Local Plan review 2025-27

All planning authorities (including national park authorities) must prepare
a Local Plan setting out local planning policies for their area – and keep it up to date.

It’s the principal guide for planning decisions made within the New Forest National Park. We receive and determine over 500 full planning applications each year.

Our current National Park Local Plan was adopted in 2019. We’re conducting a partial review to keep it up to date.

The revised Local Plan will look forward to 2043 and is a key way through which the two statutory National Park purposes and related socio-economic duty are delivered.

Timeline of our Local Plan review

Regulation 18 (Part 1) consultation

The Regulation 18 (Part 1) consultation on the scope of the Local Plan Review, including a ‘Call for sites’, took place between February and March 2025. This comprised the following document:

Local Plan Review – direction of travel document

Regulation 18 (Part 2) consultation

Following a resolution by the National Park Authority members at an Authority meeting on 16 October 2025, the Regulation 18 (Part 2) consultation on the draft Local Plan Review ran from 5 November to 19 December 2025.

Thank you to everyone who provided feedback. You can still view the full draft Local Plan, together with evidence and supporting documents, at https://nfnpalocalplan.commonplace.is but comments can no longer be submitted. We will welcome your input on the next stage of the Local Plan review in summer 2026 when there will be further opportunity to comment.

See the consultation documents and supporting documents below:

Strategic Flood Risk Assessment