New Local Plan

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Welcome to the Tower Hamlets new Local Plan consultation page.

The council is consulting on the proposed Submission Version of the draft Local Plan (under Regulation 19). This consultation is being carried out in accordance with Regulation 19 of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) Regulations 2012 and will run between Friday 13 September to Monday 28 October.

As the Council’s most important planning document, the Local Plan is used to guide decisions on planning applications in the borough. This means that if someone wants to develop a new building or change its use, they should make sure it follows the policies in the Local Plan. The proposed Submission Version of the draft Local Plan is the final draft that the council propose to submit to the Secretary of State for independent examination. The current Local Plan was adopted in January 2020 and a number of the objectives, policies and guidance contained within this plan could now be considered out-of-date as national and regional guidance is progressively updated. Once adopted, this new plan will replace the currently adopted plan.

Therefore, a new Local Plan has been prepared to ensure it takes into account emerging challenges and opportunities and benefits present and future generations. The Plan must be prepared in line with planning policy requirements set out by national and regional government.

Empowering the next generation: building a brighter future for Tower Hamlets, together.


What is the ‘regulation-19’ Plan?

The regulation-19 version is the final draft of the Plan that the council intends to submit to the Secretary of State for independent examination, also known as the ‘Proposed Submission Version’. This purpose of this consultation stage is set out within legislation and is focused on ensuring the Plan is legally compliant and that it meets the tests of ‘soundness’ as set out in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), paragraph 35.

How can you find out more about the consultation?

Further information on the nature of the regulation-19 consultation and how to submit your responses (known as representations) can be found on the What is a Local Plan Reg.19 Summary Sheet, which is also available in Bengali and Somali. We have also produced summary sheets for each theme which can be accessed in the Local Plan Regulation 19 Summary Sheets tab to the right of this web page.

In-person public engagement sessions

We will be hosting a series of in-person and online public engagement sessions. Council Officers will discuss the project and respond to any comments or queries.

These sessions are open to anyone who has an interest in the proposed Submission Version of the draft Local Plan.

The sessions will be split into two categories:

  • In-person meetings
  • Virtual meetings.

In person events

There will be two in-person drop-in sessions, where Council Officers will be available to answer any questions or queries you might have on the project. Please see the date, time and location for the sessions below:

  • Wednesday 25th September 2024, 18:30pm – 20:30pm: Tower Hamlets Council Town Hall Grocers Wing, Tower Hamlets Town Hall, 160 Whitechapel Road, London, E1 1BJ.
  • Monday 30th September 2024, 18:30pm-20:30pm: Chrisp Street Idea Store - Lab 3, 1 Vesey Path, East India Dock Road, Greater London, E14 6BT.

You do not need to register for an event, please just come along on the date and times listed above.

If you have any specific policy areas you'd like to talk about, or if you're representing a particular community group or business when attending, please let us know when you attend.

Virtual workshops

There will be two online workshops where we will do a short presentation explaining changes to the Local Plan followed by an opportunity ask questions.

These online events will be held on Microsoft Teams and are open for anyone to join, please use the links provided at the exact time and date. Alternatively, you can access through using the Meeting ID and Passwords provided.

You can also email localplan@towerhamlets.gov.uk and we will send you a Microsoft Teams calendar invite.

Meeting ID: 311 064 651 525

Passcode: sjogAt

Meeting ID: 377 379 241 582

Passcode: HsR7Pe


Meeting ID: 340 626 908 249

Passcode: uMoTqR


Virtual drop-in sessions

There will be two online drop-in sessions, where you will have the opportunity to speak to a member of the team one on one, and ask any questions you might have about the Local Plan. For this session, we ask that you book a specific 15-minute timeslot to ensure that we are able to speak with everyone who is interested. To book a timeslot, please email localplan@towerhamlets.gov.uk with a preferred 15-minute timeslot.

If you have any specific themes you'd like to talk about, or if you're representing a particular community group or business when attending, please let us know in advance if possible.

How should you respond at this stage?

This purpose of this consultation stage is set out within legislation. It is important to ensure all communities within Tower Hamlets have the opportunity to review this draft document and its supporting evidence and understand how to respond at this stage.

Representations at this stage should focus on the legal compliance and ‘soundness’ of the proposed plan. When providing your representations, you should consider the points below:

  • Is the plan legally compliant? - Does the plan comply with the relevant legislation and regulations in the way it has been prepared, and in its content?
  • Does the plan comply with the ‘Duty to Cooperate’? - Has the local planning authority engaged constructively, actively and on an ongoing basis with neighbouring authorities and other prescribed bodies during the preparation of the plan?
  • Is the plan ‘sound’? - Has the plan been ‘positively prepared’? Is it robustly justified and evidence-led? Will it be effective in what it sets out to achieve? Is it consistent with regional and national planning policy?

