Statement of Community Involvement and Local Development Scheme

The Statement of Community Involvement and Local Development Scheme set out how and when people can get involved and the timetable for Local Plan preparation.

How we will involve you in local planning – Statement of Community Involvement

We are reviewing our Statement of Community Involvement which explains when and how people can be involved in local planning, including planning applications and neighbourhood plans. It also sets out principles we will follow in engaging on a new local plan, which will set out where homes, jobs and infrastructure will go.

The consultation is open until 5pm Tuesday 24 February. View the consultation homepage.

Local Development Scheme

The local development scheme sets out the timetable for local plan preparation and other planning policy documents.

September 2025 - The Local Development Scheme contains an interim timetable for the preparation of an East Suffolk Local Plan, and acknowledges that the timetable will be heavily influenced by the timing of the introduction of the Government’s plan-making reforms. We currently anticipate that the new system will be introduced later in 2025.

The council is committed to the preparation of an East Suffolk Local Plan and a Local Plan Timetable will be prepared under the provisions of the new system, once introduced. Further information is available in this Cabinet report - SCLP Review Assessment and Update to Interim Housing Position Statement, incorporating Local Plan update (September 2025).

 

Statement of Community Involvement

We are currently consulting on a revised Statement of Community Involvement.

The current Statement of Community Involvement (April 2021) sets out how and when people can have their say on planning policies and planning applications. The Consultation Statement includes a summary of the comments received during the consultation on the current Statement of Community Involvement and the Council's response. The Adoption Statement gives an overview of the process and reasons for adopting the Statement of Community Involvement.

The previous Statement of Community Involvement for the former Suffolk Coastal area was used in the preparation of the Suffolk Coastal Local Plan. The previous Statement of Community Involvement for the former Waveney area was used in the preparation of the Waveney Local Plan.