Local Plan consultation

Dorset is changing, help us shape it. Find out more and comment. The consultation closes on 13 October.

The Dorset Council Local Plan consultation took place in January to March 2021. Thank you to everyone who responded.

We have now produced summaries of the responses received along with an accompanying consultation statement. The comments received can be viewed in full on our comments search page.

To find out how we make sure our communities help shape the plan, read our Statement of Community Involvement. To find out more about the timeline for the preparation of the Dorset Council Local Plan, read our Local Development Scheme.

Sign up to receive updates about Dorset Council Planning Policy (including the Dorset Council Local Plan) by emailing planningpolicy@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk. Please note that by signing up you are agreeing to receive emails about council-wide planning policy issues and consultations; it is not possible to specify topics or areas for update.

Dorset is changing – help us shape it

Dorset Council is preparing a new Local Plan to guide development. The consultation looks at how we could meet development needs across the Dorset Council area and identifies opportunity sites for new homes, employment land and traveller sites. It also identifies areas of opportunity for wind and solar power.

We are required to identify development opportunities to help meet the needs of Dorset. In doing so, we invite landowners to submit land they consider to be developable to us. We are also required to consider other opportunities that we have not been informed about. If a landowner is no longer interested in their land being developed, they can simply notify us through the consultation, and we will remove it from further consideration. This is part of the reason we’re running the consultation - to identify availability and other deliverability issues.

Former 2021 consultation