Community infrastructure levy (CIL)

The Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) is one mechanism that the Council, as local planning authority, can use to capture funds from new development to deliver infrastructure. The CIL mechanism was established through the Planning Act 2008 and came into force under the Community Infrastructure Levy Regulations 2010. CIL enables councils to use developer contributions more flexibly (e.g. several developments sharing the cost of a specific piece of infrastructure; or saving funds towards a specific long-term project investment).

The aim of CIL is to reduce uncertainty around the timetable for the planning application process – especially for larger developments – because of the sometimes long and tortuous negotiations associated with s106 agreements. CIL enables a single payment to be made by the developer to cover a range of infrastructure needs; and it allows pooling of contributions over time from different developments towards a single major infrastructure project that no one development could afford on its own.

Bexley’s Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) scheme came into effect from April 2015, replacing elements of the Council’s previous policies on developer contributions through s106 agreements.

The Council’s allocation of CIL is undertaken as part of the Council’s capital programme bidding process. The Council evaluates any bids against strategic priorities, having regard to the CIL regulations.

This process was previously informed by the Council’s Regulation 123 List, which specified the sorts of infrastructure the Council would spend CIL receipts on. However, as a result of changes to the regulations this statement effectively replaces the Regulation 123 list. CIL receipts will be allocated on an annual basis to support the delivery of infrastructure projects in line with the Council’s capital programme.

The need for infrastructure to support development is confirmed in the Bexley Local Plan and infrastructure priorities are set out in the Council’s latest Infrastructure Delivery Plan, which together with the funding gap, justifies the collection of CIL. Infrastructure priorities include the following:

• transport improvements such as bus priority schemes and enhancements to walking and cycling facilities
• education, cultural, health and community facilities such as new library provision and the expansion of primary, secondary and SEN school places
• environmental and green infrastructure and public realm improvements such as park enhancements and tree planting programmes
• sport and recreational facilities such as new and improved play equipment and sports pitches

It is currently estimated that over the plan period of the Bexley Local Plan, the total borough CIL receipts would amount to approximately £27m.

Unlike s106 agreements, the rate of CIL payable is both mandatory and non-negotiable. CIL is charged per square metre (gross floorspace) and must be paid once the development commences. The amount of CIL payable depends on where the development is located within the borough and the type of development.

Find out more about the Council’s annual CIL Rate summary

View the Bexley CIL Charging Schedule and map of the charging zones (PDF)