Local Development Scheme

Local Development Scheme 2025 to 2028

Contents

1. Introduction
2. Local development documents
3. Other parts of the statutory development plan
4. Wider council priorities
5. Adopted plans
6. Headline plan programme 2025 to 2028
7. Neighbourhood plans
8. Supplementary Planning Documents
9. Risk assessment
10. Development plan in production
11. Other plan documents
12. Monitoring and review
13. Glossary of terms
14. Risk assessment

1 Introduction

1.1 The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act (2004) and national planning policy place Local Plans at the heart of the planning system. They set out a vision and a framework for the future development of an area, addressing needs and opportunities in relation to housing, the economy, community facilities and infrastructure – as well as mitigating and adapting to climate change, safeguarding the environment, securing good design, mining activities, and dealing with waste. They also help guide decisions about individual development proposals, as Local Plans (together with any neighbourhood plans that have been made) form the Development Plan for Leeds and are the starting-point for considering whether applications can be

1.2 National planning policy sets clear expectations as to how a Local Plan must be developed in order to be justified, effective, consistent with national policy and positively prepared to deliver sustainable development that meets local needs and national priorities.

1.3 It is also important that they are based on up to date and proportionate evidence and are kept up to date to respond to changing circumstances. Under regulation 10A of The Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 (as amended) local planning authorities must review local plans, and Statements of Community Involvement at least once every 5 years from their adoption date to ensure that policies remain relevant and effectively address the needs of the local community.

1.4 A Local Development Scheme (LDS) is required under section 15 of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 (as amended by the Localism Act 2011). This must specify (among other matters) the documents which, when prepared, will comprise the Local Plan for the area.

1.5 This LDS is the first point of contact for anyone wishing to find out about which planning policy documents apply to Leeds, and their status. The plan making process is complicated and can be forbidding to non-planners. To that end, this LDS clearly sets out progress on the Local Plan alongside details of a wider set of documents and evidence base documents so that local communities and interested parties can keep track of progress and wider plan making context. An up to date Statement of Community Involvement clarifies how citizens engage with planning and how planning engages with citizens of Leeds (see below).

1.6 The LDS sets out a three-year rolling programme on the timetable for preparing and reviewing documents alongside other non-statutory If monitoring of the Local Plan indicates the need to further adjust the LDS timetable or if there is a need to revise and/or prepare new planning documents in response to national planning policy or local circumstances, this will be announced on the council’s web site and the LDS will be adjusted accordingly.

1.7 The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 requires that local authorities establish policies relating to the development and use of land in their area in Local Development Documents. Local Development Documents (LDD) include Development Plan Documents (which form part of the statutory development plan) and Supplementary Planning Documents (which do not form part of the statutory development plan). LDDs collectively deliver the spatial planning strategy for the local planning authority's area.

1.8 All DPDs are subject to rigorous procedures of community involvement, consultation and independent examination, and adopted after receipt of an inspector's binding report. Once adopted, development management decisions must be made in accordance with them (and any other policies forming part of the development plan) unless material considerations indicate

2 Local Development Documents

2.1 Local Development Documents collectively deliver the spatial planning strategy of the area and include the following documents:

Development Plan Documents

2.2 The Local Plan in Leeds is not a single ‘plan’ but the name given to a portfolio of documents. This approach allows greater flexibility to respond to changing circumstances, address local issues, strengthen community and stakeholder involvement in the planning process and achieve economic, environmental and social objectives, through the use of Sustainability Appraisals.

Supplementary Planning Documents

2.3 Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) are also Local Development Documents, do not form part of the statutory development plan, but do provide supplementary advice and guidance, which are material considerations in the determination of a planning SPDs are not subject to independent examination; however, they are subject to community consultation procedures.

Statement of Community Involvement

2.4  The SCI sets out the processes by which the community will be engaged in consultation on each type of document and at every stage of its The SCI also sets out how the community can engage in the consideration of major development management decisions. A full review of the SCI including public engagement was undertaken over March - April 2022. The SCI was formally adopted 8^th November 2022.

3 Other parts of the statutory Development Plan

Neighbourhood Plans

3.1 These offer local communities (via a Neighbourhood Forum or Parish/Town Council) the opportunity to prepare locally specific policies in general conformity with the strategic policies of the Local Plan. A neighbourhood plan attains the same legal status as the Local Plan once it has been approved at a referendum and before it is ‘made’ by the local planning authority (i.e. brought into legal force following an independent examination).

