Medway Local Plan Newsletter (Summer 2024)
Welcome to the fourth edition of our Local Plan Newsletter: bringing you the latest news every week this summer on Medway’s new Local Plan, which will outline Medway’s growth plans up to 2041.
Our new Local Plan consultation launched last week on Monday, 15 July. The consultation closes at 11:59pm on Sunday, 8 September 2024. During this period you have a chance to comment on:
- Proposed options for development
- The policies to help us to work towards our draft Local Plan.
Help us finalise a new Local Plan for Medway’s future.
Visit our consultation portal to view our documents and make comments
Watch our new video on the Local Plan
The Local Plan is about more than ensuring housing development is in the right place across Medway. You can comment on proposed policies for Medway’s future growth up to 2041, including:
- Improved public services
- Revitalising our town centres
- Better public transport
- More job opportunities
- Business development
- More access to green spaces
We spoke to members of our community to highlight what’s important to them for Medway’s future.
Thank you to:
– Carol Stewart: Chair of Medway African and Carribean Association
– Simon Cook: Principal at MidKent College
– David Stokes: Chief Executive Officer at Nucleus Arts
– William Draffin: Director of Digital and Future Technology at the Institute of Culture and Creative Industries
– Caroline Dennis: Project Manager at the Docking Station
Watch the video
Come to a Local Plan event this summer
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Our latest set of events take place next week:
-Tuesday, 6 August at Rochester Corn Exchange: 4pm – 7pm
-Thursday, 8 August at St Margaret’s Church: 5pm – 8pm
No need to book: Come down and look at our proposals for Medway’s future.
Find an event near you |
The Local Plan Podcast – New episode available on Monday
Want to learn more about our emerging Local Plan? Get the full picture and learn more about our proposed options for how Medway will grow up to 2041.
Our new Local Plan podcast will be available to watch online from Monday. If you’ve yet to come down to one of our events, this podcast is the perfect way to learn the key details and hear from our Chief Planning Officer, Dave Harris and our Portfolio Holder for Climate Change and Strategic Regeneration, Cllr Simon Curry.
Watch the podcast from Monday on our website
The three options for Medway’s future growth
This consultation includes details on proposed policies and potential areas for development. It sets out three options for locating development across Medway. These are as follows:
1. Urban focus
Option 1 seeks to maximise development on brownfield sites in urban centres and waterfront
sites, and accessible areas that benefit from good transport links.
2. Dispersed growth
Option 2 considers more limited land being provided through regeneration. This option
involves a much higher release of land on greenfield and Green Belt sites, including the
Hoo Peninsula, Capstone Valley, East and North of Rainham and Medway Valley.3.
3. Blended Strategy
Option 3 blends regeneration and greenfield development. This preferred option reflects our current thinking and follows a ‘brownfield first’ focus (around 50% of new development would be on brownfield sites) with regeneration in urban centres and waterfront locations, complemented by a range of sites in suburban and rural areas.
You can comment on these options in this consultation.
We will be taking account of the comments raised in the consultation in carrying out further work
to finalise the proposed development sites at the next stage of the Draft Plan in 2025.
Read more about the options and how to comment
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How to take part
- You can comment on the proposals via our online consultation portal
- If you prefer not to answer the detailed questions in our main document, you can also take part by completing four questions via a shorter (summary version) of the main Local Plan consultation document (also available via our online portal)
- Visiting one of our libraries and looking through our printed copy of our main consultation document and policy maps
- Going to one of our public events taking place across Medway (more details below)
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Take a look at our summary booklet. The perfect guide to gain an overview of Medway’s emerging Local Plan.
Available to view from our Medway libraries and consultation events this summer.
You can also view a copy online via our consultation portal |
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