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Welcome to Greater Cambridge Shared Planning

The Shared Planning Service between Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council

Greater Cambridge Local Plan: the 20-year plan for the Greater Cambridge area

In this section:

Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council are working together to create the first joint Local Plan for Greater Cambridge. 

Proposed submission consultation (Regulation 19 publication)

We have now launched our final consultation on the Proposed Submission Greater Cambridge Local Plan before it is submitted to government for independent examination.

You can have your say from Monday 3 August until 5pm on Friday 25 September 2026. You can access, view and comment on the Proposed Submission Local Plan through our consultation platform.

The Proposed Submission Local Plan shows where new homes and workplaces could be built over the next 20 years, and how essential community facilities and infrastructure would support this expected growth. Once adopted, the joint Local Plan will become the statutory development plan for Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire.

This Local Plan is the version we intend to send to government for examination. Your comments (called ‘representations’ at this stage) should focus on whether the Local Plan complies with relevant legislation and is ‘sound’, which is defined as justified, effective, positively prepared and consistent with national planning policies.

How did we get here

Work on the Local Plan started in 2020. Three consultations were held prior to this one, most recently on the Draft Local Plan from 1 December 2025 until 30 January 2026. 1,286 separate people made over 8,400 comments, which have been carefully considered and have helped to shape the Proposed Submission Local Plan. Nearly 1,000 site submissions have also been assessed since the start of the Local Plan process. 

Our Consultation Statement sets out who was consulted, how the consultation was carried out, main issues raised and how they were addressed. It includes summarises representations submitted at Draft Plan stage and sets out our responses in the following appendices:

For copies of all comments in full, please visit our consultation platform, and look through each Chapter of the Plan to find the comments at the bottom of the pages. Please also refer to our Privacy Notice for further details of how we hold your information.

Similar information from the earlier stages of plan making can be found in the consultation statement published in 2025 [PDF, 8.5MB] alongside the draft plan consultation. 

The cabinets of Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council met on Tuesday 21 July and agreed to the Proposed Submission Local Plan and Policies Map for public consultation, along with a range of supporting documents.  

Understanding the plan

Before making a representation, we recommend you take some time to review, understand and consider the Local Plan and its supporting evidence. For further guidance on how to submit comments, please see the Representation Guidance Note [PDF, 0.1MB].

All comments must be received by 25 September 2026 at 5pm, and no late representations will be accepted.

We will be consulting on: 

For more information you can also: 

Alongside this, we will publish other relevant supporting evidence and other materials to help you understand the Local Plan and get the most out of the consultation. 

You could also watch our video to understand more about the Local Plan process, the stage we’ve reached and the focus of this consultation.

Attending webinars and events

We have organised webinars and events to help you understand the Local Plan and its supporting evidence, and support you in preparing your representation in the right way. Some of these will be hosted online and recorded to be viewed afterwards. Others will be held in locations across Greater Cambridge. 

Our online consultation launch

We held an online consultation launch webinar on Tuesday 4 August to set out the purpose of the consultation, what is being consulted on and how people can respond. You can watch a recording of the webinar on our YouTube. 

Join us in person at our Local Plan exhibitions

If you would like to find out more about the Local Plan or to speak to a member of the team about the consultation, join us at one of our upcoming exhibitions.  

September: 

There is no need to register in advance to attend. However, if you are able to register via eventbrite, it will help us plan staffing and ensure we have enough resources available on the day.

If you have any specific queries on the process or have any other questions about the Local Plan and its preparation to date, please contact the Planning Policy Team via email at localplan@greatercambridgeplanning.org or by phone on 01954 713694.

Viewing documents another way

If you need to review a paper copy of the Local Plan, you can do this: 

  • by appointment at Cambridge City Council’s Customer Service Centre: Mandela House, 4 Regent Street, Cambridge, CB2 1BY (phone 01223 457000)
  • at South Cambridgeshire District Council Reception: South Cambridgeshire Hall, Cambourne Business Park, Cambourne, Cambridge, CB23 6EA (phone 01954 713000) during normal opening hours
  • at Cambridge Central Library (7 Lion Yard Cambridge CB2 3QD) during normal opening hours
  • at Cambourne Library (Sackville House, Sackville Way, Cambourne, Cambridge CB23 6HD) during normal opening hours.

Further information can be found in our Statement of Representations Procedure [PDF, 0.1MB]. If you need further assistance to view the documents, email us at localplan@greatercambridgeplanning.org or phone on 01954 713694. 

Making a representation

We strongly encourage you to submit your representation online through our consultation platform. 

