Comhairle nan Eilean Siar are seeking proposals from communities on the development of a new Local Place Plans (LPPs) in accordance with The Planning (Scotland) Act 2019.

LPPs have been introduced to encourage communities to be active participants in planning for their futures and to have a more direct role in the decisions that influence their place.

LPPs focus on the community's proposals for the development and use of land and provide a new opportunity for communities to feed into the planning system with ideas and proposals. If a Local Place Plan is registered by the Comhairle, they are required to take the contents into account when preparing the next Local Development Plan.

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For the council to validate and register Local Place Plans submitted to them, they need to comply with the guidance set out in the Circular. A key feature of LPPs is that they are prepared by a 'community body' and contain proposals for the development and use of land, and the proposals are shown on a map.

The Comhairle cannot prepare Local Place Plans for communities, but can help advise on the process and requirements and can signpost groups to sources of information and practical help.

Community bodies can prepare an LPP at any time, but if their purpose in preparing one is to influence our next Local Development Plan, it should be submitted to the Comhairle by September 2024.

The Planning department will keep a register of Local Place Plans as they are prepared. Once registered, Local Place Plans will have a statutory role in shaping the planning process. They will require to be taken account of by the council when it is preparing the next LDP.

No Local Place Plans are currently registered with Comhairle nan Eilean Siar.