Latest news

This is just a reminder that the Draft Local Plan Regulation 18 consultation is currently running and if you have not already done so you can read and comment on the Draft Plan, the Herefordshire Design Code and Sustainability Appraisal (SA) and Habitat Regulations Assessment (HRA) documents via Herefordshire Council Local Plan consultation pages or directly through Commonplace up until the 20th May.  

We have also designed a Young Persons Survey, as we want to get the views and opinions of the young people that live in the county. 

Consultation materials that have accompanied the consultation roadshows are also being displayed this weekend in the middle kiosk at Old Market in Hereford.  Here you will able to see maps and details of proposed allocations and policies.  Please note this is just a display and not a manned consultation event.

Draft Herefordshire Local Plan Regulation 18 Consultation 25 March to 20 May 2024

The Draft Local Plan Regulation 18 consultation is currently running and you can read and comment on the Draft Plan, the Herefordshire Design Code and Sustainability Appraisal (SA) and Habitat Regulations Assessment (HRA) documents via Herefordshire Council Local Plan consultation pages or directly through Commonplace up until the 20th May.  

We have also designed a Young Persons Survey, as we want to get the views and opinions of the young people that live in the county. 

Consultation Roadshows - NEW EVENING DATES ADDED

Two new evening consultation roadshow dates have been added to the original roadshow timetable following feedback:

Tuesday 30 April - Ross-on-Wye Library - 4pm to 7pm

Tuesday 7 May - Burgage Hall Ledbury (opposite the Prince of Wales Pub) - 4pm to 7pm

Today we are launching the (Regulation 18) consultation on the Draft Herefordshire Local Plan 2021 - 2041.  As you have previously singed up for updates you are therefore being notified of this consultation. 

The Herefordshire Draft Local Plan document sets out the planning framework for the county for the period to 2041 and covers issues such as housing provision, the economy, retail and town centres, infrastructure provision and the environment. It will also set out policies by which planning applications will be determined, in addition to allocation land for new housing and commercial development and associated infrastructure.

The consultation will run from the 25th March to the 20^th May. We invite you to read the consultation documents carefully and submit a response via the Commonplace website. 

To help illustrate the policies and to put them into context, an interactive map has been published alongside the draft plan which can be viewed on the Herefordshire Council Local Plan interactive map page and to accompany the plan.  There are also a number of other supporting documents available on our website. we are publishing four background papers on some of the strategic policy areas to provide further information on how the policies have been developed.

As part of the consultation, we are also asking local residents to provide feedback on the current design of the built environment in Hereford and the market towns and how this can be improved through a Herefordshire-wide design code.  Find out more about design codes here.

In addition to the information provided online, members of Herefordshire Council’s strategic planning team will be available to speak to in person at several locations across the county throughout late March and most of April. Further information of dates and locations for these events are available on the Local Plan web page.

If you have any questions concerning the consultation, please contact us at ldf@herefordshire.gov.uk.

Herefordshire Council is preparing both a Brownfield and an Employment Land Availability Assessment. The purpose of the former is to identify and assess land that is Brownfield and can support either residential or employment-based development.

The latter is seeking to identify land that can support specifically employment-based development, whether Brownfield or Greenfield. These taken together will provide important evidence of Brownfield land and Employment land availability in the county.

Please note at this time we will not be assessing any sites that are Greenfield and promoted for residential development. These submissions will not be processed.

In order to gather the necessary information to facilitate this, we are undertaking a call for sites exercise county-wide, for both previously assessed sites and newly available sites. Landowners, agents or developers who wish to promote land for development should fill in the call for sites form (https://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/callforsites) to the best of their knowledge. If promoting more than one site, please use separate forms for each.

The call for sites will be running for a 6 week period. From Monday 23rd of October to Monday 4th of December.

If you have submitted land in the previous 2020 and 2022 calls for sites- Please note that you do not need to submit any of the same sites again, unless you wish to change the proposed use to employment from residential. The sites received in 2020 and 2022 have been undergoing assessment but capacity issues have seen the planning team experiencing difficulties in obtaining the necessary expert input to complete these. The council apologises unreservedly for this and it is working to rectify the issue as soon as possible with a view to publishing the assessments in a single HELAA document.

Please note that the consultation period for the Agriculture planning supplementary planning document is being extended until the 24 February 2023 to allow people more time to comment.

Herefordshire Council is committed to improving the quality of the County’s rivers and this SPD is one of a number of projects and policies that is seeking to address this. Despite this being an important issue to Herefordshire, it is not possible to introduce new policy approaches in SPD but there is opportunity to do this as part of the emerging Local Plan 2021-2041 and this SDP will form a useful evidence base for future policy development.