4 Wider council priorities

4.1 The Local Development Plan sits alongside other Council plans and programmes as well as those of the City Region and the West Yorkshire Combined Authority.

4.2 Critically the Local Development Plan is a means of translating the Council’s 3 Pillars on the ground:

• Health and Well-being – through policies including the design of places, quality of housing and accessibility
• Zero Carbon– through policies including the design of places, the location of development, accessibility to public transport, use of brownfield land, energy generation and energy efficiency of buildings.
• Inclusive Growth Strategy – through policies including the links between homes and jobs, the location of development, green infrastructure and connectivity

5. Adopted Plans

The Leeds Local Plan

5.1 The Leeds Local Plan establishes the land use and spatial planning framework for the City’s development. The current Leeds Local Plan is a set of five Development Plan Documents (DPDs) and Neighbourhood Plans. The policies map shows some of these policies on an OS map base.

Core Strategy (2014) (amended by selective review 2019)

Site Allocations Plan 2019 (as amended 2024)

Aire Valley Leeds Area Action Plan (2017)

Natural Resources and Waste Plan (2013)

Saved policies of the Unitary Development Plan (Review 2006)

Made Neighbourhood Plans

Policies Map

6 Headline Plan Programme

6.1 The Local Plan is kept up to date by reviewing the policies within it to see if they need to be updated. A number of drivers may mean policies need to be updated, including: a change in national policy, different priorities for plans or monitoring of existing policies. A review of existing policies is undertaken every 5 years from the adoption of each document. The first formal review was undertaken in early 2020 in consultation with Development Plan Panel in July 2020. 

6.2 At the time it was envisaged that due to the pressing need for policies on low carbon, the Local Plan would be split into two DPDs. This was the case until January 2025 when the advanced pre-submission document “Your City, Your Neighborhood, Your Planet” was withdrawn (in accordance with Section 22 of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase (2004)) and its objectives incorporated with the wider Leeds Local Plan.

Plans in Preparation

• Leeds Local Plan (2022-2042) - covering areas Spatial Strategy, Housing, Economic, Development, Role of Centres, Minerals and Waste, Transport and Connectivity and Development Management Policies. (Policies from Local Plan Update (“Your City, Your Neighbourhood, Your Planet”) to be incorporated, the topics to consider are Carbon reduction and energy, green and blue infrastructure, sustainable infrastructure, flood risk and placemaking). See Section 10.
• Neighbourhood Plans - (see Section 7 below which lists progress on Neighbourhood Plans)

Review Policies in Adopted Plans (see Section 10 for more detail)

The Adopted SAP sets two review policies within it.

• SAP Review for allocations for Gypsies and Travellers up to 2028 – this will be guided by Policy HGR2, which seeks to ensure that sufficient land for Gypsies and Travellers is provided by requiring a review of sites should the quantum of sites provided through planning applications be less than 13 as at 31st March 2023. 

A review of this policy was carried out in 2024 and concluded that on the basis of up to date evidence that this objective needs to form part of the scope for the Leeds Local Plan (2022-2042).

• SAP Review for Housing Allocations up to 2028 – this will be guided by SAP Policy HGR1 which seeks to ensure that sufficient land is allocated and safeguarded land designated within the SAP (to 2028) to comply with Core Strategy Selective Review housing requirements, which were Adopted after the SAP.

A review of this policy was carried out in 2024 and concluded that on the basis of up to date evidence on housing land supply, recently compiled and considered as part of the Site Allocations Plan Remittal process demonstrated that sufficient land is allocated until 2028, which fulfills the requirements of policy HGR1 and enables the Council to conclude that having reviewed the Site Allocations Plan there is no need to update it.

The Site Allocations Plan does not need to be updated because:

• sufficient land is identified to meet the Core Strategy Selective Review targets up to 2028 – as required by HGR1.
• there is sufficient safeguarded land in line with the Core Strategy Selective Review – as required by HGR1.
• Confirmation in the position that SAP Policy HGR1 has been completed following the process of the SAP remittal and the subsequent adoption of Site Allocations Plan (as amended) in January 2024

Withdrawal of Local Plan Update (“Your City, Your Neighbourhood, Your Planet”) DPD

The council has ceased the preparation of Local Plan Update (“Your City, Your Neighbourhood, Your Planet”) DPD and withdrawn it with an intent to incorporate its objectives within the Leeds Local Plan. The DPD reached publication draft Regulation 19 stage in November 2023. Following the Written Ministerial Statement of November 2023, coupled with revised viability assessment work which raised question around soundness of some of the proposed policies. It is also the view of the Council that due to the passage of time the continued preparation of at DPD will now be too close to the further Local Plan DPD the Council is preparing and have potential to cause confusion.

