Gateway 1 self-assessment summary

Purpose

The requirement to produce a gateway 1 self-assessment of readiness for Local Plan preparation is set out in the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2026 (Regulation 21).

The purpose of Gateway 1 is to make sure that we are focusing on the right issues from the start of the plan preparation.

The Kirklees self-assessment focusses on five key areas of preparing a new plan:

• Preparing and publishing a local plan timetable.
• Establishing project management and governance arrangements about the preparation of the plan.
• The council's approach to consulting and engaging on the plan.
• How we are scoping the content of the plan.
• Progressing the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA).

How we got ready to prepare a new local plan

Preparation of the new Kirklees Local Plan commenced on 30 October 2026 and covers the whole of the Kirklees administrative area, excluding the part within the Peak District National Park. The Kirklees Local Plan will also incorporate the Minerals and Waste Plan.

The plan is being prepared under the Government's new plan-making system, which prescribes a 30-month preparation period following a Getting Ready stage. This is to ensure we have an up-to-date local plan that responds to the needs of the area and our communities.

This self-assessment explains what we did to get ready to meet the 30-month timeframe. It also has links to further information and where you can get updates. For the latest plan information, see: Emerging Kirklees Local Plan.

It should be noted that Kirklees began plan preparation under the previous plan-making framework. This self-assessment explains which elements of that earlier work remain relevant and have been carried forward into the new plan-making process.

In October 2023, Cabinet approved a full update of the Local Plan under the previous planning system. Since then, we have gathered a substantial evidence base and undertaken extensive early engagement with residents, businesses and stakeholders. This included an early engagement survey carried out between November 2024 and February 2025: Kirklees Local Plan Early Engagement Survey.

Following the introduction of the new plan-making system in March 2026, we decided to progress the Local Plan under the new arrangements: Agenda for Cabinet on Tuesday 24th March 2026, 1.30 pm. A formal Notice of intention to commence plan preparation was published in April 2026.

Work to assess potential development sites has also continued through our Call for Sites process. While the process has been open since 2020, submissions were paused in August 2025 to allow detailed technical assessments to be undertaken with internal and external consultees.

Between August and September 2026, we undertook a Kirklees Local Plan Scoping Consultation, seeking views on key issues, evidence needs, planning priorities, a future vision for Kirklees and preferred methods of future engagement. Feedback from this consultation, together with ongoing evidence gathering, site assessments and engagement with elected Members and stakeholders, will help shape the emerging Local Plan. A summary of responses can be viewed on our website: Emerging Kirklees Local Plan.

Local plan timetable

The Kirklees Local Plan Timetable can be viewed via the council's website at: Local Plan Timetable.

The timetable shows when we expect to carry out the different stages and activities for preparing a plan and will be reviewed monthly. It helps us check if and how we can adopt the plan within the 30-month timeframe.

The timetable shows when we expect to carry out the different stages and activities for preparing a plan and will be reviewed monthly. It helps us check if and how we can adopt the plan within the 30-month timeframe.

To help deliver our plan within 30 months, we:

• Established a cross service Local Plan Project Board and regular senior management oversight.
• Put in place delegated decision-making at specified milestones.
• Maintained proactive engagement with residents, businesses and stakeholders.
• Created a dedicated Member SharePoint site and programme of Member briefings to share Local Plan evidence and Plan updates.
• Engaged early with the Planning Inspectorate and Planning Advisory Service.
• Scoped digital consultation and response-analysis tools to support efficient engagement and plan preparation.

We have established project management and governance arrangements

Preparing a local plan is a complex process. It involves many people across the council and from other organisations. Thinking early about how the work is planned, managed and signed off helps us monitor our progress and keep the work on track. It also helps us anticipate and manage any risks to us adopting the plan within 30 months

To support this, we have prepared a Local Plan Project Initiation Document (PID). The PID establishes the scope, programme, governance structure, resources, budget and risk management arrangements for preparing and adopting the Local Plan. It provides a clear framework for decision-making and delivery, helping to ensure compliance with statutory requirements and effective project management throughout the plan-making process.

Formal decision-making on the Local Plan rests with Cabinet and Council. However, Cabinet has approved delegated authority for the Executive Director of Place, in conjunction with the Regeneration, Highways and Transport portfolio to take decisions at specified milestones of the plan-making process: Agenda for Cabinet on Tuesday 24th March 2026, 1.30 pm. This will support the progress of the Local Plan to meet the 30-month timetable.

Progress is overseen through the Local Plan Project Board, with regular reporting to the Head of Planning and Development. Updates on Local Plan progress and key decisions will also be reported to the Council's Scrutiny Panel to ensure transparency and accountability.

We planned how we will consult on the plan

Public consultation is essential for the local plan to represent the needs of our communities. It must be easy for people to have their say in a way that works for them, so they can influence the way the area develops. By planning this early, we can ensure people are aware in advance and can get involved from the start.

As part of this, we carried out a Local Plan Scoping Consultation to seek views on the issues the plan should address and how residents, businesses and stakeholders would like to be involved in the plan-making process.

Our Local Plan Engagement Strategy has been informed by:

• Feedback from the Local Plan Scoping Consultation.
• The Council's Statement of Community Involvement (March 2024)
• The Kirklees Inclusive Communities Framework
• Government guidance on Engaging the public when preparing a local plan - GOV.UK

The strategy aims to:

• Engage communities and stakeholders at the earliest opportunity.
• Help people understand the Local Plan process and how feedback has influenced decisions.
• Clearly set out when and how people can get involved.
• Use proportionate and targeted engagement methods to reach different audiences.
• Provide a range of accessible engagement opportunities, including in-person events, online consultation, workshops, social media and digital communications including Kirklees Together.