All feedback during the consultation will be carefully considered, before the final draft is put forward for formal adoption by the council.

For more information on how you can take part in the consultation, please click here

If you have any questions, please contact ldf@herefordshire.gov.uk or telephone 01432 383637

Kind regards

Tyler

As many of you may be aware Herefordshire Council is currently consulting on a masterplan for Hereford. This document is separate from the Local Plan 2021-2041 but the ideas and aspirations will inform potential strategic options for Hereford both within the Local Plan 2021-2041 and the Local Transport Plan. As someone who has expressed an interest in previous consultations on the Local Plan 2021-2041, we have emailed you the details of the masterplan consultation below. Please send any comments on the masterplan via herefordshire.gov.uk/consultation

Shaping the future of Hereford - have your say

Hereford is a vibrant, attractive city, with a rich history and thriving local economy. But there are challenges to address for the city to continue to thrive in the future.

Herefordshire Council is developing a detailed masterplan for Hereford that celebrates the city’s character and provides a blueprint for making it an even better place to live, work in and visit in the future.

Herefordshire Council would like to hear your views

The Council is engaging with residents, businesses, and wider stakeholders as it shapes the emerging masterplan from Friday 2 December 2022 until Friday 3 February 2023.

• You can find out more and have your say by visiting: herefordshire.gov.uk/consultations

• Alternatively, visit the public exhibition showing the emerging masterplan proposals at Maylord Orchards Shopping Centre, Maylord Street, Hereford HR1 2DT. The exhibition runs from 2 December 2022 until 3 February 2023 during shopping centre opening hours: Monday – Saturday: 8am – 6pm, Sunday: 10.30am - 4.30pm

• Please note the exhibition will not be staffed. Comments cards will be available at each venue, with a Freepost address so there is no need for a stamp - or visitors can provide their comment online

The SPD includes the following:

a) An outline the issues that may arise in relation to agricultural development. It is important that we do this because it will help developers submitting proposals for agricultural developments to improve the quality of associated information that may be required to support the planning application and therefore assist the decision making process.

b) Provides a tool to determine the phosphate loading of a proposed development to inform the determination of planning applications within the River Wye Catchment. This is an innovative approach to include inform decision making.

At this time, the SPD is produced to supplement the policies of the adopted Core Strategy 2011-2031 and it can only apply to farming developments that require planning permission.

Herefordshire Council is committed to improving the quality of the County’s rivers and this SPD is one of a number of projects and policies that is seeking to address this. Despite this being an important issue to Herefordshire, it is not possible to introduce new policy approaches in SPD but there is opportunity to do this as part of the emerging Local Plan 2021-2041 and this SDP will form a useful evidence base for future policy development.

All feedback during the consultation will be carefully considered, before the final draft is put forward for formal adoption by the council.

For more information on how you can take part in the consultation, please click here

If you have any questions, please contact ldf@herefordshire.gov.uk or telephone 01432 383637

Kind regards

Tyler

In the new Local Plan, we need to include provision for new homes for Travellers and Travelling Show People. Our latest evidence tells us that we will need at least 35 pitches for Gypsies and Travellers, and 9 additional Travelling Show People plots. This is set in our latest Herefordshire Gypsy and Travellers Accommodation Assessment (GTAA). Therefore, we are keen to hear about any sites that could help meet this need. They can be new sites, extensions to existing sites or increases in the number of pitches/plots within existing sites.

If you have a site that you think might be suitable please visit the Call for Traveller Sites tile on the Hereford Local Plan Commonplace homepage. Here you can find information about what type of sites are suitable and also complete the call for sites form. Details of how to do this and what information we need are included on the form.

For any advice and help with this please contact a member of the planning policy team by telephone on 01432 383637 or by email at ldf@herefordshire.gov.uk and we will respond to you as soon as possible.

Confidentiality: Please note that we will not publish any of your personal details or say who sent the information in. We will not publish any information about your site suggestions until we have informed you of the results of our assessments. You have the right to withdraw your site from consideration at any time.

The Residents Survey on Open Spaces ends on the 9th September.

If you haven't already had your say, click here to start the survey and give your views about your local parks, playgrounds, sports pitches and other open spaces including wilder natural areas.

We are currently running a survey to collect the county’s residents’ views about their local parks, playgrounds, sports pitches and other open spaces including wilder natural areas.

There are two parts to the survey.

The first part gives you the opportunity to comment on our map to identify open spaces on the map provided. For each open space that you mark on the map please answer the questions 1-5. You can fill this out for as many open spaces as you would like.

