2.1. Table 1 below sets out the current planning framework for London Borough of Bexley

Table 1: Planning framework for London Borough of Bexley

National policy and guidance

2.2. Local plans must be consistent with national policy and should enable the delivery of sustainable development in accordance with the policies in the NPPF. The NPPF is also capable of being a material consideration in the determination of planning applications. Local plans should not repeat national planning policy. The Secretary of State has indicated that national policies for development management will be published for consultation in 2025, and this will affect the scope of a new local plan for Bexley. MHCLG also produces national planning guidance, including a design guide.

Regional policy and guidance

2.3. The Mayor of London produces a spatial development strategy (known as the London Plan). The current version of the London Plan was adopted in 2021. The London Plan forms part of the Development Plan for each of the London local planning authorities, and is used to assess planning applications. London boroughs’ local plans must be in general conformity with the London Plan.

2.4. The Mayor of London has begun a new London Plan, with the following published timetable:

• High level document – Towards a London Plan (expected March 2025)
• Draft London Plan consultation (by March 2026)
• Examination process (2026 to 2027)
• Adoption (2027)

2.5. The Mayor also has a number of London Plan Guidance (LPG) documents that provide further detail on policies set out in the London Plan. The Mayor adopted a new Mayoral Community Infrastructure Levy (MCIL2) in April 2019, which superseded the previous MCIL1.

Local policy and guidance

2.6. The Bexley Local Plan, which was adopted on 26 April 2023, sits alongside the London Plan as the Development Plan for Bexley and is a comprehensive policy document that contains strategic and non-strategic policies and site allocations for residential and residential-led mixed-use development. Bexley is a waste planning authority and minerals planning authority, and the Bexley Local Plan includes policies that provide the framework for decisions to be taken on these matters.

2.7. The Bexley Local Plan is less than two years old, and the Council is currently at the start of the review process – the ‘monitoring’ stage. The changes to national planning policy and legislative planning reforms, including those not yet in force, are a trigger to assess the plan against these as they happen, to test the consistency of the current local plan with the revised NPPF, and to respond to planning reforms as they are put in place. In addition, the Bexley Local Plan will need to be reviewed against general conformity with the new London Plan as that document progresses.

2.8. In this light, the Council is progressing with new studies that will allow the current local plan to continue to be relevant as national and regional policy is revised, particularly with regards to housing supply. This includes engaging and collaborating with the GLA as it prepares evidence for the new London Plan and carrying out a full review of Bexley’s designated Metropolitan Green Belt, which is mandated by government. This assessment, which will be carried out by the Council, could contribute to additional housing capacity within Bexley’s defined sustainable development locations if needed.

2.9. An interim timetable for the review of the current Bexley Local Plan, and the preparation of a new local plan, is outlined in Table 2. The first three years of the timetable - the ‘review’ part - will focus on continued monitoring of the current Bexley Local Plan and the preparation of studies (e.g. the assessment of Bexley’s green belt, which is mandated by government) to ensure that the current plan remains relevant in light of national planning policy changes and the strategic policies of a new London Plan; and, initiate the scoping and early participation stage, including a call for sites, which includes the four months’ notice of the start of plan making (which is the commencement of the 30- month plan preparation timeframe through to adoption).

2.10. The form and content of the timetable, and any further matters, are subject to change as the Secretary of State issues regulations that are necessary for some parts of the planning reforms to come into effect. Therefore, this LDS will be kept under review and updated accordingly.

2.11. Supplementary planning documents are used to provide further guidance on planning policies. They do not form part of the Development Plan for Bexley, but are material considerations in the determination of planning applications. The outcomes of the review of extant SPD are set out in Table 3. Details of SPDs currently in production are provided in Table 4, which is the preparation of Parts 2 and 3 of Bexley’s Design Guide SPD. Part 1 (Design Principles) of the SPD was adopted in January 2025. Part 3 of the Design Guide SPD will form the evidence for the local design code for the borough that will be incorporated into a new local plan.

Statement of community involvement

2.12. The Council adopted its current Statement of Community Involvement (SCI) in July 2019. The SCI sets out how people can become involved in strategic and planning implementation in Bexley.

Neighbourhood planning

2.13. Neighbourhood planning was introduced to enable local communities to take ownership of the planning and development in their area. If local residents and/or businesses think that their area may have scope to accommodate additional development over and above what is set out in the Bexley Local Plan, or that it should be provided in a different way, then they should consider forming a Neighbourhood Forum and producing a Neighbourhood Development Plan.