We are increasing our use of digital engagement tools to make participation easier and to help analyse consultation responses more efficiently.

To support informed engagement, we will publish the Local Plan evidence base in November 2026, ahead of consultation on the proposed plan content and supporting evidence in June 2027.

We began scoping out the content of the plan

Scoping includes considering how well the existing plan is working and gathering baseline information about the area. This helps to identify our future needs and ambitions. Starting this early means we can begin preparing the new plan with a clear vision, which makes it quicker and easier to consult on the plan and make decisions about it.

Work on scoping the new Local Plan began with a review of the existing Plan. We then identified and commissioned updates to the evidence base needed to understand the area's needs and challenges, and how the new Plan could respond to them.

We have developed a baseline understanding of Kirklees by:

• Reviewing data sources identified in government guidance: Gathering baselining information to inform a local plan - GOV.UK
• Scoping and commissioning up-to-date Local Plan evidence.
• Preparing a Strategic Environmental Assessment Scoping Report.
• Undertaking Local Plan Scoping Consultation (August - September 2026).
• Reviewing National Planning Policy Framework Development Management Policies alongside existing Local Plan policies to identify where locally specific policies may be justified.
• Reviewing Authority Monitoring Reports to identify trends, strengths and areas where current policies may need improvement.

Using this information and with input from our Local Plan Project Board, we have:

• Consulted on a draft vision and objectives for Kirklees through the Local Plan Scoping Consultation. These will continue to be refined as the Plan progresses, alongside the development of ten measurable outcomes to monitor delivery.
• Begun analysing the evidence base to identify future development requirements and potential locations for growth. Completed evidence studies will be published and shared with Members and the public in November 2026.

We will continue to:

• Consider whether new planning policies are required to address local issues and priorities.
• Develop a spatial strategy that identifies how and where future development should be accommodated across Kirklees.

The proposed Local Plan content, supporting evidence and emerging spatial strategy will be consulted upon in June 2027.

We began a Strategic Environmental Assessment

As we prepare the new Local Plan, we must assess how it could affect the environment. This is known as a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). The process will also incorporate an Equality Impact Assessment (EqIA) and Health Impact Assessment (HIA) to help ensure the plan considers impacts on people and communities.

We're legally required to identify, describe and evaluate likely significant effects on the environment of:

• implementing the local plan
• reasonable alternatives, taking into account the plan's objectives and scope.

This process will consider how community, national and international environmental protection objectives and any other environmental challenges are considered in the plan. It will help us to predict significant environmental effects and develop ways of preventing, reducing and offsetting these.

It is important we start this work early and are transparent about how we're doing the assessment when engaging stakeholders and communities.

In October 2024, Kirklees Council appointed specialist consultants, Land Use Consultants (LUC), to support the environmental assessment of the new Local Plan.

An initial Sustainability Appraisal (SA), incorporating the Strategic Environment Assessment Scoping Report was prepared between December 2024 and March 2025. This gathered information on a range of Plans and Strategies that may impact the Local Plan, baseline information on the Kirklees environment and identified the key issues that the Local Plan should address. The report was shared with organisations such as Natural England, the Environment Agency and Historic England, as well as neighbouring councils, for their comments.

When the Government introduced the new plan-making system in March 2026, other legislative requirements were made with councils no longer needing to prepare a Sustainability Appraisal for their Local Plans. However, the duty to produce a Strategic Environmental Assessment remained as legally required under the Environmental Assessment of Plans and Programmes Regulations 2004 (the SEA Regulations). The Strategic Environmental Assessment can be viewed via Emerging Kirklees Local Plan.

The earlier work was then updated and converted into a standalone SEA Scoping Report. This includes updated information on environmental conditions, relevant policies and the key environmental issues facing Kirklees. The updated SEA Scoping Report was consulted on with Natural England, the Environment Agency, Historic England and neighbouring local authorities between 13 August and 18 September 2026.

We are now reviewing the comments received. Where appropriate, we will update the information and assessment framework before carrying out the next stage of environmental assessment. The findings will help inform the preparation of the new Local Plan and will be published in a future SEA Report. We also published the SEA Scoping Report alongside our Local Plan Scoping Consultation which was undertaken over the same period.

We will continue to review any new requirements for Environmental Outcomes Reports at the point of secondary legislation being enacted.

We began a Habitats Regulations Assessment

In preparing the new Local Plan, we must assess whether it could have significant effects on internationally important nature conservation sites. This is known as a Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA).

The HRA helps us to:

• Identify any internationally important nature conservation sites that could be affected by the Local Plan.
• Understand the potential effects of the Local Plan on these sites.
• Consider ways to avoid or reduce any harmful effects.
• Ensure nature conservation requirements are considered throughout plan-making.

The assessment focuses on sites protected under the Habitats Regulations, including Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and Special Protection Areas (SPAs).

Starting this work early helps us identify potential issues at an early stage and ensures that the Local Plan takes account of important habitats and species as it is prepared.

Work completed so far

In October 2024, Kirklees Council appointed specialist consultants, Land Use Consultants (LUC), to undertake the Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) for the new Local Plan.

An initial HRA Scoping Report has been prepared as an early stage of the assessment process. The report identifies the relevant internationally designated sites that may need to be considered and establishes the scope of the assessment. The report was consulted on with Natural England between February and March 2025, who agreed with the scoping conclusions. Further HRA reports will be prepared alongside future stages of the Local Plan to assess potential effects and inform the development of policies and site allocations.

How to stay up to date

For updates about upcoming consultation activities, register for updates on our Kirklees Council Planning Consultations

Follow Kirklees Council on social media to see our progress in preparing the local plan.