The Cheltenham Plan

The Local Development Scheme (LDS) is the preparation timetable for development plan documents in Cheltenham borough. The latest version was adopted by Cabinet on 25 July 2023.

You can read the contents of the LDS below or download a PDF version of the LDS.

Introduction

Cheltenham Borough Council has a statutory responsibility to prepare and maintain a Local Plan for its area. This sets the planning vision for the borough and is used to determine planning applications.

Cheltenham’s existing Local Development Framework

Cheltenham Borough Council, along with Tewkesbury Borough Council and Gloucester City Council, have prepared an overarching strategic plan for the wider area covered by the three councils. This document is called the Joint Core Strategy (JCS) and was adopted in 2017.

The Cheltenham Plan adopted in 2020 sits underneath the strategic-level of the JCS and provides the local-level development strategy for the Borough. The Cheltenham Plan helps to meet the level of growth set out in the JCS by providing specific policy guidance for new development in the area and make smaller-scale local allocations. The policies in the Cheltenham Plan set out specific requirements for new development and provide more detail on local issues than the policies in the JCS.

The JCS is now 5 years beyond its adoption date and in line with government guidance, needs to be updated. The three councils (Cheltenham Borough Council, Gloucester City Council and Tewkesbury Borough Council) alongside Gloucestershire County Council have been debating the most effective approach to deliver development planning in an ever-challenging environment. The councils agree that they remain committed to the partnership with the continued key benefits across our area. The LDS as presented offers a fresh approach to plan making for our area in the form of the Cheltenham, Gloucester and Tewkesbury Strategic and Local Plan (CGTSLP). The current Local Development Scheme (2023) can be found here.

Like the previous Joint Core Strategy, the CGTSLP will set out the strategic development strategy; development requirements (jobs, houses and retail); joint strategic and generic policies as well as locally specific policies. The CGTSLP will replace the JCS in its entirety.

• Strategic plan policies - drafted jointly by Gloucester City Council, Cheltenham Borough Council and Tewkesbury Borough Council with the support of Gloucestershire County Council
• Cheltenham local plan policies – drafted by Cheltenham Borough Council

The estimated timetable for the SLP to adoption is as follows:

Other planning documents

Neighbourhood Development Plans

At the time of writing, there are no ‘made’ Neighbourhood Development Plans although a number of Parish Councils or Neighbourhood Forums are actively working towards an NDP, including the Leckhampton with Warden Hill Neighbourhood Plan, submitted to the Council 23 June 2023. Further information for communities that may wish to develop their own NDP can be found on our neighbourhood plan web pages.

Supplementary Planning Documents

The council may decide in the future to update its Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) or develop additional SPDs to provide further guidance to support the Local Plan. However, these are not Development Plan Documents and therefore their production is not subject of the LDS.

SPDs provide clarity and guidance to help aid the interpretation of policies contained within DPDs. For example, a new climate change SPD was adopted on 20 June 2022. You can view the climate change SPD for further information.