Re:  Public Consultation - Regulation 19 Local Plan

Swale Borough Council is now inviting comments on the Regulation 19 stage of the Local Plan. This consultation seeks feedback from stakeholders and the community about the Local Plan’s vision, objectives, strategic policies, site allocation policies and development management policies.

Key documents such as the Sustainability Appraisal, the Habitats Regulations Assessment and supporting evidence base are also available for consultation.

This consultation will run from 9am on Monday 10th August 2026 to Monday 21st September 2026 at 5pm.

You can view the draft Local Plan Regulation 19 document, the Sustainability Appraisal, the Habitats Regulations Assessment and evidence documents at: https://swale.gov.uk/lpr-consultation

Please respond to this Regulation 19 consultation via our consultation portal:   https://swale-consult.objective.co.uk/kse/

You won’t be required to register or sign into your Objective account, but will be asked for basic details including name, address and email, before responding to comment points in the document. You can also use the portal to respond to the Sustainability Appraisal and Habitats Regulations Assessment which is a separate survey on the portal home page.

Hard copies of the Local Plan Regulation 19 are available to view at the 3 Council offices:

• Swale House, East Street, Sittingbourne, Kent, ME10 3HT – open 10am to 12 noon, Monday to Friday.
• Sheppey Gateway, 38 to 42 High Street, Sheerness, Kent, ME12 1NL - open 10am to 12 noon Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
• Alexander Centre, Preston Street, Faversham, Kent, ME13 8NZ – open 10am to 12.30pm and 1:30pm to 4:30pm, Tuesday.

And are also available to view at all Swale libraries:

• Boughton
• Faversham
• Teynham
• Minster
• Queenborough
• Sittingbourne
• Sheerness
• The two mobile libraries

(For opening hours and addresses of the libraries please visit https://www.kent.gov.uk/leisure-and-community/libraries/visiting-a-library/find-your-nearest-library or call 03000 41 31 31).

You can also email or post any comments (referring to the policy number you are commenting on) to Lpcomments@swale.gov.uk or Planning Policy, Swale House, East Street, Sittingbourne, Kent, ME10 3HT.

All comments must be submitted by 5pm on Monday 21st September 2026 - please submit them earlier if you can.

This is the final consultation stage before we submit the plan to the Government. The Government will then appoint a planning inspector to run an Examination In Public, which we expect to take place next year (2027).

Unlike earlier consultations, the planning inspector will focus purely on comments relating to the Plan’s Soundness and Legal Compliance. There is a guide which explains these terms to help you make your points clearly to the inspector. It can be viewed at https://swale.gov.uk/lpr-consultation

Comments will be made publicly available to view online along with your name and post town.  For details on how your information is handled, please see our privacy notice at https://swale.gov.uk/planning-and-regeneration/local-plans/local-plan-review/local-plans-privacy-notice

Equalities Questionnaire

We are also inviting our residents and stakeholders to complete the optional Equalities Questionnaire after commenting on the Regulation 19 document. This can also be found on the home page of the Portal:  https://swale-consult.objective.co.uk/kse/.

If you would like to purchase a copy of the Reg 19 Local Plan, it will cost £27.00 which includes postage. You can also purchase the land allocations pack for £16.00. Or both Reg 19 Local Plan and the land allocations for £40.00. The order form will be available on our website (https://forms.swale.gov.uk/service/pay_planning_fees), or you can phone our call centre for assistance (01795 417850).

Yours sincerely, 

Planning Policy Team

Swale Borough Council

 

 

 

 

National Highways & Transport Network - Public Satisfaction Surveys

This year, for the ninth year running, Kent County Council is taking part in the NHT Public Satisfaction Survey on highways and transport services. Whilst the main survey is being carried out by Ipsos, who are sending forms to a representative sample of households, we have also opted to take part in six web-based surveys on specific issues:

• Highway maintenance
• Accessibility
• Walking and cycling
• Public transport
• Road safety
• Tackling congestion

These surveys are publicly available online, and will remain open until the end of February 2027. They may be accessed via our website using this link:

National Highways and Transport Surveys 2026-27 | Let’s Talk Kent