The government has confirmed that a completely new local plan-making system for England will go live in early 2026, backed by fresh regulations and detailed guidance on how councils must prepare their plans.

At the heart of the reforms is a 30-month timetable for producing new-style local plans. Councils will be required to publish a clear “local plan timetable”, keep it up to date and revise it at least once a year so communities, landowners and developers can see exactly when key consultation and examination stages are due.

The new system, which applies only to England, sets out defined “gateway” stages – including an early readiness self-assessment and a formal test of whether draft plans meet prescribed requirements before they can proceed to examination. Plans must include a vision for the area, up to ten measurable outcomes, and a mapped set of policies published online in a searchable digital format.

Crucially for site promoters and objectors, the guidance confirms that the reformed system will eventually be accompanied by revised national plan-making policy and an updated National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), with consultation expected before summer 2026.

For applicants, the message is that England’s plan-led system is here to stay – but with stronger expectations that every authority has an up-to-date local plan and a transparent programme for updating it. For councils, there is now a clear signal to start gearing up internal resources and evidence bases for the new model.

For planning consultants and developers, early engagement with emerging plan timetables, gateway stages and site-selection processes will be essential. Schemes that align with the vision and measurable outcomes in the next generation of local plans are likely to find the decision-making process more predictable – and, in theory, faster – once the reforms bed in.