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• District Planning: Shaping the Future of East Herts -
• Technical Studies -
• Strategic Land Availability Assessment (SLAA)

The SLAA helps ensure that there is sufficient land available across East Herts to meet the development needs of the district to 2031.

What is the SLAA?

The Strategic Land Availability Assessment (SLAA) is ongoing technical research to inform the East Herts District Plan in respect of land supply. It assesses the likelihood of sites being brought forward for development. The SLAA is separate from the District Plan which itself has assessed the general suitability of 69 broad locations against 21 topic criteria. The SLAA is being undertaken in stages or rounds alongside the preparation of the District Plan in consultation with key stakeholders.

Technical Study

Initial Report - Rounds 1 and 2 (October 2012) - sets out the SLAA methodology, analysis of the East Herts market and windfall development, and the assessment of SLAA sites

SLAA Stages

The SLAA is an ongoing piece of work and is being undertaken in the following stages using sites identified through planning applications, the Housing Capacity Assessment, the Call for Sites, the Employment Land Review and other sites deemed suitable for development:

• Round 1 (Autumn 2011) - series of stakeholder meetings to provide advice and guidance on deliverability and strategic planning 
• Round 2 (Summer 2012) - assessment of available sites for development within settlement boundaries of the six main settlements and category 1 villages
• Round 3 (Spring 2013) - assessment of sites outside settlement boundaries and any further sites within settlement boundaries
• Round 4 (ongoing) - annual update of SLAA to review site assessments and assess any additional sites

How can I get involved?

Because the SLAA is a technical piece of work and does itself not make decisions about whether a site should be developed, members of the public are not being directly consulted. However, everyone will have the opportunity to comment on any sites subsequently proposed for allocation through the statutory public consultations as part of the District Plan process. Alternatively, should a planning application be received on a SLAA site then members of the public will of course be able to make comments in respect of the specific planning application in the usual way.

Further Information

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) [126kb] - find out more about the East Herts SLAA

SLAA Project Fact Sheet [55kb] - read a useful summary setting out the purpose of the SLAA

Further questions about Strategic Land Availability Assessment (SLAA)

e: planningpolicy@eastherts.gov.uk

t: 01279 655261