*It is important to note that when making a representation at this stage, you must include your full name and contact details. The Council is not able to accept anonymous submissions during this representation period.

Further information regarding the procedure of this stage is available in our Statement of Fact and Statement of Representations Procedure (Regulation 19) document.

How can you have your say?

You can tell us your views using any of the ways below:

Providing written comments to the council

You can provide written comments on the draft policies via this online form which goes through a series of questions on the draft policies within the new Local Plan. You can also comment separately on the form for Site Allocations.

If you are unable to access the online survey, please download the Regulation 19 Representation Form or collect the form at one of our consultation events and send your filled out form to us:

Next Steps

Following this consultation the Council will seek approval from Full Council early next year to submit the plan to the Secretary of State (SoS). The SoS will then appoint an independent planning inspector who will then examine the Plan and make recommendations for any modifications that are required before it can be found sound and adopted. Once adopted, the Local Plan will replace the current Local Plan which was adopted in 2020.


Privacy Notice

We process the data in accordance with the General Data Protection (GDPR) and UK privacy legislation. If you have any concerns, the Council’s Data Protection Officer can be contacted on DPO@towerhamlets.gov.uk. For more information, please visit the Legal notices page on the Council’s website and view our Spatial Planning Privacy notice, located under the ‘important documents’ tab on the left of this webpage.

Further information

For any queries, please contact the Council’s Plan Making Team at: localplan@towerhamlets.gov.uk

Previous consultations: Regulation 18 Consultation Summary

Early engagement on the new Local Plan was a non-statutory consultation process, which ran from January to March 2023. In addition to the early engagement, a further formal consultation (known as Regulation 18) took place in November and December 2023. The feedback and input received from both consultation processes informed the preparation of a proposed submission version of the draft Local Plan (Regulation 19) Local Plan. We have also compiled fact sheets summarising each policy and the changes we have made following feedback received during the last consultation, to help signpost people to where and what changes have been made.


Welcome to the Tower Hamlets new Local Plan consultation page.

The council is consulting on the proposed Submission Version of the draft Local Plan (under Regulation 19). This consultation is being carried out in accordance with Regulation 19 of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) Regulations 2012 and will run between Friday 13 September to Monday 28 October.

As the Council’s most important planning document, the Local Plan is used to guide decisions on planning applications in the borough. This means that if someone wants to develop a new building or change its use, they should make sure it follows the policies in the Local Plan. The proposed Submission Version of the draft Local Plan is the final draft that the council propose to submit to the Secretary of State for independent examination. The current Local Plan was adopted in January 2020 and a number of the objectives, policies and guidance contained within this plan could now be considered out-of-date as national and regional guidance is progressively updated. Once adopted, this new plan will replace the currently adopted plan.

Therefore, a new Local Plan has been prepared to ensure it takes into account emerging challenges and opportunities and benefits present and future generations. The Plan must be prepared in line with planning policy requirements set out by national and regional government.

Empowering the next generation: building a brighter future for Tower Hamlets, together.


What is the ‘regulation-19’ Plan?

The regulation-19 version is the final draft of the Plan that the council intends to submit to the Secretary of State for independent examination, also known as the ‘Proposed Submission Version’. This purpose of this consultation stage is set out within legislation and is focused on ensuring the Plan is legally compliant and that it meets the tests of ‘soundness’ as set out in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), paragraph 35.

How can you find out more about the consultation?

Further information on the nature of the regulation-19 consultation and how to submit your responses (known as representations) can be found on the What is a Local Plan Reg.19 Summary Sheet, which is also available in Bengali and Somali. We have also produced summary sheets for each theme which can be accessed in the Local Plan Regulation 19 Summary Sheets tab to the right of this web page.

In-person public engagement sessions

We will be hosting a series of in-person and online public engagement sessions. Council Officers will discuss the project and respond to any comments or queries.

These sessions are open to anyone who has an interest in the proposed Submission Version of the draft Local Plan.

The sessions will be split into two categories:

  • In-person meetings
  • Virtual meetings.

