Core Strategy

What is the Core Strategy?

The Core Strategy is the part of the Local Development Framework that sets out the broad aims and objectives for sustainable development in the Winchester District covering the period up until 2026.

It outlines the levels of development that will be needed to be accommodated across the District, the type of economy we wish to promote, and the role of the various towns and villages in providing services, housing and facilities for local people.

At what Stage is Winchester's Core Strategy?

Preferred Option

The current stage is called the 'Preferred Option'. The Preferred Option sets out the policies for the Core Strategy. This has been developed following both the Issues and Options consultation and the information gathered as part of the evidence base.

The consultation period took place between Thursday 14^th May - Friday 3^rd July 2009. You can view all the comments by clicking on the link below, however please be aware that due to the sheer volume of comments received, the site may take some time to load; your patience is appreciated.

To view a copy of the comments sent to the Council on the Preferred Option, please click on this link.

More information on the Preferred Option

Advisory visit from the Planning Inspectorate

Having reached a key stage in production of its Core Strategy this year with the publication of its Preferred Option for consultation during May- July, the City Council was offered an advisory visit from the Planning Inspectorate.

The Planning Inspectorate offer support to local authorities in preparing their LDFs and in particular Core Strategies. The exact nature of the assistance depends on the stage reached and is intended to provide guidance as to matters likely to be contentious or problematic, with particular regard to whether the Core Strategy would be considered 'sound' when presented for formal examination.

Planning Inspector David Vickery was subsequently nominated to assist Winchester and visited during late August to consider the Preferred Option document and discuss key issues with officers. The Advice Note (which can be downloaded at the bottom of this page) is a copy of the full note produced by the Inspector, which highlights some key concerns in terms of the evidence base and content of the Core Strategy. Many of these points highlighted issues which the Council knew would need attention but it is now clear that more detailed work is needed on the 'strategic allocations' and that this will impact on the Core Strategy programme.

This advice means that the current programme of Core Strategy preparation needed to be reviewed and a revised Local Development Scheme (LDS) produced. View the revised Local Development Scheme 2009

What happens next?

The Core Strategy will be reviewed and updated taking into account many of the comments raised, revisions to Government guidance and advice received from the Planning Inspectorate during late 2009. At this stage no further meetings of the Council's Cabinet (LDF) Committee have been arranged, but it will be necessary to agree the revised Core Strategy prior to formal publication in autumn 2010.

Previous stages in the Development of the Core Strategy
The City Council has carried out extensive community and other stakeholder involvement, as well as many technical studies, in order to reach this current stage in the development of the Core strategy. This work can be broken down into two stages; background work and Issues and options.

Background work
The City Council began work on the Core Strategy in the summer of 2006. We have gathered a whole range of facts and figures about the District which are being used to inform the content of the Core Strategy and other parts of the LDF. Several technical studies have been commissioned and are available to view in the evidence base and others will be added as soon as they are completed. In addition we asked for your views on the future of the District as part of the 'Live for the Future' campaign, the results of which can be viewed on our consultation page.

Issues and Options
Using all the information we have gathered we prepared an 'Issues and Options' paper. This set out the key issues facing the District in the next 20 years, which the Core Strategy can help to address. It gave different options for the directions the District might take and consulted people on these.

The Issues and Options document was agreed at the LDF Cabinet on 6th December 2007 and was open to consultation until 15th February 2008. Nearly 3000 responses were received and these are currently being considered by the City Council along with the other responses gathered from the workshops, and the evidence base studies. More information on the Issues and Options.