Vital step forward in placemaking review for National Park

The process of reviewing the South Downs National Park’s Local Plan has moved another step forward with the completion of some key background studies around potential housing growth.

Following a major consultation earlier this year, the National Park Authority is now gearing up for the next consultation on the Local Plan Review in May 2026.

The award-winning South Downs Local Plan is being updated to ensure it addresses important issues such as nature recovery, climate change, affordable housing and helping local communities thrive. The revised Local Plan will enable appropriate growth in the National Park and will have a big focus on placemaking for all.

As part of the statutory process set out by Government, the Authority has to complete a number of background studies and some of these have now been published. They are evidence-based documents, rather than decisions, but will help guide the next version of the Local Plan going out for public consultation next year.

The first key document is the Land Availability Assessment (LAA) which has assessed the suitability, availability, and achievability of about 800 sites across the South Downs National Park. It comes after hundreds of sites were identified or put forward by agents, landowners and local communities to be considered for development opportunities. The LAA has recommended whether a site “has potential” for – or should be “rejected” or “excluded” from – further consideration in the South Downs Local Plan Review.

The LAA includes an online interactive map so that communities and site promoters can see which sites have been assessed and considered. The LAA does not determine whether a site should be allocated for development, but rather provides an information hub to help identify potential sites for further consideration in the South Downs Local Plan Review. Subject to further technical work, it’s then for the South Downs Local Plan Review – or any future Neighbourhood Development Plans – to determine which sites should be allocated for future development.

Meanwhile, the evidence on housing needs has been updated in two studies. The National Park Authority believes the appropriate housing need figure for the South Downs is 323 homes per year – or 5,814 new homes between 2024 and 2042. This assessment of housing need is just a starting point as the Local Plan Review will need to take into account the statutory purposes of the National Park – the primary purpose laid out in law being to conserve and enhance its natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage.

Tim Slaney, Director of Planning for the South Downs National Park Authority, said: “This Local Plan Review is the framework for the future of this incredible National Park. It shapes where and how development takes place, ensuring we conserve and enhance its wonderful landscape, provide for the needs of local communities, and conserve and enhance wildlife and heritage.  In this way we can enable villages and towns to flourish. As always it’s about the right development, in the right place, and ensuring benefits flow from this, whether that be affordable housing, employment opportunities, new community facilities, infrastructure, or new habitats for wildlife.

“It’s really important to stress that these background studies are purely starting points to help inform the next stages of the Local Plan Review and no decisions have been made. There’s still a long way to go, but we’re making really good progress on the various formal stages of the process.

“We’re looking forward to engaging further with the public, parishes, landowners and partner organisations over the coming months as we gear up for the next consultation in May.”

Submission of the revised Local Plan to the Government’s Planning Inspectorate is expected in the autumn of 2026 and full adoption as planning policy by the National Park Authority in 2027.

The Local Plan Review and the various evidence documents can be viewed here www.southdowns.gov.uk/planning-policy/the-south-downs-local-plan-review/

• Earlier this year more than 1,000 people visited 20 consultation events across the National Park and over 10,400 people viewed the online consultation. More than 1,900 individuals responded to the consultation, making 3,714 separate comments.
• All the feedback so far will be considered as the Authority prepares the next stage of the Local Plan Review, with the second public consultation taking place between May and July 2026.
• The current Local Plan is available here: southdowns.gov.uk/planning-policy/south-downs-local-plan/local-plan/
• The South Downs National Park has one of the most unique built environments within a protected landscape in the UK. As Britain’s most populated National Park with over 113,000 residents, it spans 15 different local authority areas across three counties and has four bustling market towns. It boasts 167 conservation areas – more than any other National Park in the UK – as well as 18 distinctive landscape types, over 1,000 designated spaces for wildlife and well over 5,800 listed buildings. Dealing with around 5,000 planning cases a year, the National Park is one of the country’s top 30 busiest Planning Authorities.