Monitoring will be a critical element in accessing the delivery of the Local Development Plan (LDP) once it is adopted and published. The Council will therefore regularly update data, review land use decisions and work with its partners in order to identify how the LDP is meeting its Strategic Objectives and what issues or new opportunities are emerging within the Borough.
In view of the importance of monitoring in delivery of the LDP, the new planning system introduced in 2015 requires the Council to prepare an Annual Monitoring Report (AMR) following the adoption of its LDP to be submitted each year to the Department for Infrastructure. As a minimum the AMR will specify a supply of sufficient land is maintained for future economic development; the amount of employment land available for development in Strategic Employment Locations and Local Employment sites identified through the Draft Plan Strategy (DPS) process.
An Employment Land Evaluation Report (ELER) 2019 was prepared in support of our Local Development Plan (LDP) 2030 – Evidence Paper 3 ‘Economic Growth’, and identified nineteen sites designated as ‘Strategic Employment Locations’ (SEL); seventeen of these zonings coming forward from extant development plans. The DPS also identified a need a further two SEL sites, one in Antrim, and one in Ballyclare.
Since publication of the DPS and supporting ELER in July 2019, Officers from the Forward Planning Section have prepared annual ELER monitoring reports using survey information gathered each year from April to March, building on the 2019 baseline.
The ELER Monitor ‘Remaining Employment Lands’ does not interpret the information gathered, nor is it an exact science. However, it continues to form part of the evidence base for the LDP and will be used to inform judgements on future industrial and economic development growth provided through the Plan. This is consistent with the Strategic Planning Policy Statement for Northern Ireland (SPPS) which states,
A fundamental role for LDPs is to ensure that there is an ample supply of suitable land available to meet economic development needs within the plan area… A system to monitor take up and loss of land allocated for economic development purposes as well as ongoing assessment of future requirements and trends will help to identify any shortfalls that may arise or highlight the need to reconsider the proposed use of sites”.
- ANBC Employment Land Evaluation Report for the 2024 period - click here