Local Plan Consultations

Meaningful engagement with stakeholders and the local community is a fundamental part of preparing our new Local Plan. Early and ongoing consultation helps to ensure that the Local Plan reflects local priorities, benefits from local knowledge, and is informed by those who live, work and carry out business in the district. It also supports transparency and builds confidence in the plan‑making process.

To support this approach, the Council has prepared a Local Plan Engagement Strategy which outlines the principles that will guide engagement throughout the plan-making process, together with the range of methods that may be used to involve residents, businesses, community groups, local councillors and other stakeholders. The Engagement Strategy can be viewed here. It should be read alongside the Council's Statement of Community Involvement (SCI), which sets out the Council's wider approach to consultation on planning matters.

This webpage will be updated as the plan progresses to ensure accurate and up to date information on engagement is provided. The below button will take you to the online Consultation Portal where you can see past and present engagement events and sign up to our database to be contacted regarding the new Local Plan.

Consultation Portal

This consultation is now closed. All responses received during the consultation period will be considered and will help inform the next stages of Local Plan preparation. A summary of comments and how they have been taken into account will be published as part of the engagement process.

The first consultation as part of the new plan-making system is the Scoping Consultation. This is the first opportunity for meaningful early engagement from the local community and stakeholders. Comments at this stage could be made about:

  • What the plan should contain; 
  • How East Herts should engage with stakeholders and the community in the preparation for the plan; and
  • The content of the Sustainability Appraisal (SA) / Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Scoping Document.

This was open for comments from 11 June to 10 July 2026.

The best way to respond was through the council’s online consultation platform.

Comments could also be submitted by email or post as follows:

Email: planningpolicy@eastherts.gov.uk

Post:  Planning Policy Team
          East Herts Council
          Wallfields
          Pegs Lane
          Hertford
          SG13 8EQ

The Public Notice provides key information about the East Herts Local Plan Scoping Consultation, including how to view documents and submit your comments. Please click here to view this notice.

Consultation on Local Plan Content and Evidence

This consultation is expected to start in February 2027 and run for six weeks.

Consultation on the Proposed Local Plan

This consultation is expected to start in February 2028 and run for eight weeks.

Details of any upcoming in-person engagement events will be available here.

Under the new plan-making system, there is a focus on digital approaches to engagement. We use the digital consultation platform Objective to run our consultation events.

Physical copies of consultation documents are also available at the Wallfields Council offices (Pegs Lane, Hertford, SG13 8EQ; opening hours - Tuesdays and Thursdays 10am – 2pm).

If you need any further support in submitting your comments in a consultation, please contact planning.policy@eastherts.gov.uk.

To ensure you are receiving emails about upcoming consultations and the plan process, please sign up to our planning mailing list and database here.

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