The race to create a new Somerset-wide Local Plan has officially begun with Somerset Council asking landowners to put forward sites for new homes. A Local Plan allocates sites across a given local authority area for new housing, employment growth, protected green spaces and necessary amenities, such as new schools, doctors' surgeries, railway stations and village halls.

Somerset Council inherited all the Local Plans of its predecessor councils when it officially replaced them on April 1, 2023, and planning decisions can still be taken on the basis of these policies.

Work to create a new Somerset-wide Local Plan has been delayed in light of the council's ongoing transformation programme and a legal challenge surrounding the Mendip Local Plan Part II, with the amended parts of this Plan expected to be signed off by the Planning Inspectorate by the late-spring.

Following an initial tease in December 2024, the council officially launched a 'call for sites' on Monday (January 13), asking landowners, land promoters and developers to put forward sites within the next six weeks.

The sites being put forward under the call for sites can be for a variety of uses, including residential estates, commercial and industrial sites, gypsy and traveller pitches, and renewable energy installations (such as solar farms).

Submitting a site does not guarantee that it will be included in the final Local Plan or secure planning permission – with every site being assessed for its "suitability, availability and achievability" and numerous rounds of public consultation expected to take place before the final document is ratified by April 2028.

The 'call for sites' comes after the government published its new housing targets for every UK local authority, with Somerset being expected to provide an extra 1,200 homes a year on top of its existing targets.

Councillor Mike Rigby, portfolio holder for economic development, planning and assets, said: "The call for sites is a crucial part our work in developing the Somerset Local Plan in line with national policy.

"Understanding the potential supply of land available to meet development needs is a key early step in this process.

"We're asking our residents and businesses to get involved and suggest land that might be available for possible future development, helping us to identify potential site options for further consideration.

"It's important to stress that submitting a site for consideration is not the same as making a planning application, does not prejudice future consideration of specific development proposals for a site and by no means guarantees its inclusion in the local plan, it simply helps us build an evidence base from which we can draw up a Local Plan."

The call for site will run until February 24, with the sites being assessed and published as part of a housing and economic land availability assessment (HELAA) later in the year.

The Exmoor National Park area has its own Local Plan and therefore sites within its boundaries cannot be accepted with this latest 'call for sites'.

To submit a site, or for more information, visit www.somerset.gov.uk/planning-buildings-and-land/local-plan-call-for-sites.