Before you start, please: 

  • identify the chapters, policies and site allocations you wish to comment on
  • consider whether your comments are about the legal compliance or soundness of the Local Plan
  • consider and draw up any changes you think should be made to the Plan - the more precise, the better.

When you’re ready to prepare and submit your representation, review our guidance on making a representation [PDF, 0.1MB], which includes a step-by-step guide on how to use the platform and other things to be aware of. 

Please note that at this stage, we are required to share all respondent details and representations with the Planning Inspectorate and the Inspector appointed by government to conduct the independent Examination. You can also refer to our Privacy Notice for further details of how we hold your information. 

When making your representation, you must clearly identify the chapter, policy, site allocation or supporting document you're commenting on. This will help us to understand your representation and ensure it is properly considered during the independent Examination process.

If you cannot submit your representations through our consultation platform, you will be required fill out and send us a Response Form [DOCX, 0.1MB]. Supporting information will be accepted, but for your comments to be considered they must be provided within the Response Form.

Site submissions

As part of preparing the Local Plan, the Councils must identify enough suitable land to meet future housing and employment needs. National planning policy requires us to consider sites submitted by landowners, developers and site promoters, alongside sites identified by the Councils. 

A Call for Sites in 2019 resulted in over 600 site submissions for housing and economic development. Additional sites and updated information were received through Local Plan consultations in 2020, 2021 and 2025, and through a Site Submission Update exercise in early 2025. In total, almost 1,000 sites have been considered during preparation of the Plan. 

All submitted sites can be viewed:

More information on how sites have been assessed through the Local Plan process can be found at the bottom of this page.

The Local Plan has now been through several consultation stages where sites have been submitted and considered. At this consultation, you can still make comments on sites that they believe should have been included or excluded from the Plan, in order for the Plan to be sound.

What happens next

Following the consultation, all comments will be reviewed by officers and reported to the full Council, before being submitted to the government alongside the Local Plan and its supporting documents and evidence. In line with the deadline established by government, we are required to do this by the end of December 2026.

An independent examination of the Local Plan is then expected to commence in early 2027. When submitting your representation, you will be asked whether you wish to participate in the Examination hearings. The appointed Planning Inspector will decide whether participation at a hearing session is necessary and who will be invited to attend. 

Previous stages of the Local Plan

More information on the plan-making process and previous stages of the local plan can be found below.

The Proposed Submission Greater Cambridge Local Plan shows where new homes and workplaces could be built over the next 20 years - and how essential community facilities and public services would support this expected growth. Once adopted, the joint Local Plan would become the statutory development plan for the Greater Cambridge area.  

The Local Plan sets out the Development Strategy and proposed development within the Cambridge urban area, the edge of Cambridge, new settlements, the rural southern cluster and the rest of the rural area. The plan sets out our vision for Greater Cambridge through development management policies under 7 key themes of: 

  • climate change 
  • biodiversity and green spaces
  • great places
  • wellbeing and social inclusion
  • homes
  • jobs
  • infrastructure 

Local Plan preparation follows a set process. The Proposed Submission consultation stage is the final consultation stage before the plan will be submitted to government to be independently verified to check if it is sound before it can be formally adopted. The examination by an independent planning inspector will test whether the Plan is realistic, deliverable and based on good evidence. 

Local Plans, along with national planning policy, are the foundation of decision-making on planning applications, and the Plan ensures that a consistent approach is taken to planning across Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council until 2045. 

Call for Sites - 2019

In 2019 we held an initial Call for Sites and workshops with a wide range of groups to understand what they felt the big issues for the Plan might be. 

A call for sites is a way for landowners, developers and individuals to suggest sites that might be available for development in the future. It is a normal part of plan making.    

First Conversation consultation - 2020 

In January and February 2020, we held the First Conversation – a big public consultation on the big themes and challenges for the plan. This also included a Call for Sites.

The consultation resulted in over 5,000 visitors to our website, 6,000 people attending events, 30,000 views of our videos, over 8,500 comments and responses to the consultation questions from a huge range of people, and over 650 suggested sites for development and 21 suggested sites for green spaces. This included comments on the Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report, Habitats Regulations Assessment Scoping Report, and Sustainability Appraisal. 

Our Early stages of the Local Plan Document Library includes all the documents related to the First Conversation consultation and the Call for Sites.  Documents are also available in the First Proposals document library. You can also view a map of our 2021 proposed allocations, which were consulted on as part of the First Proposals consultation. 

Responses to the First Proposals consultation can be viewed on our consultation platform. We also asked for comments using an anonymous quick questionnaire, results are in the form of a spreadsheet, and drawn out some of the key results in our report on the consultation.