In person events

There will be two in-person drop-in sessions, where Council Officers will be available to answer any questions or queries you might have on the project. Please see the date, time and location for the sessions below:

  • Wednesday 25th September 2024, 18:30pm – 20:30pm: Tower Hamlets Council Town Hall Grocers Wing, Tower Hamlets Town Hall, 160 Whitechapel Road, London, E1 1BJ.
  • Monday 30th September 2024, 18:30pm-20:30pm: Chrisp Street Idea Store - Lab 3, 1 Vesey Path, East India Dock Road, Greater London, E14 6BT.

You do not need to register for an event, please just come along on the date and times listed above.

If you have any specific policy areas you'd like to talk about, or if you're representing a particular community group or business when attending, please let us know when you attend.

Virtual workshops

There will be two online workshops where we will do a short presentation explaining changes to the Local Plan followed by an opportunity ask questions.

These online events will be held on Microsoft Teams and are open for anyone to join, please use the links provided at the exact time and date. Alternatively, you can access through using the Meeting ID and Passwords provided.

You can also email localplan@towerhamlets.gov.uk and we will send you a Microsoft Teams calendar invite.

Meeting ID: 311 064 651 525

Passcode: sjogAt

Meeting ID: 377 379 241 582

Passcode: HsR7Pe


Meeting ID: 340 626 908 249

Passcode: uMoTqR


Virtual drop-in sessions

There will be two online drop-in sessions, where you will have the opportunity to speak to a member of the team one on one, and ask any questions you might have about the Local Plan. For this session, we ask that you book a specific 15-minute timeslot to ensure that we are able to speak with everyone who is interested. To book a timeslot, please email localplan@towerhamlets.gov.uk with a preferred 15-minute timeslot.

If you have any specific themes you'd like to talk about, or if you're representing a particular community group or business when attending, please let us know in advance if possible.

How should you respond at this stage?

This purpose of this consultation stage is set out within legislation. It is important to ensure all communities within Tower Hamlets have the opportunity to review this draft document and its supporting evidence and understand how to respond at this stage.

Representations at this stage should focus on the legal compliance and ‘soundness’ of the proposed plan. When providing your representations, you should consider the points below:

  • Is the plan legally compliant? - Does the plan comply with the relevant legislation and regulations in the way it has been prepared, and in its content?
  • Does the plan comply with the ‘Duty to Cooperate’? - Has the local planning authority engaged constructively, actively and on an ongoing basis with neighbouring authorities and other prescribed bodies during the preparation of the plan?
  • Is the plan ‘sound’? - Has the plan been ‘positively prepared’? Is it robustly justified and evidence-led? Will it be effective in what it sets out to achieve? Is it consistent with regional and national planning policy?

*It is important to note that when making a representation at this stage, you must include your full name and contact details. The Council is not able to accept anonymous submissions during this representation period.

Further information regarding the procedure of this stage is available in our Statement of Fact and Statement of Representations Procedure (Regulation 19) document.

How can you have your say?

You can tell us your views using any of the ways below:

Providing written comments to the council

You can provide written comments on the draft policies via this online form which goes through a series of questions on the draft policies within the new Local Plan. You can also comment separately on the form for Site Allocations.

If you are unable to access the online survey, please download the Regulation 19 Representation Form or collect the form at one of our consultation events and send your filled out form to us:

Next Steps

Following this consultation the Council will seek approval from Full Council early next year to submit the plan to the Secretary of State (SoS). The SoS will then appoint an independent planning inspector who will then examine the Plan and make recommendations for any modifications that are required before it can be found sound and adopted. Once adopted, the Local Plan will replace the current Local Plan which was adopted in 2020.


Privacy Notice

We process the data in accordance with the General Data Protection (GDPR) and UK privacy legislation. If you have any concerns, the Council’s Data Protection Officer can be contacted on DPO@towerhamlets.gov.uk. For more information, please visit the Legal notices page on the Council’s website and view our Spatial Planning Privacy notice, located under the ‘important documents’ tab on the left of this webpage.

Further information

For any queries, please contact the Council’s Plan Making Team at: localplan@towerhamlets.gov.uk

Previous consultations: Regulation 18 Consultation Summary

Early engagement on the new Local Plan was a non-statutory consultation process, which ran from January to March 2023. In addition to the early engagement, a further formal consultation (known as Regulation 18) took place in November and December 2023. The feedback and input received from both consultation processes informed the preparation of a proposed submission version of the draft Local Plan (Regulation 19) Local Plan. We have also compiled fact sheets summarising each policy and the changes we have made following feedback received during the last consultation, to help signpost people to where and what changes have been made.


Page last updated: 17 Oct 2024, 02:29 PM