Planning policy consultations

Current Consultations

The council has issued three draft Supplementary Planning Documents that we recently requested your views on. The three documents look to address sustainability, mitigating for climate change and increasing biodiversity, which are amongst the top priorities for us as a local authority.

The 6 week consultation is now closed. Thank you to anyone who has taken time to provide comments and we will be reviewing them and making amendments where appropriate, before taking the document to our Executive Committee for formal adoption in around Spring 2023.

The update to the Sustainable Transport and Parking SPD includes some changes to off-street parking requirements for new development, together with approaches towards car clubs, multi transport hubs, click and ride bus services and bike hire schemes. It also seeks a significant uplift in electric charging point provision to prepare us for the rapid shift to electric vehicle use that is beginning to take place.

Biodiversity net gain delivers improvements for biodiversity by creating or enhancing habitats in association with development and aims to leave the natural environment in a measurably better state than before development took place. This can be achieved on-site, off-site or through a combination of the two. The draft Biodiversity Net Gain SPD has been produced to provide more detailed guidance on how development schemes can provide net gain as required by national planning policy.

The draft Carbon Offsetting SPD details how Hertsmere Borough Council will operate a carbon offset fund (COF) to collect carbon offset payments arising from planning applications in order to meet targets for net-zero development. These funds can then be used for Carbon reduction projects such as tree planting or renewable energy schemes, as near to the site as possible.

The draft SPDs have also been approved as interim guidance in the determination of planning applications on or after 15th September 2022 and will retain its interim status until formal adoption at Executive Committee.

Please find the links to view the Supplementary Planning Documents below:

Draft Biodiversity Net Gain SPD (PDF 1.98MB)

You can also find answers to our most commonly asked general and document specific questions in the attached FAQ's below:

(PDF 187KB)

Our Development Management Team handle all planning applications, and consult the occupiers of properties that immediately neighbour planning application sites. You can view and comment on a planning application on the Development Management Team pages.

From September 2017 onwards, all planning policy consultations will be listed on our Consultation Portal.

To register on the database, comment on current consultations or view comments on previous consultations, please visit our Consultation portal.

A consultation portal has been launched which enables residents, businesses and others to have their say on all council consultations, including key planning issues and future developments in Hertsmere.

The online portal allows registered users to comment on Local Plan Documents when they are out at public consultation and to give us feedback about the growth of the borough.

Key benefits of registering and making representations online include:

• Optional email updates - keep up to date when new documents are available for consultation;
• Ability to view other consultees' comments once they have been made available;
• Search facility - to find comments you and others have made on documents;
• Ability to update personal details instantly - make sure we always have your latest postal and email address;
• Ability to deactivate your account if you have moved out of the area or no longer want to hear from us - you can switch it back on again at any time;
• Option to specify preferences on how and how often you prefer to be contacted;
• You can view documents/comments as soon as they are available;
• Environmental benefits of using a paperless online system.

Past consultations from September 2017 onwards are available to view on our Consultation portal. Information about consultations prior to September 2017 is available on request.