7 Neighbourhood Plans

7.1 Neighbourhood planning gives local people direct power to develop a shared vision for their neighbourhood and shape the development and growth of their local area. Following the introduction of the Localism Act 2011 there has been a high level of interest in neighbourhood planning activities in Leeds. 

7.2 As of March 2025, there were 22 ‘made’ (adopted) Neighbourhood Plans in Leeds. The number of forums which are progressing neighbourhood plans is 15. It is difficult to ascertain the speed at which individual Neighbourhood Plans will progress. The Council's Neighbourhood Plans and engagement team, provides technical advice and support on preparing Neighbourhood Plans. Additional guidance notes and progress for each Neighbourhood Plan is available on the council’s website.

8 Supplementary Planning Documents

8.1 Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) are not part of the Local Plan but are a material consideration which carry weight when the Council makes decisions on planning applications. SPDs build and expand on existing policies in the development plan. A list of adopted SPDs can be found on the Council’s website.

8.2 The position with the following SPDs is:

• Tall Buildings SPD – The original Tall Buildings Design Guide SPD was adopted in 2010 and remains extant. Consultation on a draft replacement and an associated draft Wind Microclimate Toolkit took place in July and September 2019. The revised guidance generated numerous detailed comments suggesting a significant degree of re-working or rebuttal. This, combined with the impact of the pandemic meant that the process was paused. Upon re-visiting the document it is apparent that the context has significantly changed i.e. recent proposals for the planning system and the place of SPDs within it, the national model design code and a future city-wide design code for Leeds. By contrast, the Wind Microclimate Toolkit is valuable in providing a consistent methodology and standard of detail for assessing microclimatic impact. It is easy to apply and has proved popular with agents, developers and officers. The Draft Wind Microclimate Toolkit is therefore endorsed and published on the website as technical guidance under the delegated authority of the Chief Planning Officer. This is paused due to limited resources and its continuation as SPD will be considered as part of the emerging Leeds Local Plan.
• Housing Standards for Purpose Built Student Accommodation and Homes in Multiple Occupation (supporting policy H10 Minimum Space Standards of the Core Strategy) – initial consultation completed in Spring 2021. Pre-adoption consultation to follow in Spring/Summer 2023. This is paused due to limited resources and its continuation as SPD will be considered as part of the emerging Leeds Local Plan.

9 Risk Assessment

9.1 The preparation of the Local Development Plan allows for a flexible approach to the preparation of a range of planning documents. The Schedule of LDDs identified in this LDS, covers a range of work, which in part reflects the complex spatial planning issues in Leeds. In managing this programme of work, an analysis of risks has been undertaken, together with the measures to manage them.

10 Development plan in production

Title	Leeds Local Plan (2022-2042)
Status	Development Plan Document
Role and content referred to	The Local Plan will be scoped in consultation with Development Plan Panel and may include matters such as: the housing requirement and allocations (for beyond 2028), affordable housing (inc. First Homes), employment land requirements and allocations (for beyond 2028), town and local centres, requirements for and allocations for Gypsies and Travellers and Travelling Show persons (for beyond 2028 - Policy HGR2 of the Leeds Site Allocations Plan), minerals and waste, Transport and Connectivity. Carbon reduction and energy, green and blue infrastructure, sustainable infrastructure, flood risk and placemaking.
Geographical area	The Leeds Metropolitan District

Production Timetable for Leeds Local Plan Document (2022-2024)

Scope (Evidence gathering)	Feb-23
Reg 18 Consultation Issues and Options	Jun-25
Reg 19 Consultation Draft Plan	Summer 2026
Submission	Dec-26
Examination	Spring/Summer 2027 (Subject to PINS timetable)
Adoption	Winter 2027 / Spring 2028 (depending on timescale of EIP)

11 Other Plan Documents

Conservation Area Appraisal Statements - Conservation Areas are protected areas of special architectural or historic interest. They are designated by the council and protect the character and appearance of a whole area, not just its buildings.

Neighbourhood and village design statements - sets out design guidelines to show how the local character of the village can be protected and enhanced within new developments

Supplementary Planning Guidance - Supplementary Planning Guidance (SPG) is non-statutory guidance which supplies supporting information in respect of policies in a current or emerging local plan or national policy.

