Final draft of Harrow’s Local Plan to be examined
Following an extensive process and detailed consultation with the community, on Wednesday 26 February, London Borough of Harrow submitted its ‘Local Plan 2021-2041 (Submission Version)’ to the Secretary of State. The Planning Inspectorate, a part of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, will now carry out an independent examination in public led by an Inspector.
To find out more about the independent examination, including a full library of all submission documents and details of how to contact the Programme Officer, see Local Plan Examination.
What is the Local Plan?
The Local Plan is a set of policies which are crucial to shaping the council’s approach to housing needs, economic sustainability, health and inequality, the local environment, biodiversity, and protecting the suburban character of our Borough. The policies developed will now be assessed by the independent Planning Inspectorate. We are grateful to everyone who has provided feedback during the recent consultations.
Here you can learn more about how the new Local Plan has been developed.
Local Plan timetable
There are a number of stages to developing a new Local Plan. The key stages are below:
- Evidence base and policy drafting. This happened between 2023-24.
- Regulation 18. This is a public consultation on the plan. This happened between February and April 2024.
- Review comments made during the public consultation and amend draft Plan as appropriate.
- Regulation 19. This is where a second consultation period occurs on the amended plan. This took place from 4th November to 17th December 2024.
- Regulation 22. This is the submission of the Local Plan. It is submitted to the Planning Inspectorate for review. This happened on Wednesday 26 February 2025.
- Regulation 24. This is the post-examination of the inspector's report. The final plan is then adopted by us (the council). This should happen in later 2025/early 2026.
Find out more about the Independent Examination
The Council has a set of pages dedicated to the independent examination, including a full library of all submission documents and details of how to contact the Programme Officer, see Local Plan Examination.
The independent examination is the final stage of the Local Plan process before it can be legally adopted. The Planning Inspectorate will appoint an inspector to lead the examination of the Harrow Local Plan on behalf of the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
The Council has appointed Louise St John Howe as the Programme Officer for the examination of the Local Plan. The Programme Officer works on behalf of the Inspector to organise and manage administrative and procedural aspects of the Examination process. She is the key point of contact for queries of this nature or matters to be raised directly with the Inspector.
New Local Plan Consultation FAQs
What is a Local Plan?
Local Plans are documents that set out a vision and a framework for the future development of an area, addressing needs and opportunities in relation to housing, the economy, community facilities, infrastructure, the environment, climate change adaptation, and good design.
Why is the Harrow Local Plan important?
The policies within the Local Plan are used to guide development and decide planning applications. They also assist in the delivery of many Council services and priorities, such as the securing of affordable housing, achieving high quality development in the borough, managing the location, quantity, and quality of development, and promoting the vibrancy and vitality of our town centres.
All of these aspects help to fulfil the Council’s priorities of putting residents first, and creating a borough that residents can be proud of.
The policies are set within the Local Plan for at least the next 5 years, so it is important to have your say on them, and help the council get it right.
Why does Harrow need a new Local Plan?
The current Local Plan was adopted in 2012 and 2013 and can be found here(External link).
Much has changed nationally, regionally, and locally since the current Local Plan was adopted. Consequently, under national and regional policies, many aspects of it are considered out-of-date and therefore a new Local Plan is required.
The new Local Plan will cover a 20-year period from 2021 to 2041.
What is the process for preparing the New Harrow Local Plan?
There are several stages to the Local Plan process, you can find detailed information on this in the Local Development Scheme(External link) (LDS) which was adopted by the Council on Thursday 16 February(External link), and can be accessed in the Documents' section of this page.
The preparation of the Local Plan includes an assessment of how policies could influence sustainability (including environmental, social and economic outcomes) health and equalities. The purpose of the IIA is to highlight and, where possible, address any undesirable effects that may arise regarding sustainability (such as the environment, society and economy), health or equalities as well as identify opportunities for improvements. All Local Plan policies, including alternative policy options have been appraised in the IIA. A Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) is also necessary to assess whether protected habitats and species may be adversely impacted by the plan’s implementation. A HRA screening assessment has been included within appendix E of the IIA (and summarised in section 10) , to assess any potential impacts of the Local Plan on any species or habitats. The findings of this are reflected in the IIA report.
The IIA documents can be downloaded in the Evidence Base below
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You can sign up the local plan mailing list, by registering at MyHarrow Talk.
Privacy Notice
We will only process personal data where we have consent to do so, and you can withdraw your consent at any time. By submitting your personal data in the response form you are consenting for us to process your data and/or consenting to be added to the consultation database. If added to the database, you can be removed upon request.
This data is collected, collated, and then submitted to the Secretary of State, who will appoint an Inspector to conduct an independent examination of the Local Plan. Demographic data will be processed anonymously to assess the effectiveness of our consultation. Where you have consented, your contact details will be added to our consultation database for future consultations and updates on the Examination in Public.
At submission representations will be made public on the council’s website, including name of person and organisation if applicable making representation. Other personal information will remain confidential. Further details contact dpo@harrow.gov.uk