GATEWAY 1 SELF-ASSESSMENT SUMMARY

Gateway 1 is the first of three mandatory gateways that we are required to complete through the plan making process, with Gateway 1 providing an opportunity to evaluate our progress across five areas:

• Local Plan Timetable;
• Project Management/governance;
• Engagement strategy;
• Anticipated content; and
• Strategic Environmental Assessment progress.

Our emerging Local Plan will incorporate a Minerals and Waste Plan and will be prepared inline with Regulation 21 (self-assessment for Local Plans) and Regulation 46 (self-assessment for Minerals and Waste Plans) of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2026.

How we got ready to prepare a new local plan

On 29 June 2026 we gave notice of our intention to commence work on a new Local Plan and published our Local Plan timetable. This was followed by a Scoping Consultation which ran from 13 July to 23 August 2026.

The start of the 30-month plan preparation period officially starts on 30^th October 2026; this being the date that our Gateway 1 self-assessment (this document) is published. Government policy says we should adopt the new plan within 30 months of this date. This is to help ensure we have an up-to-date local plan that responds to the needs of the area and our communities.

This page explains what we did to get ready to meet the 30-month timeframe. It also has links to further information and where you can get updates.

The Local Plan will be a key document in helping to deliver the Partnership Planand the Vision for Dartmoor. Further information about what the Local Plan does and how it is being prepared can be viewed at Emerging Dartmoor Local Plan 2026 | Dartmoor.

We published a timetable for preparing the plan

The timetable shows when we expect to carry out the different stages and activities for preparing a plan. It helps us check if and how we can adopt the plan within the 30-month timeframe. We’ll keep this updated as we make more progress.

The published timetable provides a high-level overview of the key milestones. It is supported by a detailed project plan that identifies the wider range of plan-making tasks, relevant working groups and interdependencies between tasks. This gives us confidence that sufficient time has been allocated to each stage of the process. The timing of Gateway 2 has been considered carefully to ensure there is adequate time to respond to the Inspectors’ observations and undertake any additional work that may be required.

In preparing for the plan-making process:

• we have reviewed the capacity of the existing Forward Planning team and secured additional funding to provide extra resource where required
• we have established project management and governance arrangements as detailed below
• we are engaging with the Devon and Torbay Combined Authority and neighbouring planning authorities to explore opportunities for joint working and the efficient delivery of shared areas of work.

It is a challenging programme and some parts of the process, for example, assessments and examination by the Planning Inspectorate, are out of our control. Nevertheless, we have established a strong project management framework, allocated appropriate resources and put in place governance arrangements that provide confidence in our ability to progress the Local Plan efficiently and effectively.

View our Local Plan Timetable here.

We established project management and governance arrangements  

Preparing a local plan is a complex process. It involves many people across the council and from other organisations. Thinking early about how the work is planned, managed and signed off helps us monitor our progress and keep the work on track. It also helps us anticipate and manage any risks to us adopting the plan within 30 months.

At the outset of the process, we prepared a Project Initiation Plan. The document sets out the programme timetable, governance arrangements, resource requirements, risk management framework and budget needed to support plan preparation. It has been endorsed by the Chair of the Development Management Committee and the Director of Spatial Planning, providing strategic oversight and organisational commitment to the programme.

We have reviewed our governance arrangements to ensure they support the efficient delivery of the Local Plan. Delegated authority has been granted to the Director of Spatial Planning and the Chair of the DM Committee to approve amendments to the timetable where necessary. Regular engagement with our Members will be conducted through quarterly meetings with our Planning and Sustainable Development Panel. A programme of meetings with the Leadership Team has also been established to provide regular progress updates and facilitate timely decision-making.

A comprehensive risk register has been developed and will be reviewed regularly alongside programme delivery and resource requirements.

We planned how we’ll consult on the plan

Public consultation is essential for the local plan to represent the needs of our communities. It must be easy for people to have their say in a way that works for them, so they can influence the way the area develops. By planning this early, we can ensure people are aware in advance and can get involved from the start.

We have undertaken a scoping consultation to get people’s views on what the plan could contain and how we propose to consult on the plan at key stages.

Our scoping consultation told us that:

• most people preferred to engage online
• face to face meetings and workshops were felt necessary to discuss complex matters
• people wanted smaller and shorter questionnaires to complete
• some people did not feel they knew enough about planning to engage in the scoping consultation
• younger people under 25 are underrepresented.

In response to this feedback, we have developed an Engagement Strategy that retains a digital first approach but incorporates workshops and drop-in events. To supplement this, we will be publishing short regular newsletters to provide updates on our progress in short and concise communications. To improve engagement with younger people we have committed to undertaking targeted engagement and dedicated workshops.

Our Engagement Strategy can be viewed here.

We began scoping the content of the plan

Scoping includes considering how well the existing plan is working and gathering baseline information about the area. This helps to identify our future needs and ambitions. Starting this early means we can begin preparing the new plan with a clear vision, making it quicker and easier to consult on the plan and make decisions about it.

For project management purposes we have used the current local plan as the starting point and have identified evidence that we know will need to be updated.

The Vision for Dartmoor has been developed with partners and sets a shared vision for the place up to 2045. Through our scoping consultation, we have sought views on which aspects of the Vision should be prioritised in the Local Plan and how effectively the existing Local Plan is delivering its objectives. We are currently reviewing and analysing all responses received.

The emerging Partnership Plan provides the overarching framework for delivering the Vision and is already informing Local Plan preparation. The Partnership Plan is expected to be published for consultation later this year.

The recently published National Planning Policy Framework provides further clarity on national planning priorities and the requirements for local plan preparation.

Together, these documents and the feedback received through the scoping consultation will define the scope of the emerging Local Plan and identify any gaps in the evidence base. This work is scheduled to be completed before the next consultation.

We began a Strategic Environmental Assessment

We’re legally required to identify, describe and evaluate likely significant effects on the environment of:

• implementing the local plan
• reasonable alternatives, taking into account the plan’s objectives and scope

This process will consider how community, national and international environmental protection objectives and any other environmental challenges are taken into account in the plan. It will help us to predict significant environmental effects and develop ways of preventing, reducing and offsetting these.

It is important we start this work early and are transparent about how we’re doing the assessment when engaging stakeholders and communities.

A Strategic Environmental Assessment has been undertaken for the Partnership Plan and as such much of the work to identify other relevant plans and programmes, collecting baseline information and identifying SEA objectives has been started.

We will be looking to undertake a separate consultation on the scope of our SEA prior to the consultation on local plan content and evidence base.

How to stay up to date

For our latest updates on the progress of the Local Plan please subscribe for updates on our Keep In Touch webpage or visit our emerging Local Plan webpage.

You can also follow the work that DNPA does at:  

Facebook: Dartmoor National Park

Instagram: lovedartmoor

LinkedIn: Dartmoor National Park Authority

X: @dartmoornpa

YouTube: @DartmoorNationalPark

Alternatively, you can contact our planning officers by email at Forwardplanning@dartmoor.gov.uk, phone 01626 832093 or at our office at: Dartmoor National Park Authority, Parke, Bovey Tracey, Newton Abbot, Devon TQ13 9JQ