Guidance Notes

Please read these Guidance Notes before completing this form.

All representations (comments) must be received by no later than 5pm on Monday 14th September 2026.

The Derbyshire Dales Local Plan sets out the overall vision, objectives, and polices for the future development of the parts of the Derbyshire Dales that lie outside the Peak District National Park, for the period up to 2042.

The preparation of the Derbyshire Dales Local Plan has been undertaken in consultation with a wide range of stakeholders including members of the public, parish councils and the development industry. It has been prepared following two periods of public consultation - Growth Options Consultation (November - December 2022) and New Approach to Housing within the District Consultation (May - June 2024).

This is the final stage of consultation on the Derbyshire Dales Local Plan before it is subject to an Examination in Public, held by an Inspector appointed by the Secretary of State. The Inspector is required to consider whether the plan has been prepared in accordance with the relevant Regulations and is ‘sound’.

Legal Compliance

For the Derbyshire Dales Local Plan to be legally compliant, it needs to be determined whether:

  • The Local Plan is identified in the current Local Development Scheme (LDS) and that the key stages have been followed.
  • The Community Consultation has been carried out in accordance with the Council’s Statement of Community Involvement (SCI).
  • The Council has consulted the appropriate Statutory Consultees that it should consult.
  • The Local Plan complies with the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 (as amended).
  • The Local Plan complies with The Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012.
  • An adequate Sustainability Appraisal Report (SA) is published to accompany the Local Plan.

Test of Soundness

For a Local Plan to be adopted, following examination, it has to be found to be “sound” – namely that it has to have been:

  • a) Positively prepared – providing a strategy which, as a minimum, seeks to meet the area’s objectively assessed needs; and is informed by agreements with other authorities, so that unmet need from neighbouring areas is accommodated where it is practical to do so and is consistent with achieving sustainable development;
  • b) Justified – an appropriate strategy, taking into account the reasonable alternatives, and based on proportionate evidence;
  • c) Effective – deliverable over the plan period, and based on effective joint working on cross-boundary strategic matters that have been dealt with rather than deferred, as evidenced by the statement of common ground; and
  • d) Consistent with national policy – enabling the delivery of sustainable development in accordance with the policies in this Framework and other statements of national planning policy, where relevant.
For more information on the Local Plan process, click here to access the government guidance. The Planning Advisory Service can also offer more information on Legal Compliance and the Test of Soundness using this link.
 
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Have Your Say

We would like to know your views on the Draft Plan by 5pm on Monday 14th September, in particular whether you consider the plan is legally compliant and is ‘sound’.

Please note that all comments and the surname of the individual or name of the organisation responsible for them will be available in the public domain and may be viewed at Council offices.

Please also note that a separate survey will need to be filled out for each representation. If you wish to comment on several different parts of the Draft Local Plan, you will need to complete a separate survey for each part. This is so that your comments on each section can be recorded properly and taken into account by the Planning Policy team. Supporting information such as maps and photographs may be uploaded along with your representation.

Group representations - where groups or individuals share a common view on the plan, you can consider making a single representation which represents that view, rather than many separate representations repeating the same points. In such cases, the group should indicate how many people it is representing and how the representation has been authorised.

If you are not able to complete this form online, you can request paper copies of this form by emailing localplan@derbyshiredales.gov.uk Please return completed paper forms to: Planning Policy Team, Derbyshire Dales District Council, Town Hall, Bank Road, Matlock, DE4 3NN.


Data Protection and Privacy Notice

Please note that your representations will be used in the plan process for the lifetime of the Local Plan, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulations 2018.

A copy of your representation(s) will be made available to the Planning Inspectorate and to the person appointed by the Secretary of State to conduct the examination (i.e. the Inspector) and your representation(s) will be ‘made available’ in line with the Regulations (The Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 – Regulations 20, 22 and 35). This includes being made available for public inspection and publication on the District Council’s website and therefore cannot be treated as confidential.

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