations (opens new window). Alternatively, please email PlanningPolicy@guildford.gov.uk to be added to our mailing list.

11. How much will the new Local Plan cost? 

Additional budget, including a reserve of £500,000, to support the new Local Plan has been approved and included in the budget report published by the Council in February 2025.

12. What impact does Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) have on the new Local Plan?

LGR means that on 1 April 2027 a new West Surrey unitary council will replace the territory currently covered by Guildford, Waverley, Runnymede, Spelthorne, Surrey Heath and Woking councils. The new Local Plan will still be underway at that time. In spite of this, Government has stated that they expect councils to progress promptly with preparing new Local Plans and that LGR should not be used as a reason to delay this. The current expectation is that the new Local Plan will cover the same geography as Guildford Borough Council. In the future it is likely that a Local Plan would be prepared across a larger area.

Changes to the National Planning Policy Framework

13. What is the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)?

The NPPF sets out the Government's planning policies for England and how these should be applied. We need to take the policies in the NPPF into account when preparing Local Plans and making decisions on planning applications.

14. What major changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) have already been introduced?

The most recent update to the NPPF was published in December 2024. This introduced the new concept of 'grey belt'. Grey belt is defined as Green Belt land that does not strongly contribute to 3 of the 5 stated Green Belt purposes in NPPF paragraph 143. These are:

  • Purpose a: to check the unrestricted sprawl of large built-up areas;
  • Purpose b: to prevent neighbouring towns merging into one another; and
  • Purpose d: to preserve the setting and special character of historic towns.

It can be previously developed land or greenfield land. It excludes land in certain areas where national planning policy provides a strong reason for refusing or restricting development (e.g. Sites of Special Scientific Interest or areas at high risk of flooding).

Green Belt is a very restrictive designation, and development is generally considered to be 'inappropriate' unless it meets one of the NPPF's exceptions (see NPPF paragraph 154). Grey belt was introduced so that some land which would normally have been considered inappropriate is now considered appropriate in certain circumstances and could come forward for development.

15. Does that mean that all land that is 'grey belt' can now be developed?

No, being grey belt is just one of a number of criteria that a site needs to meet in order to be considered appropriate for development in the Green Belt. The other criteria are that there is a proven need for that type of development, it is in a sustainable location, and it meets the 'golden rules' (see NPPF paragraph 155). The current lack of a five-year housing land supply (see Question 5) means that there is a proven need for housing. One of the golden rules is that the sites provide 50% rather than the usual 40% affordable housing.

16. Will the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) be updated again?

Yes. The Government published an updated draft NPPF in December 2025 for consultation. It is a significant change to the previous NPPF in both structure and content. Consultation closes on 10 March 2026. The Government will consider all responses made as part of the consultation before publishing a final version later this year. Once finalised, the new NPPF will need to be used when preparing the new Local Plan and in all decisions that we make on planning applications.

17. How would the proposed changes in the draft National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) impact the new Local Plan?

One of the key changes proposed in the draft NPPF is to split out the plan-making policies and decision-making policies. In doing so, the Government has created a comprehensive and detailed set of decision-making policies that cover many of the policy areas that our Local Plan does - in particular the Local Plan: Development Management Policies. The aim is to create a consistent approach across the country and remove the need for individual Local Plans to repeat these generic policies. This is intended to help to speed up the plan-making process as new Local Plans will only be able to include locally specific policies and site allocations. The draft NPPF states that new Local Plans must not repeat or modify the national decision-making policies.

18. What impact will this have on the existing policies in our Local Plan?

It is still a draft NPPF so at the moment it does not have any impact on our Local Plan policies or decisions on planning applications. However, once it is finalised it will be become a material consideration when deciding planning applications. The draft NPPF states that any existing Local Plan policies which are in any way inconsistent with the national decision-making policies should be given very limited weight. This is likely to mean that some of our existing policies will no longer be able to be used as they currently are.