The second part is a survey on open spaces and seeks your views on different aspects of open space. This could include if open spaces are accessible and meet your needs, are attractive and well kept or help you to connect with nature.

The deadline to submit responses is Friday 9th September 2022.

Please share the link to the survey with friends, neighbours and colleagues, and on social media.

If you have any questions about this survey or the Herefordshire Council’s work to update the local plan, please email us at ldf@herefordshire.gov.uk.

Herefordshire Council’s Forward Planning team are launching an online survey to collect the county’s residents’ views about their local parks, playgrounds, sports pitches and other open spaces including wilder natural areas.

There are two parts to the survey. The first part gives you the opportunity to identify open spaces on the map provided. For each open space that you mark on the map please answer the questions 1-5. You can fill this out for as many open spaces as you would like. The second part seeks your views on different aspects of open space such as whether open spaces are accessible and meet your needs, are attractive and well kept, and help you to connect with nature. These parts can be found on the tiles on the open space survey welcome page.

The deadline to submit responses is Friday 9th September 2022. Please share the link to the survey with friends, neighbours and colleagues, and on social media.

If you have any questions about this survey or the Herefordshire Council’s work to update the local plan, please email us at ldf@herefordshire.gov.uk.

The Place Shaping Options Consultation is now completed.

Thank you to everyone that contributed.

We have been consulting on the Local Plan 2021-2041 Place Shaping Options since Monday 13 June, and the consultaiton period comes to an end this Friday (29 July 2022).

The new Local Plan will determine growth and development in Herefordshire over the next 20 years. Place Shaping explores options on areas for new housing and employment across the county, and there is still time to have your say! If you need some guidance on how to complete the questionnaire click here for a quick how to guide.

Thank you to all those who have contributed to the consultation so far.

The Local Plan 2021-2041 Place Shaping Options Consultation is still live and runs until the 29th July. You can make comments on the plan via the ' Have Your Say ' tile on the Commonplace home page .

We are dedicated to supporting Town and Parish Councils and local community organisations in accessing the consultation material and making it as easy as possible to comment.

We understand there is a lot to read and think about in this consultation. However, we are doing everything we can to tackle climate change and reduce the amount of pre-printing the council undertakes. Planning nationally is moving to a more digital form but we understand that this transition is not always easy for of everyone and digital consultation methods will be more refined over time.

The challenge has been to articulate a complex planning context, constraints, issues and possible solutions to a wide audience that will span from no knowledge and interest in planning all the way through to technical experts.

Therefore, we have created a simple guide on how to use our new consultation system that can be found here: A quick guide on how to navigate the Herefordshire Local Plan Place Making Consultation . 

We received over 250 responses to questions asked during the Policy Options Consultation.

Thank you so much to all those who took part.

All the comments made have been considered during the next stage in the Local Plan preparation. There is a lot of information to digest so we have set out key findings in the Policy Options Consultation Results Document.

Tomorrow (8 July 2022) will be the final stops for the Local Plan 2021-2041 roadshow exhibition.

Officers will be at Kington Market Hall from 10am to Noon followed by Weobley Village Hall from 2pm to 4pm.

They will be there to answer questions and queries regarding the Place Shaping options and explain the consultation platform. There will be information boards for you to read at your leisure.

Thank you to everyone who has come to visit one of our roadshows so far and for the continuing interest in the emerging Local Plan.

The consultation period end on the 29 July 2022.

Over 320 people have visited the Local Plan Place Shaping Options exhibition so far.

On Thursday 7th July, the exhibition moves to Bromyard near the Town Council offices between 10am and noon and then to Bartestree Village Hall between 2pm and 4pm. These are drop in events so come along anytime between the advertised times.

Officers will be available to answer queries and explain the Place Based Options, there will also be information boards to read at your leisure.

Week 2 of the Local Plan 2021-2041 exhibition will begin with a visit to Ewyas Harold Memorial Hall from 2pm to 4pm tomorrow (4 July 2022).

Officers will be available to answer any queries and explain the Place base options. Information boards will be displayed to read at your own leisure.

Thank you to everyone who came to visit the roadshow and ask questions during Week 1, the team appreciate your interest in the emerging Local Plan.

This week's final destination for the Local Plan 2021-2041 exhibition roadshow will be Leominster Core Square from 10am to Noon and then Wigmore Community Hall from 2 to 4pm.

These are drop in events so come along anything between the advertised times.

Officers will be available to outline the Place Based Options, answer any queries and demonstrate the online consultation platform. Information boards will be displayed so you can read at your own leisure.

