Call for sites submission guidance

The following guidance is intended to assist with completing the ‘call for sites’ submission form through either our online portal or by completing and returning the form.

The guidance is also available to download:

 

Key information to consider when completing the form

  • Submissions need to be received by 5pm on 9 January 2026.
  • Separate submissions should be made for each site.
  • There should be reasonable prospect that sites will become available for development or redevelopment within the plan period, expected to be around 2045.
  • Sites must be wholly or partially within the East Suffolk district boundary.
  • An outline of the site MUST be submitted either online or as a plan using an OS base map (more detail on acceptable plans can be found below).
  • We are inviting submissions across a wide range of land uses in order to understand land availability across a range of uses. However, at this stage no decisions have been taken into what land uses will be allocated (the Local Plan must however plan for housing and employment sites).
  • All questions marked * are mandatory. On the online form you will not be able to proceed without providing answers to those questions.
  • Your questionnaire is saved as you progress allowing you to leave the site and return, however one response must be completed before you can move onto another site.
  • Answering ‘don’t know’ or leaving questions blank (if not mandatory) is fine; please just complete as much of the questionnaire as possible.
  • Any supporting documents you wish to include with your submission can be attached at the end of the online form, or included with your email/postal submission.
  • Sites that have been submitted for previous local plans can be re-submitted (regardless of whether or not the site was allocated).
  • If your/your client’s site is an existing Local Plan allocation, please notify us of any changes of intention or changes in circumstance through submitting the Call for Sites form Call for sites submission guidance.
  • If you wish to make any changes to your submission once it has been submitted, please contact the Planning Policy and Delivery Team via the details below.
  • We may contact the agent, representative or landowner if we require further information.
  • We will send an acknowledgement of your submission within two weeks, at which time you will be able to request a copy of your submission for your records. We may contact you if we need additional clarification. Please note that at this stage we are only inviting submissions of land, public consultations will be held as part of Local Plan preparation.
  • If you have any questions or issues, please contact the Planning Policy and Delivery Team on the email address planningpolicy@eastsuffolk.gov.uk or on 01394 444557.
  • If you wish to have a PDF version or paper version of the form please request one from the Planning Policy and Delivery Team via the email address planningpolicy@eastsuffolk.gov.uk or by phone on 01394 444557.
  • If you wish to seek professional advice in relation to your site submission you may want to use the RTPI’s directory of planning consultants or the RICS find a surveyor tool.

How to submit the form

  • Online at https://arcg.is/0WTHOv
  • By emailing the completed form to planningpolicy@eastsuffolk.gov.uk
  • By post to - Planning Policy and Delivery, Riverside, 4 Canning Road, Lowestoft, NR33 0EQ
  • If you have any questions or issues, please contact the Planning Policy Team on the email address planningpolicy@eastsuffolk.gov.uk or on 01394 444557

Please note that submitting a site does not provide any guarantee it will be included in the new Local Plan or granted planning permission.

Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils and Ipswich Borough Council are running separate call for sites exercises also beginning on 20th October 2025. Details are available on their respective websites.

What to submit

  • A completed submission form.
  • An outline of the proposed site either:
    • Drawn using the map facility within the online form.
    • A PDF or hard copy of a plan clearly showing the site boundary with a red line (at a scale no less than 1:2500). It would also be beneficial if any of the surrounding land within the same ownership is also edged in blue.
    • A GIS shapefile of the site boundary (if available and submitting online)
  • If you have any other relevant assessments or reports that will support the assessment of the site (for example flood risk assessments or viability assessments).
  • Evidence of ownership where available, this can include land registry document.

Next steps

The council will assess all sites submitted to consider if they are suitable, available and achievable for development. The assessments will inform the site allocations selection process in the new Local Plan for East Suffolk. The decision to allocate land for development will not solely be based on this assessment, but the site assessment will contribute to the Council’s evidence base and ensure that decisions regarding site allocations are backed by robust and objective evidence.

The Local Plan process will involve public consultation, evidence gathering, and policy development. The latest timetable for this work is set out in our Local Development Scheme.

