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The Levelling Up & Regeneration Act (LURA) 2023 has introduced Neighbourhood Priorities Statements (NPS).
The Statements should be prepared by the local community and provide an optional, “light touch” to Neighbourhood Development Plans (NDPs).
Although they do not form part of the Development Plan, the Statements provide communities with the opportunity to set out their aspirations for the future and identify any local issues in relation to planning matters.
The Local Planning Authority (LPAs) should then have regard to them in the preparation of Local Plans.
Please note, greater weight can be given to Statements which can demonstrate community engagement.
The South Downs National Park Authority (SDNPA) is an early adopter of these Statements and, at this pilot stage, the Statements have been renamed to “Parish Priorities Statements (PPS)”.
In 2023, the SDNPA encouraged all town and parish councils within the National Park to prepare a PPS as part of the evidence base for the South Downs Local Plan Review (LPR).
We have produced a template to support town and parish councils in the preparation and production of Parish Priorities Statements (PPS).
The template follows the limited guidance that has been set out in the LURA 2023. The use of this template is intended to allow a PPS to be easily converted into a Neighbourhood Priorities Statement (NPS) at a later date.
You can submit your PPS to the SDNPA Planning Policy Team at planningpolicy@southdowns.gov.uk.
The following Parish Priorities Statements (PPS) have been submitted to the SDNPA.
