Help shape the future of Central Bedfordshire – Local Plan scoping consultation now open

Central Bedfordshire Council is inviting residents, businesses and organisations to take part in its Local Plan scoping consultation and help shape how the area will grow in the years ahead.

The Local Plan is an important document that sets out the vision and framework for future development across Central Bedfordshire up to 2050. It will help plan for the homes, jobs and infrastructure the area needs, while making sure growth is supported by the right facilities and services and the environment is protected as much as possible.

Without a Local Plan, development will still happen, but it is more likely to take place in locations the council would consider unsuitable. A Local Plan still means development, but it gives the council and communities more say over where, and how, that development happens.

In 2024, the council asked residents what was important in making somewhere a great place to live and what they wanted to see included in the Local Plan. Since then, the Government has introduced changes to national planning policy and guidance through the National Planning Policy Framework, which the new Local Plan must reflect.

The process for preparing Local Plans has also changed. New legislation introduced by the Government in March 2026 now requires councils to hold a formal scoping consultation as part of plan making.

This consultation is another opportunity for residents and organisations to help shape the new Local Plan before it is written. At this stage, the council is not making decisions about specific development sites but is asking for views on the key issues facing the area.

The consultation does not replace the earlier engagement work already carried out. Instead, it gives the council an opportunity to confirm whether the issues raised previously remain important, and to ask new questions that will help inform engagement in the next stages of the Local Plan.

Feedback from the scoping consultation will help the council test and develop the plan to make sure it reflects the priorities of communities across Central Bedfordshire, including housing, the environment, infrastructure and climate change.

Councillor Adam Zerny, Leader of Central Bedfordshire Council, said: “It’s vital that with any new housing the council protects the character of our communities and our environment as much as possible. The new Local Plan also helps make sure the homes, jobs and infrastructure come about in the right places. This scoping consultation is another important opportunity for residents and businesses to help influence the Local Plan as it develops. We want to hear whether the issues and priorities identified so far, are the right ones, to make sure the Local Plan reflects what matters most to our communities.”

Central Bedfordshire Council expects to have the new Local Plan in place in 2028.

To find out more and take part in the scoping consultation, visit: www.centralbedfordshire.gov.uk/localplan