Falkirk Communities Invited to Prepare Local Place Plans

Falkirk Council is inviting communities across the Falkirk District to prepare their own Local Place Plans (LPPs).

What is a Local Place Plan?

Introduced by the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019, Local Place Plans (LLPs) are a new approach to local participation in planning, designed to empower communities to come together and agree priorities for how they want to see their defined area develop and change in the future.

They are part of Scottish Government’s wider work on planning reform and implementation of the 2019 Act, including steps to reduce conflict, improve community engagement and build public trust in planning matters. They are designed to offer the opportunity for a community-led, collaborative approach to creating great local places, where communities can set out their aspirations for future planning in the area.

A key feature of LPPs is that they contain proposals for the development and use of land, setting out how and why any existing LPP should be amended; they may also identify land and buildings of particular significance in the local area. These proposals are then shown on a map.

Examples of proposals which could feature in LPPs include, but are not limited to:

• sites for housing, employment, tourism, or community growing
• improvements to local green spaces, playparks, community facilities, or town or local centres
• re-use or redevelopment of vacant and derelict sites
• active travel enhancements (such as improved path links for walking, cycling and wheeling)
• conservation of local wildlife or built heritage (eg. restoration of an historic building, or creation of a new habitat)
• projects to sustainably manage flood risk or protect and restore the water environment

LPPs can only be prepared by community bodies. These are defined as either:

1. a community-controlled body within the definition given in Section 19 of the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015
2. a community council established in accordance with Part 4 of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973

Falkirk Local Development Plan 3

The Falkirk Local Development Plan 3 (LDP3) is the statutory guide for future development in the Falkirk District, including where development should (or should not) take place. It must take into account any LLPs prepared by local communities.

Falkirk Council has started initial work on preparing the LDP3, including online consultations (available on the Falkirk Council website), which is due to be adopted in 2027.

While community bodies can prepare a LPP at any time, to be taken into account by the LDP3 these must be submitted to Falkirk Council by Tuesday 1^st April 2025.

Further information on the LDP3, and how LLPs fit into the process, is available in the Falkirk Council LDP3 Development Plan Scheme.

Support Available

• a brief guide to LLPs (linked for your convenience), published by Falkirk Council, with an overview to help community bodies understand the process, and determine if a LLP is right for their community
  • this includes detailed information on the assistance available around preparing a LLP
• tools, documents and web maps, via the Evidence Report page
• Scottish Government’s planning circular on LLPs
• Our Place Scotland overview
• Communities Chanel Scotland overview
• support and resources from Planning Aid Scotland (PAS)
• “How To Guide for developing Local Place Plans across Scotland”, developed by the Scottish Community Development Centre (SCDC) and Nick Wright Planning
  • SCDC’s central hub for LLP work and information

Alternatively, for further information about LLPs locally in the Falkirk District, please contact the team at Falkirk Council by email: ldp@falkirk.gov.uk