Supplementary planning documents

Developers on site at a building site

Supplementary planning document (or SPDs) are planning policy documents used to provide further detail and guidance on the policies contained within our local plan strategy.

They are designed to help in the interpretation and implementation of planning policies, but do not introduce new policies themselves.

They cover a range of issues, such as design standards, development briefs for specific sites, or detailed guidance on specific topics like affordable housing, sustainability, and infrastructure provision.

Before we launch a new supplementary planning document, we go out to public consultation to ensure they reflect local needs - they are then formally adoped by the council to ensure they have weight in decision-making processes for planning applications.