Search

Help Line: 01737 276000

Enlarge text:

• Skip menu
• Accessibility
• Contact us
• Site map
• Site A-Z
• Site help

Planning

Sections
Choose another... Business and Planning Community and Living Council and Democracy Environment Housing Health and Care Learning Leisure News Transport and Streets Home

Planning policies

• News centre
• Ways to pay
• Get help & advice
• Helpshop Online

You are here: Home > Business and Planning > Planning > Planning policies > Planning Policies

Planning Policies

This section is intended to help people looking for information about planning policies.

Parliament makes laws and sets out the legal framework for the planning system in England and Wales.

Key legislation for the planning system includes the Planning & Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 and the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, which are accompanied by secondary legislation such as the General Permitted Development Order 1995, the Use Classes Order 1987 and a range of statutory instruments.

However while Parliament makes the law the Courts have to interpret the legislation. Courts may be required to make judgements on planning matters and as a result case law has resulted. 

In order to maximise the chances of any planning application you make being successful, you should ensure that it conforms to all relevant planning policies.

Planning Officers have to take into account legislation, case law, government guidance and development plan policies when deciding planning applications and preparing Local Plans.

The Government administers the planning system. It can:

• issue guidance to local councils via national and regional planning guidance; 
• set planning policy via Circulars, and Planning Policy Guidance Notes, now being replaced by Planning Policy Statements;
• make decisions on planning appeals and major planning applications via the Planning Inspectorate.      

Relevant planning policies may be found in the following sources:

Statutory Development Plans for the Borough

• Regional Planning Guidance for the South East (RPG 9)
• Approved Surrey Structure Plan 2004  
• Borough Local Plan 2005 - comprising the 2005 First Alteration (adopted April 2005) and the unaltered parts of the 1994 Borough Local Plan (adopted July 2004)

Since their adoption, the status of some policies has changed. See our Policy Status Update section, including information on saved policies.

Further information

• You can see copies of the Borough Local Plan 2005 at your local library, Help Shop or the Town Hall. For more general information see the Local Plan.  
• For more on the Structure Plan see the County Council's website.
• For more on Regional Planning Guidance see our section on the Regional Framework.
• For further information on Supplementary Planning Guidance, and Surrey County Council's Supplementary Planning Guidance applicable to Reigate and Banstead, see our Supplementary Planning Guidance section. 
• For more information about the new plan-making structure, under the Planning & Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, see our Local Development Framework section.
  

---