Norfolk Minerals and Waste Local Plan Review

We are preparing a Norfolk Minerals and Waste Local Plan (NM&WLP), to consolidate the three adopted DPDs into one Local Plan, ensure that the policies within them remain up-to-date and to extend the plan period to the end of 2038.

The national Planning Practice Guidance states that most local plans are likely to require updating in whole or in part at least every five years. The requirement for a planned five-yearly review was incorporated into the adopted Minerals and Waste Core Strategy.

The current adopted plan period is up to the end of 2026; the review will extend this plan period up to the end of 2038 to ensure consistency with the other plans being developed by the Local Planning Authorities in Norfolk.

Once adopted, the Norfolk Minerals and Waste Local Plan will contain the policies used to determine planning applications for mineral extraction and associated development and waste management facilities in Norfolk.

The Minerals and Waste Local Plan process will take place in stages. The following stages have already taken place:

Initial Consultation (Regulation 18): July - August 2018
Preferred options public consultation (Regulation 18): September - October 2019
Pre-Submission publication representations period (Regulation 19): September - December 2022
Submission to the Secretary of State (Regulation 22) - December 2023

The remaining stages are:

Examination Hearings (Regulation 24)
Adoption (Regulation 26)

The proposed timetable for these remaining stages are detailed on the Minerals and Waste Development Scheme page.

Latest news

Proposed Main Modifications and Additional Modifications to the NM&WLP

The formal representations period on the proposed Main Modifications to the Norfolk Minerals and Waste Local Plan starts at 9am on 17 October 2024 and ends at 5pm on 13 December 2024.

Examination hearings into the NM&WLP, led by an independent Inspector appointed by the Secretary of State took place in July 2024. As set out in the hearings there are a number of Main Modifications required to the Plan in order for the Inspector to consider it sound and legally compliant. Proposed Main Modifications have been prepared and Norfolk County Council has been notified by the Inspector that the representations period on these modifications can proceed. View and respond to the proposed Main Modifications.

The Main Modifications are proposed without prejudice to the Inspector's final conclusions on the NM&WLP which will consider the representations submitted. The Main Modifications have been subject to updated Sustainability Appraisal (SA) and Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) which are also available for representations to be made on, along with consequent Policies Map changes.

Representations on the Main Modifications should only be made regarding legal compliance and soundness issues. The Inspector will only consider representations which relate specifically to the proposed Main Modifications and the updates to the SA and HRA before reaching his final conclusions on the NMW&LP.

The supporting evidence documents consist of:

Addendum to the Sustainability Appraisal Report (2024)
Addendum to the Habitats Regulations Assessment - Test of Likely Significant Effects (2024)
Waste management capacity and forecast waste arisings update (2024)
Update on the sand and gravel, Carstone and silica sand provision within the NM&WLP
Heritage Impact Assessment Addendum for site MIN 25 - land at Manor Farm, Haddiscoe

View the statement of representations procedure and the representations form.

A Schedule of proposed Additional Modifications are also being published for information and comment until 5pm on 13 December 2024. The proposed Additional Modifications do not form part of the examination of the Plan. They are minor factual changes which Norfolk County Council intends to make on adoption of the NM&WLP.

All these documents are available for public inspection via the County Council's NM&WLP consultation website at: https://norfolk.oc2.uk/

The documents are alternatively available to view for public inspection by appointment, free of charge, within normal opening hours during the representations period, at County Hall and at the main offices of Norfolk's Local Planning Authorities. View the statement of representations procedure for further details of these inspection locations.

Where possible we would prefer representations to be made directly to https://norfolk.oc2.uk/ however, responses submitted by email and post will also be accepted to the following addresses

By email: LDF@norfolk.gov.uk

By post: Planning Services, Communities and Environment, Norfolk County Council, County Hall, Martineau Lane, Norwich, NR1 2DH.

Any representations that you make will be published on Norfolk County Council's website.

All representations, using whatever method, must be made by 5pm on 13 December 2024. Late representations will not be accepted.

Following the end of the representations period, all duly made representations received about the proposed Main Modifications will be submitted to the Planning Inspector and considered as part of the Examination of the NM&WLP.

Earlier updates

We submitted the Norfolk Minerals and Waste Local Plan to the Planning Inspectorate for independent examination on 20 December 2023. Read further information about the Norfolk Minerals and Waste Local Plan Examination.

