The Central Lincolnshire Local Plan provides an overarching suite of policies that inform planning decisions and infrastructure investments across City of Lincoln, North Kesteven and West Lindsey.
A plan which maps out the shape and scale of development in Central Lincolnshire through to 2040 and pushes the boundaries of government policy and legislation in its ambition to deliver net zero carbon across the area has been judged to be the region’s best; targeting energy efficient buildings, renewable energy, adaptation and resilience to climate change, and much more.
It is this level of ambition and the rigour behind it which drew the praise of judges at the Royal Town Planning Institute who named it the Best Plan in the 2024 East Midlands Planning Excellence awards.
Covering the three areas, the Central Lincolnshire Local Plan sets out where housing and businesses should be located across an 820 square mile area and identifies a list of requirements for what new development will need to achieve to be granted planning permission.
Cllr Richard Wright, chairman of the joint strategic planning committee that ensures the plan’s ongoing relevance said: “This award is a clear recognition of the quality of our plan, the efficiency of our partnership work and the engagement and consensus of stakeholders in its development, evolution and review.
“The judges commended the plan as a product of joint working between the partnership of local authorities, and in particular recognised the ambitious policies aimed at addressing climate change which push the boundaries of Government policy and legislation to ensure Central Lincolnshire will realise its net zero carbon ambitions.
“Not only this award, but the way it is being put into action daily in building a more sustainable future across the three distinct areas of Central Lincolnshire is testament to all the work and rigour that went into the plan,” said Cllr Wright.