The roadshow will continue next week on Monday 4th July in Ewyas Harold from 2 to 4pm

The Local Plan 2021-2041 exhibition is coming to Ross-on-Wye market (10am to noon) and Lea Village Hall (2pm - 4pm) tomorrow (30 June).

Officers will be available to answer any questions, outline the Place Based options and demonstrate the CommonPlace consultation platform.

Information boards will also be display to read at your leisure. This is a drop in event to come anytime between the advertised times.

The Local Plan 2021-2041 exhibition will be in Hereford Hightown tomorrow (29 June 2022) from 10am to noon and then in Fownhope New Memorial Hall from 2pm to 4pm.

These are drop in event, so come along anytime between the advertised times.

Information boards will be available and officers will be on hand to answer questions, show you the CommonPlace consultation platform, explain the Place Based options.

The Local Plan 2021-2041 exhibition will be at Ledbury Market Hall tomorrow (28 June 2022) from 10am to noon and then in Bishops Frome Village Hall from 2pm to 4pm.

These are drop in event, so come along anytime between the advertised times.

Officers will be on hand to answer questions, show you the CommonPlace consultation platform, explain the Place Based options and there will also be information boards to read at your leisure.

The recordings of two online meetings which have take place as part of the Place Shaping Consultation are now available to view in the 'Document Library'

The PowerPoint presentation is also availalbe within the 'Document Library'

Starting later this month, there will be a series of events taking place to give people an opportunity to speak to members of the planning team face to face and find out more about Place Shaping.

More details about when and where can be found on the Events Tile .

For anyone unable to make it to one of the events, we will also be recording the meetings due to take place with Parish Council representatives and also Council Members. These will be available to view in our Document Library and a news alert will be sent out to let you know when they are there to view at your convenience.

With Warm regards from the Neighbourhood and Local Planning Teams

Place Shaping will run from Monday 13 June to Friday 29 July 2022

Place Shaping is the third public consultation to be undertaken in 2022, the results of which will help inform the preparation of a new local plan for Herefordshire.

The consultation sets out possible options and/or potential strategic development areas for Hereford, each of the County’s market towns together with a range of alternative settlement hierarchies for rural parts of Herefordshire.

We would love to hear your views on the options of potential areas for growth presented for each of the market towns and the rural areas. There is a tile for each to find out more. Please go to the questions tile to answer the questions once you've read the information.

There is also a chance for you to suggest areas we may not have thought of. Drop a pin and your comments on our interactive map .

If you are a landowner or agent wanting to submit information about a specific site, you have that opportunity on the Call for Sites page.

We look forward to hearing what you have to say

With warm regards from the Neighbourhood and Local Planning Teams

If you know of a potential traveller site, please let us know. We are keeping the call out open.

This is part of the Council’s commitment to fulfil the accommodation needs of Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Show people.

The proposed sites will be carefully looked at taking into account a number of criteria including its suitability as a residential site, highway access & impact on the local environment.

Please go to the Call for Traveller Sites section of the Local Plan website for more details.

If you know of a potential traveller site, please let us know. We are keeping the call out open.

This is part of the Council’s commitment to fulfil the accommodation needs of Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Show people.

The proposed sites will be carefully looked at taking into account a number of criteria including its suitability as a residential site, highway access & impact on the local environment.

Please go to the Call for Traveller Sites section of the Local Plan website for more details.

If you haven't yet given your views on the Local Plan Policy Options, you haven't missed your chance.

The consultation will run until Monday 16 May and we are keen to hear what you have to say.

The policies will cover a number of topics, including Transport, Climate Change, Housing and the Economy to name a few.

Go to the Policy Options page to find out more.

A massive thank you to those who have already taken the time to answer the survey, your views will help to shape the final Local Plan.

With best wishes from the Forward and Neighbourhood Planning Teams

We are asking people to suggest sites that they know about or own which they think may be suitable as a traveller site.

This is part of the Council’s commitment to fulfil the accommodation needs of Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Show people.

The proposed sites will be carefully looked at taking into account a number of criteria including its suitability as a residential site, highway access & impact on the local environment.

The deadline for submitting sites is Monday 16 May 2022. Please go to the Call for Traveller Sites section of the Local Plan website for more details.

We are are asking people who own or know about sites which they think may be suitable as a traveller site to answer our Call for Sites.

This is part of the Council’s commitment to fulfil the accommodation needs of Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Show people.

The proposed sites will be carefully looked at taking into account a number of criteria including its suitability as a residential site, highway access & impact on the local environment.