The Government is introducing changes to the Local Plan preparation process which are anticipated to be in place before the end of 2025. A new Local Plan timetable will be prepared once the new system is in place.

National Planning Policy Framework

Ordnance Survey Maps can be obtained through these sources for a fee:

www.planningmaps.co.uk

www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk

The Government have provided information on Biodiversity Net Gain and the national 10% requirement:

www.gov.uk/government/collections/biodiversity-net-gain

The council has a duty to regulate contaminated land. Please see the East Suffolk Council website for further information on contaminated land in the former Suffolk Coastal and Waveney areas:

www.eastsuffolk.gov.uk/contaminated-land/

Information regarding flood zones and flood risks affecting your site:

flood-map-for-planning.service.gov.uk

Glossary

Below are a number of terms used in the submission form.

Abnormal costs: Unusual development costs (e.g. ground conditions requiring deeper foundations).

Affordable housing: Defined in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) as housing for sale or rent for those whose needs are not met by the market. This includes housing that provides a subsidised route to home ownership and/or is for essential local workers. The NPPF then provides further definitions to what constitutes affordable housing.

Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG): A mandatory approach to development and land management that ensures the natural environment is left in a measurably better state than it was before the development. BNG is required under Schedule 7A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, developers must deliver at least a 10% increase in biodiversity value compared to the pre-development baseline.

Biodiversity metric calculation: A tool used to quantify the biodiversity value of land and assess the impact of development on habitats.

Brownfield (Previously Developed Land): Defined in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) as “Land which has been lawfully developed and is or was occupied by a permanent structure and any fixed surface infrastructure associated with it, including the curtilage of the developed land (although it should not be assumed that the whole of the curtilage should be developed). It also includes land comprising large areas of fixed surface infrastructure such as large areas of hardstanding which have been lawfully developed. Previously developed land excludes: land that is or was last occupied by agricultural or forestry buildings; land that has been developed for minerals extraction or waste disposal by landfill, where provision for restoration has been made through development management procedures; land in built-up areas such as residential gardens, parks, recreation grounds and allotments; and land that was previously developed but where the remains of the permanent structure or fixed surface structure have blended into the landscape."

Covenants: Legally binding promises or restrictions written into the title deeds or contracts associated with land or property.

Custom and self-build housing: Can be broadly defined as housing whose initial occupants have a primary input into its final design and layout.

Easements: A legal right that allows one landowner to use another person's land for a specific purpose, such as access, drainage, or utility installation.

Greenfield: Land that has not been previously developed (e.g. agricultural land, residential gardens, forests and woodlands, parks, recreation grounds, and allotments).

Green infrastructure: Multi-functional spaces and other natural features, urban and rural, which can deliver a wide range of environmental, economic, health and wellbeing benefits (e.g. parks, gardens, woodlands, nature reserves, green roofs and walls (Green Spaces) or rivers, canals, ponds, and sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) (Blue Spaces).

Hectare: A measurement of area commonly used in planning (1 hectare = 10,000 square metres or 2.471 acres)

Infrastructure: Land or buildings used for essential services such as education, healthcare, transport, or renewable energy.

Market housing: Housing that is sold or rented on the open market without any subsidy or restriction, typically provided by private developers, and is distinct from affordable housing.

Permissive paths: A route across private land that a landowner voluntarily allows the public to use, typically for walking or horse riding.

Public Right of Way: A route over which the public has a right to pass and repass (i.e. a Public Footpath, Public Bridleway or Restricted Byway).

Registered Provider: An organisation that is officially registered with the Regulator of Social Housing to provide social housing in England.

Strategic Logistics: These are warehouses of typically more than 9,000 sq m (97,000 sq ft) that are serving as regional or national distribution centres.

Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS): Water management practices and systems designed to mimic natural drainage processes and manage surface water runoff in a way that is environmentally sustainable, socially beneficial, and economically viable.

Viability assessments: A process used to determine whether a proposed development is financially deliverable, taking into account the costs of development and the value it will generate.