Previous stages

Publication stage

The publication document was open for a period of representations between 9am on 28 September until 5pm on 19 December 2022. Representations received before or after these dates will not be considered. The representations period was extended to 5pm on 19 December 2022 because two background evidence documents (the Statement of Consultation and the Waste Management Capacity Assessment) were not available on the consultation website at the start of the representations period.

The responses received have all been published online and can be viewed via our Minerals and Waste Local Plan: Pre-Submission Publication and Background documents pages. The Pre-Submission version of the Minerals and Waste Local Plan, relevant background documents and the representations received will all be submitted to the Secretary of State for public examination by a Planning Inspector in 2023.

View the downloadable version of the Minerals and Waste Local Plan Publication document (PDF) [12MB]

View the publication document

The background documents relevant to the publication stage on the Minerals and Waste Local Plan are:

Policies Map (illustrates the policies contained in the NM&WLP)
Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report (focuses on the environmental, social and economic issues relevant to the NM&WLP)
Sustainability Appraisal Report and non-technical summary (shows social, environmental and economic impacts of the NM&WLP)
Habitats Regulations Assessment Task 1 (of impacts on the UK National site network)
Waste Management Capacity Assessment (contains data on current waste management capacity, waste movements, existing and forecast waste arising in Norfolk)
Equality Impact Assessment (enables us to consider the likely impact of the NM&WLP on different groups of people)
Statement of Common Ground (to confirm an understanding to support effective joint working with key partners)
Statement of Consultation (contains how and who we consult, and a summary of the main issues raised)

View the background documents

View the interactive version of the publication Policies Map

View a downloadable and printable representation form including the Statement of Representations procedure

The draft publication document was taken to Norfolk County Council's Cabinet meeting on 4 July 2022 with a recommendation for the document to be published for a formal representations period to take place on the Minerals and Waste Local Plan in September and October 2022.

Preferred Options consultation 2019

The public consultation took place over six weeks from 18 September until 5pm on 30 October 2019.

The responses received will be retained by us and have all been published online.

View the Preferred Options Consultation document

The background documents relevant to the Preferred Options Consultation on the Minerals and Waste Local Plan Review are:

Draft Habitats Regulations Assessment - Test of Likely Significant Effects (2019)
Silica sands AOS E and SIL 02 - Historic Environment Impact Assessment - Designated Heritage Assets (April 2019)
Waste Management Capacity Assessment 2017
Sustainability Appraisal Part A - Scoping
Draft Sustainability Appraisal report - Part B

View the Preferred Options Consultation background documents

Initial Consultation 2018

A public consultation on the first stage of the Minerals and Waste Local Plan Review, called the 'Initial Consultation' took place over six weeks from 29 June to 13 August 2018.

View the Initial Consultation document

The background documents relevant to the Initial Consultation on the Minerals and Waste Local Plan Review are:

Draft Habitats Regulations Assessment - Test of Likely Significant Effects
Waste Management Capacity Assessment
Sustainability Appraisal Report - Part A - Scoping
Initial Sustainability Appraisal Report

View the Initial Consultation background documents

Call for waste management sites

The 'call for waste management sites' took place for six weeks, from 14 January to 25 February 2019. We asked for proposals for potential specific site allocations for waste treatment facilities in the period up to 2036 as part of our Minerals and Waste Local Plan Review process.

Only new permanent sites larger than one hectare, proposed for waste treatment with an estimated annual throughput of at least 50,000 tonnes, will be considered for allocation.

Call for mineral extraction sites 2017

A 'call for mineral extraction sites' took place from 26 June to 4 August 2017. We asked for proposals for potential specific site allocations for carstone, sand and gravel, or silica sand extraction in the period up to 2036 as part of our Minerals and Waste Local Plan Review process. We are not seeking proposals for the extraction of any other minerals.

Only sites with an estimated resource of at least 500,000 tonnes will be considered for allocation, unless the site will be operated as an extension to an existing permitted site.

We asked for information about the proposed site and the area surrounding it, including:

A map of the site location and proposed HGV access route
Landowner willingness for the site to be included as a mineral extraction site allocation
Borehole data and a statement as to the quality, quantity and extent of the mineral resource which is of commercial interest
Information on planning constraints relevant to the proposed site location (including environmental designations, landscape, the historic environment, agricultural land, amenity and infrastructure)