Planning services

Unitary Council for Shropshire - Consultation on Core Strategy Topic Papers and draft Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report
As part of the move to a the new unitary council for Shropshire, the county's six planning authorities are currently working together to produce a joint Local Development Framework (LDF) for the whole of Shropshire. The first document to be prepared for this new LDF is the Core Strategy. Follow the link to 'Planning Policy' on the right hand side of this page to view details of a current consultation on a series of Topic Papers and the draft Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report, which have been prepared to begin the process of preparing the Core Strategy.

New Unitary Planning Service for Shropshire in April 2009
The Government has agreed to merge the county, borough and district councils in Shropshire to form a single unitary council. The new council will start work on 1 April 2009. In the meantime, an Implementation Executive (IE) has been established to take key decisions.

The county, borough and district councils have agreed to develop a single Core Strategy for the new unitary council area, which will form part of a new Shropshire wide Local Development Framework (LDF). The LDF will replace the current Local Plans for all the districts in Shropshire and the County Councils Waste and Mineral Local Plans.

In the period before 1 April 2009 each of Shropshire’s district and borough councils will continue to take decisions on planning applications in their individual areas whilst the County Council will continue to take decisions on county matters and minerals and waste applications. In making these decisions on planning applications, each council will continue to apply their own adopted ‘saved’ local plan policies to their individual areas. If you have a planning enquiry in the period before 1 April 2009 you should continue to contact the planning department at your local council.

Follow the appropriate link on this page to find out more information on the planning service for the new Unitary Council and to view emerging Unitary Planning Policy documents.

What does Shropshire County Council's planning service do?
We determine planning applications for mineral and waste sites and for development by the County Council’s own services (education, highways etc) and prepare policies for minerals, waste and related environmental issues. Planning applications for all other types of development in Shropshire are determined by one of the county’s five district / borough councils.

In addition, the council plays a significant role in implementing the Regional Spatial Strategy, acting as a lead authority for implementation of the ‘Rural Renaissance’ policy agenda, and helping to ensure that all Shropshire’s planning documents conform to the Regional Spatial Strategy.

Planning Aid
This service provides free, independent and professional advice and support on planning issues to people and communities who cannot afford to hire a planning consultant. In this area, the service is run by the Royal Town Planning Institute through West Midlands Planning Aid. The council supports the use of Planning Aid to help local communities and individuals in Shropshire to become involved in planning matters. Follow the link to the Planning Aid website for more information on this service.

What’s happening in planning services now?

New planning application forms for waste and county matter developments
Existing planning application forms for waste and county matter developments have been replaced with the national standard application form 1APP. To access the online 1APP forms follow the link to the Planning Portal site.

Existing arrangements will continue for the time being for minerals developments.

Annual Monitoring Report (AMR) 2007
In December 2007 the council submitted its Annual Monitoring Report to Government Office for the West Midlands. Follow the link to 'Monitoring' on this page to view the document.

Decision reached on 'saved' planning policies beyond September 2007
The Government has reached its final view on which policies of Shropshire's Joint Structure Plan, Minerals Local Plan and Waste Local Plan should be 'saved' beyond 27 September 2007. Follow the relevant link on this page to find out more on this and to view the final lists of 'saved' policies.

The Shropshire Geodiversity Action Plan
The Shropshire Geodiversity Action Plan (SGA) was launched on 13 September 2007 at a geology symposium held in Ludlow as part of the Marches Festival of Geology. The SGAP aims to protect and promote the county’s rich geological heritage, allowing a wider understanding of the issues and opportunities affecting geological sites and resources. You can download a copy of the SGAP and apply to join the SGAP stakeholder network by following the relevant link on this page.

Application to extend Bridgwalton Quarry near Bridgnorth
A planning application to extend Bridgwalton Quarry at Morville near Bridgnorth was submitted in June 2007. The proposals involve extraction of 0.95 million tonnes of sand and gravel from two separate areas in the valley of the Mor Brook with restoration to lakes, woodland and agriculture with enhanced biodiversity. The proposals would extend the life of the quarry by 5-6 years. Details of the application can be viewed by selecting application reference MB2007/0572/BR on the online planning register (see link on this page).

Shropshire Submission Core Strategy and Mineral Resources DPDs: withdrawal following exploratory meeting
As a result of advice received from the Planning Inspector appointed to examine the Core Strategy and Mineral Resources DPDs, Shropshire County Council has reluctantly decided that it has no choice but to request the Secretary of State to withdraw the plans from the Examination process.

The plans were prepared under the new planning arrangements introduced by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Draft copies of the plans were submitted to the Secretary of State for independent examination of their ‘soundness’ in October 2006.

On 21 February 2007, an ‘exploratory meeting’ was held with the Planning Inspector appointed to carry out the examination. This meeting was called because, on preliminary reading of the DPDs, and having regard to the representations particularly of the Government Office for the West Midlands, the Inspector considered there were concerns about their soundness. The purpose of the meeting was to provide an opportunity to explore these concerns and to enable the council to consider the risk it might have of the documents being found to be unsound if the Examination continued. The notes of this meeting are available to view by following the link to 'Independent Examinations' on this page.

Interactive LDF Proposals Map
The LDF proposals map shows all the waste and mineral allocations contained in the council's adopted Waste Local Plan and Minerals Local Plan. It also shows Shropshire's main environmental features and areas which have been safeguarded from development. Follow the relevant link on this page to access the LDF proposals map. You can view relevant site profiles and planning policies by following the links within the proposals map.

Requirement for Design and Access Statements to accompany planning applications
As from 10 August 2006, submitted planning applications need to be accompanied by a Design and Access Statement, under new provisions introduced by central Government. For details of what a Design and Access Statement is, what it should contain and other useful guidance, please select the relevant link on this page.