12 Monitoring and Review

The Local Development Scheme will be monitored on an annual basis from 1st April to the 31st March as part of the Authority Monitoring Report. The Authority Monitoring Report can be viewed on the Council’s website

Glossary of Terms

Area Action Plan (AAP)	These plans are DPDs and focus upon allocation and implementation, providing an important mechanism for ensuring development of an appropriate, scale, mix and quality for key areas of opportunity, change or conservation.
Authority Monitoring Report (AMR)	Authorities are required to produce AMRs to assess the implementation of LDS and the extent to which policies in LDDs are being achieved.
Development Plan Document (DPD)	The Documents that together comprise the Local Plan. A local planning authority must prepare, and which have to be subject to rigorous procedures of community involvement, consultation and independent examination. Should include the following elements: Core strategy Site specific allocations of land Area Action Plans (where needed)
Local Plan	The Local Plan will contain a portfolio of DPDs, which will provide the local planning authority’s policies for meeting the community’s economic, environmental and social aims for the future of their area where this affects the development of land.
Local Development Document (LDD)	LDDs will compromise of DPDs, SPDs and SCI related to these are the SEA/SA, AMR and the Policies Map.
Local Development Scheme (LDS)	The LDS sets out the programme for preparing the LDDs and identifies which of those will be prepared as DPDs.
National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)	Government statement of National Planning Policy, and extant Planning Policy Statements.
Neighbourhood Plan	Prepared by Parish/Town Councils or Neighbourhood Forums to set out local policies consistent with the Local Plan
Sustainability Appraisal (SA)	Appraisal of the environmental, economic and social aspects of Local Development Documents (LDDs) in contributing to the achievement of Sustainable Development objectives.
Statement of Community Involvement (SCI)	An LDD explaining to stakeholders and the community, how and when they will be involved in the preparation of Local Development Plan and where appropriate planning applications prior to their formal submission and the steps that will be taken to facilitate this involvement.
Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA)	Assessment of the environmental impacts of polices and proposals contained within the Local Plan (can be done as part of the SA).
SPD (SPD)	SPDs are LDDs intended to elaborate upon the policy and proposals in DPDs. They do not form part of the statutory development plan.

Risk Assessment

Risk	Impact	Mitigating action
New national and local policies and guidance	Unforeseen additional work injections into LDS work programme causing slippage. Scope of proposed plans is significantly altered.	Monitoring of changes to national policy. Active participation in the City Region (to reflect the ‘duty to cooperate’) and local planning agenda to respond to changes early. Re-evaluate priorities.
New sub-regional arrangements for strategic policy making	Unforeseen additional work injections into LDS work programme causing slippage. Confusion as to the emerging SDS	Alignment of sub-regional and local strategic objectives Clarify the strategic policies in DPDs which may be subject to change through SDS
Volume of work (managing potentially competing timescales and tasks, higher levels of representations than anticipated)	Programme slippage.	Monitoring of progress against programme objectives and re-prioritise as necessary. Realistic & flexible timetables. Use of additional resources through corporate partnership working. Make use of digital tools
A very large volume of comments received at consultation stages	Require more staff to input and analyse responses Lengthy Examination in Public	Regular monitoring of resources, budgets and costings. Redeploy existing resources where appropriate. Make use of digital tools
Capacity of Stakeholders to respond as part of engagement/involvement activity.	Potential programme slippage.	Early consultation with stakeholders where appropriate.
Inadequate resources to undertake specific areas of work.	Unable to progress work. Potential impact on quality & ‘soundness’ of planning documents.	Regular monitoring of resources, budgets and costings. Redeploy existing resources where appropriate. Make use of digital tools
Lack of in house skills to undertake new areas of technical work.	Programme slippage. Potential impact on quality & ‘soundness’ of planning documents.	Develop skills and competencies through training initiatives. Close working with partners who have the necessary skills. Use of external consultants – subject to resources.
Staff turnover	Potential programme slippage.	Monitoring of progress against programme objectives and re-prioritise as necessary. Staff Recruitment
Planning Inspectorate unable to meet the timescale for examination and report.	Delay to examination/reporting. Key programme milestones not met.	Close liaison with the Planning Inspectorate, to highlight any potential issues/problems at an early stage.
Failure of planning documents to meet tests of soundness.	Unable to adopt document. Absence of up to date Local Plan triggers Presumption in Favour of Sustainable Development in NPPF	Ensure documents are sound and meet technical and consultation requirements Use of self-assessment tool.
Legal Challenge	LDD quashed. Impact on work programme through additional work.	Ensure LDF is compliant with Planning legislation, Regulations and guidance.