Regional Planning
The abolition of Regional Strategies
The East of England Plan, published in May
2008, sets out the Regional Strategy (RS) for the East of England
region. The Plan was revoked by the Secretary of State
for Communities and Local Government in July 2010, however
following a successful High Court challenge it remains part of the
statutory development plan for Harlow.
However, the Government has stated its
intention to formally abolish Regional Strategies in the
Localism Bill that is expected to begin its passage through
Parliament in the coming months. This will mean decision
making powers in planning and housing will be returned to local
authorities.
Please click on the following link to view a
Letter from the Government’s Chief Planning Officer sent to Local
Planning Authorities in England on 10 November 2010.
The East of England Plan - Policy HA1
The East of England Plan is the high level
planning framework for the region, setting out the broad planning
policies and growth requirements, including housing and employment
provision that local authorities need to identify in their Local
Development Frameworks (LDFs).
Policy HA1 of the East of England Plan
identifies Harlow as a growth area within the Stansted/M11
sub-region and a “Key Centre for Development and Change”. A
key element of this is the need to promote regeneration of the town
through developing Harlow’s role as a major regional housing growth
point, a major town centre and a regionally strategic employment
location to 2021 and beyond.
In the Harlow area the Plan requires 16,000
new dwellings and a share of 56,000 new jobs for the “rest of
Essex” by 2021. It specifies additional housing should be
provided:
- Within the existing area of the town through
selective renewal and redevelopment, including mixed use
development in the town centre; and
- Through urban extensions in the adjoining
districts to the north, east, and on a smaller scale the south and
west.
This growth requires joint working with
Harlow’s two adjoining districts of Epping Forest and East Herts
and Essex and Hertfordshire County Council’s.
The current situation
Although the East of England Plan is likely to
be abolished by the Government at some stage, the issues that are
affecting Harlow today and in the future will still need to be
addressed through the Local Development Framework in order to guide
development and to secure the regeneration and renewal of the
town.
The Council is working with the local
community to ensure housing provision and other development
requirements reflect local needs and aspirations, as well as
securing the long term regeneration of Harlow.
Evidence base documents related to the East of England
Plan
There may still be evidence base documents
from the East of England Plan that are relevant to the preparation
of Harlow’s LDF which can be found via the links below.
Evidence base documents from the East of
England Plan published in 2008 can be found in the archived content
of the Go East website at The National Archives:
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100528142817/gos.gov.uk/goeast/
Evidence base documents relevant to the review
of the East of England Plan (> 2031) can be found on the website
of the now dissolved East of England Regional Assembly at
http://www.eera.gov.uk/What-we-do/developing-regional-strategies/east-of-england-plan/east-of-england-plan-review-to-2031/
Public consultation related to the East of England Plan
Follow the link below to find out more about
the public
consultation into the Draft Regional Plan
Follow the link below to read Harlow Council’s
response to the Draft Regional Spatial Strategy: Draft
Regional Spatial Strategy
Follow this link to view technical studies
related to the East of England Plan for the area around Harlow:
Growth Area Studies
Follow this link to view the
results of the consultation with Harlow residents and businesses on
the draft East of England Proposals