Information about new sites should be sent in by 16 May 2022.

We have now reached the stage where consideration needs to be given to any policies that are to be included in the Local Plan.

The policies will be key in determining planning applications and so it is important that this consultation provides the opportunity for everyone to have their say early in the process of plan making.

We would love to hear what you have to say.

The responses received during this consultation, together with a number of evidence base studies, will help form the draft Local Plan.

The consultation runs from 4 April 2022 until 16 May 2022.

Thank you for staying with us and giving your views as we continue through this process.

There is still time for you to have your say!

If you would like to take part in this consultation, view more information about the draft Environmental Building Standards document and let us know what you think by answering the questions there.

Whether you work in the house building industry or just feel strongly about the future of house design and all the considerations that go with it, including accessibility, energy use and the external environment, we want to hear from you.

A big thank you to those who have contributed so far, we really appreciate your input.

The closing date is Wednesday 13 April 2022.

With best wishes from the Herefordshire Council Forward and Neighbourhood Planning Teams

Consultation on the draft Environmental Building Standards Supplementary Planning Document (EBS SPD) runs for 6 weeks from 2 March to 13 April 2022. We welcome your views.

The document sets out best practice recommendations to help drive up building design and construction to the highest standards, in line with the council’s recognition of the climate and ecological emergency and our vision for a zero-carbon, nature-rich Herefordshire.

View m ore information about the document and take part in the survey

Around 3000 have visited the Spatial Options consultation so far and we are keen to continue to receive comments regarding the Options before the closing date on 28 February 2022.

Please have your say - https://hlp.commonplace.is/

Please continue to share our posts with others.

Best wishes,

from the Herefordshire Council Forward and Neighbourhood Planning Teams

Consultation closes on the 28 February 2022, still 7 days to make your views known.

Many of you have contributed and added your comments to the site. We want to take this opportunity to thank you for your participation, and kindly remind you to share the site with as many people you know locally, so everyone's viewpoint is taken into consideration.

Unfortunately, comments on social media cannot be included as part of the official consultation response. so if you have posted on Facebook or Twitter and would like your views to be considered, please add them via the survey tiles at https://hlp.commonplace.is/proposals/have-your-say-here/step1

All of the feedback from the consultation will be carefully analysed and considered to inform the next version of the Herefordshire Local Plan.

As the plan develops, we will get in touch with everyone who has shared their contact details and signed up to receive Local Plan updates, highlighting our emerging findings and sharing any relevant news.

Thank you again for contributing.

Best wishes,

from the Herefordshire Council Forward and Neighbourhood Planning Teams

Prior to the current consultation we asked parish and town councils to complete a questionnaire to ascertain their opinions on the current Core Strategy; the role of neighbourhood plans and the success or otherwise of the current rural settlement hierarchy.

52 parish/town councils let us know their views and these can be seen within the report added to the 'Document Library' today.

We would like to thank everyone involved for their continuing interest in planning policy formulation and helping to shape the forthcoming Local Plan 2021-2041.

Earlier this month, Herefordshire Council Members, Parish, Town and City Council Clerks and Councillors were invited to a presentation about the Spatial Options. It was a chance for attendees to ask questions and learn more.

The recordings of the meetings are now available to view, along with a summary of the questions asked and the Planning team's responses. They can be found in the Documents Library.

Thank you for your continued interest in the development of the Herefordshire Local Plan. We will continue to keep you updated with news.

If you haven't yet responded to the current Spatial Options consultation there is still time. The consultation will stay open until Monday 28 February.

Best wishes,

from the Herefordshire Council Forward and Neighbourhood Planning Teams

We launched the Local Plan Spatial Options consultation on Monday 17 January.

Since then, many of you have contributed and added your comments to the site. We want to take this opportunity to thank you for your participation, and kindly remind you to share the site with people you know locally, so everyone's viewpoint is taken into consideration.

Over the 6 weeks, we’ll be collecting and analysing your responses to identify your preferences on the options presented and the key areas and issues of concern for you.

Unfortunately, comments on social media cannot be included as part of the official consultation response. so if you have posted on Facebook or Twitter and would like your views to be considered, please add them via the survey tiles at https://hlp.commonplace.is/

All of the feedback from the consultation will be carefully analysed and considered to inform the next version of the Herefordshire Local Plan.

As the plan develops, we will get in touch with everyone who has shared their contact details and signed up to receive Local Plan updates, highlighting our emerging findings and sharing any relevant news.

Thank you again for contributing.

Best wishes,

from the Herefordshire Council Forward and Neighbourhood Planning Teams