Second delay proposed for county’s Local Development Plan

Lewis Smith, Local Democracy Reporter

A council is proposing to delay its long-term development plans until after the May 2027 local elections, raising concerns that the area could be left without an up-to-date planning framework.

All councils in Wales develop a Local Development Plan, which sets out each local planning authority’s proposals for future developments and use of land in their areas over the coming 15 years.

An initial deposit plan for Neath Port Talbot’s new LDP was originally meant to be consulted on between November and December 2025, but this was later delayed until the winter of 2026.

A report given to members in October said it was now proposing a second delay of a year until after the 2027 local government elections had taken place.

This would give time for additional works, including reviewing the viability of proposed housing allocations, assessing population and household projections, and the impact of forthcoming changes to the Welsh building regulations.

The report said: “This will provide additional time to strengthen the evidence base, address emerging issues, and ensure that the deposit plan is robust, deliverable, and capable of withstanding independent examination.”

It added: “The deposit plan represents the council’s final draft plan prior
to consultation and examination.

“Deferring consideration until after the local government elections will allow the newly-elected council to take ownership of the plan at a critical stage, overseeing consultation, considering representations, determining whether the plan should proceed to examination and ultimately plan adoption.

“Finally, aligning the key decision-making stages of the replacement LDP within a single council term would help provide greater continuity, reduce the risk of delay, and support a more streamlined and efficient plan-making process.

“Experience elsewhere in Wales has shown that changes in political administration during plan preparation can result in programme slippage and the need for further review of plan content.”

However it also highlighted that extending the timetable for the plan would increase the amount of time that the council will be without its own planning framework as the current LDP is set to expire in December 2026.

The request to delay the process will now go to full council for a decision in the coming weeks.