First Proposals consultation - 2021

In late 2021 we held a full public consultation on the First Proposals for the Plan, including a wide range of in-person and online events and activity. Again this included a Call for Sites.  Documents from that stage are available in the First Proposals document library. You can also view a map of our 2021 proposed allocations, which were consulted on as part of the First Proposals consultation. 

Responses to the First Proposals consultation can be viewed on our consultation platform. We also asked for comments using an anonymous quick questionnaire, results are in the form of a spreadsheet [XLSX, 0.4MB], and drawn out some of the key results in our report on the consultation [PDF].

2022 to 2025

Between autumn 2022 and spring 2023 we held meetings of the Joint Local Plan Advisory Group where members talked about the consultation feedback received. 

In early 2023 Members made decisions about the development strategy and key sites as well as confirming an updated need for jobs and homes, drawing on new evidence. We held a public webinar about the Development Strategy Update where we talked through the report and answered questions.

We also explored key issues which needed to be resolved in order to more the plan forward. Documents regarding these decisions are in our First Proposals document library. 

We also held a Site Submissions Update consultation in early 2025 which allowed for updated information to be provided on previously submitted sites, or new sites to be submitted.

Draft Local Plan consultation – Winter 2025

The Draft Local Plan and supporting documents were subject to public consultation from 1 December 2025 until 30 January 2026.

The Draft Greater Cambridge Local Plan, and comments submitted, can be viewed on our consultation platform. You can find PDF versions of the Plan, supporting documents and associated evidence bases in the Draft Plan Document Library.

1286 separate people made over 8400 comments, which have been carefully considered and have helped to shape the Proposed Submission Local Plan. The Consultation Statement published alongside the Proposed Submission Local Plan provides information on how comments were taken into account. 

As part of preparing the Local Plan, the Councils must identify enough suitable land to meet future housing and employment needs. National planning policy requires us to consider sites submitted by landowners, developers and site promoters, alongside sites identified by the Councils.

Site submissions

A Call for Sites in 2019 resulted in over 600 site submissions for housing and economic development. Additional sites and updated information were received through Local Plan consultations in 2020, 2021 and 2025, and through a Site Submission Update exercise in early 2025.

In 2019, the Councils carried out a Call for Sites, inviting landowners, developers and site promoters to submit land for housing and economic development. More than 600 sites were submitted, alongside sites identified by the councils, including publicly owned land and sites with lapsed planning permission.

Further sites and updated information were submitted during Local Plan consultations in 2020, 2021 and 2025, as well as through the Site Submission Update exercise in early 2025.

In total, almost 1,000 sites have been considered during preparation of the Greater Cambridge Local Plan. Together, these sites have the potential to deliver more than 115,000 homes and around 9 million square metres of employment floorspace—significantly more development than the Local Plan requires.

All submitted sites can be viewed on the Site Register, [XLSX, 0.1MB] together with any supporting information provided by landowners and site promoters.

A site being submitted or included on the Site Register does not mean it is suitable for development or that it will be allocated in the Local Plan.

How sites are assessed

All submitted sites are assessed through the Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment (HELAA). The HELAA uses a published assessment method so that all sites are considered consistently and transparently. The assessments are based on both desk-based analysis and technical advice from officers at the Councils and Cambridgeshire County Council.

The HELAA considers 3 broad questions:

  1. Is the site suitable for development? This includes considering issues such as landscape impact, ecology, heritage, access to the highway network, environmental health and access to services and facilities.
  2. Is the site suitable for development? This includes considering issues such as landscape impact, ecology, heritage, access to the highway network, environmental health and access to services and facilities.
  3. Is the site achievable? This looks at whether development is likely to be viable and capable of being delivered.

The HELAA forms part of the evidence used to prepare the Local Plan, but it does not decide whether a site will be allocated for development. Decisions on site allocations also take account of the overall development strategy, infrastructure needs, environmental impacts and feedback from public consultation.

Being assessed positively through the HELAA also does not grant planning permission. Any future development proposal would still need to go through the normal planning application process and be assessed against the adopted development plan and all other relevant planning considerations.

Viewing site assessments 

You can view individual site assessments on the Sites Webmap and in Appendix 2 of the HELAA where sites are listed by ward.

As new information has been submitted throughout the Local Plan process, some sites have been reassessed more than once to reflect updated evidence. This is to ensure that the latest evidence is reflected.

Sites submitted between 2025 and 2026 that do not fit with the Councils' preferred Local Plan strategy have not been reassessed. More information about this approach is available in the HELAA report.

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Page last reviewed: 07 September 2026
Next review due: 17 August 2026