Member

The Government remain of the view that we need to avoid a binding relationship between local nature recovery strategies and plans, as plan-making needs to consider all the issues facing the local area and community, tested through rigorous requirements for consultation and examination. It is conceivable that in some cases the plan-making process may conclude that an aspect of a local nature recovery strategy needs to be addressed in a different way, so a degree of flexibility is needed to allow for that. Under the new system for preparing local plans, as set out in our February 2025 response to the consultation on implementation of plan-making reforms, local planning authorities will be required to prepare a statement of compliance which will include details of compliance with relevant plan-making legislation, including how the emerging local plan has taken account of relevant local nature recovery strategies.