Call for sites

Consultation Overview

To meet the needs of our residents and businesses up to 2030, the Council's Local Development Plan 2030 (LDP) will need to identify land available for new development in a number of sustainable locations.

We want to look at a number of options and choose the most suitable sites for new development in line with our Spatial Growth Strategy (see Plan Strategy, page 50). 

Account will be taken of the RDS direction to achieve compact urban forms, concentrate resources and protect the setting of settlements from urban sprawl.

We would like to hear from you if you have any suggestions for sites that the Council should consider when we are developing the Local Policies Plan (LPP). 

This is known as the 'Call for Sites'. 

The LPP is the second document which makes up the Council's Local Development Plan 2030. 

The first part of the LDP is the Plan Strategy (PS), which the Council adopted on 16 October 2023.

The ‘Call for Sites’ will not determine how much new development we need, or whether a site should be allocated for development. 

It is simply an opportunity for landowners and developers to suggest available and sustainable sites that they would like to be considered for development as part of the Local Policies Plan preparation.

The 'Call for Sites’ will help identify a potential pool of sites for further consideration when preparing the Local Policies Plan. 

The Council will not simply rely on submissions from the ‘Call for Sites’ process alone but will take into account other sources of information in considering sites to be assessed.

At this early stage in the process, we do not know which land might be developed. 

Much will depend on the detailed, technical assessments of land within the Council area and how different sites are best able to meet the identified requirements of the LDP, particularly the overall Strategic Objectives and Spatial Growth Strategy set out in the Plan Strategy.

Suggesting a site      

Taking the above parameters into account, suggested sites should primarily be located on land within the settlement limits of existing settlements (see Plan Strategy, page 56, SGS2 Settlement Hierarchy).

Sites may also be suggested on land adjacent to existing settlement limits or on the periphery of existing settlements.

In addition, sites may be suggested on land adjacent to existing clusters of development in our new small settlements (see Plan Strategy, page 56, SGS2 Settlement Hierarchy) to allow consolidation of the built form and potentially provide small development opportunities.

Land in the open countryside away from settlements should not be submitted as part of this exercise.

When suggesting a site, please bear in mind the strategic approach to the zoning and designation of land set out in the Plan Strategy, in particular:

• SGS2 Settlement Hierarchy
  
  A total of 36 settlements within the plan area have been designated and split into four tiers based on their role, facilities and services available. 
  
  Settlement limits for our eight new small settlements will be defined as part of the Local Policies Plan process. 
  
  Settlement limits for the remaining settlements will be reviewed as part of the Local Policies Plan process. 
   
• SGS3 Strategic Allocation of Housing to Settlements and SGS5 Management of Housing Supply
  
  Land will be zoned in towns (for sites of 0.2 hectares or above or sites capable of accommodating 10 dwelling units or more) and phased in the three main towns of Ballymena, Carrickfergus and Larne and in Greenisland where required. 
  
  Land will not be zoned for housing in villages or small settlements, but Housing Policy Areas may be identified where appropriate.
   
• SGS6 Strategic Allocation of Land for Economic Development
  
  Land will be zoned in the three main towns of Ballymena, Carrickfergus and Larne.

• SGS7 Retail Hierarchy and Section 7.2 Retailing and Town Centres
  
  Suitable mixed use development opportunity sites will be zoned in town centres (Ballymena, Carrickfergus and Larne) to meet identified needs.
   
• SGS9 Open Space Strategy
  
  Firm and appropriate proposals for new cemetery/burial space will be zoned.

Potential use(s) for the site

The Local Development Plan seeks land to facilitate a range of land uses, including:

• Residential uses
• Industrial uses (light industrial, general industrial, storage or distribution)
• Business uses (offices, call centres, research and development)
• Retail uses (shopping, financial and professional, other retail services)
• Medical/health services, education facilities, cemeteries, etc.
• Mixed-use (comprising a number of land-uses, such as residential, retail, office, leisure)

This ‘Call for Sites’ exercise offers an opportunity for you to suggest what land use you think is most suitable on your site. 

This land may then be proposed for such a use with the Local Policies Plan. 

However, this would only be the case after a site has been subject to detailed technical assessment and is determined to be appropriate for the use and meets the identified requirements of the LDP. 

The final selection of sites remains a matter of judgement for the Council and will be justified during the plan-making process.

If you think that there could potentially be more than one suitable use for a site in combination (e.g. partly residential, partly retail and partly leisure) you can indicate this as ‘mixed-use’ in Section 7 and explanation given in Section 8. 

Alternatively, should you wish your site to be considered for a number of potential uses (e.g. all residential or all industrial use or all retail use) this should be selected in Section 7 and explanation given in Sections 9 and 10 as applicable.

What will we do with your site suggestion?

Over the coming months we will be carrying out detailed work to examine the land available to accommodate the type of developments that are needed in Mid and East Antrim between now and 2030, and which land is the most suitable to meet these requirements. 

Further information about what we are proposing to look at as part of the LDP is outlined within the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

We will undertake a criteria-based approach to selecting sites, including those suggested through the ‘Call for Sites’ and identified from other sources. 

This assessment will help to determine their potential suitability and availability for future development.

This will consider a wide range of factors, including environmental considerations, transport, infrastructure and flooding (often referred to as sustainability considerations), as well as what benefits new development may bring and any issues or site-specific constraints that might affect the suitability of the site.

Once we know which sites could be suitable for development, we will need to decide the potential options that best meet the Strategic Objectives of the LDP as set out in the Plan Strategy.

Submitting a site suggestion

Our online survey form was developed to provide a straight-forward method of submitting site suggestions to the Call for Sites. 

It also included an interactive map, where responders could draw out the boundary of the piece of land they wished to suggest. 

Alternatively, they could print out a downloadable consultation response form, complete and submit a map showing the site’s location and boundaries.

Although we had provided this downloadable consultation response form, we encouraged responses via the online survey, as it guided responders through the questions and ensured that they were only presented with the questions that they needed to respond to depending on their answers to previous questions.

The Council will publish the information received through the ‘Call for Sites’ as part of the evidence base for the draft Local Policies Plan.

By submitting a response, responders were accepting that the Council will publish it and the information within it.

However, published responses will not contain any personal details of individuals. 

For more information see Council’s LDP Privacy Notice.

Any suggested sites had to be received by Mid and East Antrim Local Development Plan Team by:

5pm on Monday 30 September 2024

Sites could be submitted:

• via the online survey,
• by email, returning the response form to LDP@midandeastantrim.gov.uk; or
• by post, returning the response form to the address below.

The relevant documents could be made available in different formats upon request. 

Please contact us:

By Post:

Local Development Plan Team
Mid and East Antrim Borough Council
Ardeevin
80 Galgorm Road
Ballymena
BT42 1AB

By Telephone: 028 25 633500

By Email: LDP@midandeastantrim.gov.uk

If for any reason a particular alternative format cannot be met, other possible solutions will be explored.

Further information on this consultation is available by emailing us at LDP@midandeastantrim.gov.uk, via telephone on 028 2563 3500, or by visiting the Local Planning Office at Silverwood Business Park, 190 Raceview Rd, Ballymena, BT42 4HZ (by appointment).

Drop-in Sessions

The LDP Team also held a series of ‘drop-in sessions’ for those who wished to speak to the team in person about the ‘Call for Sites’ exercise. 

These took place from 6pm - 8pm on:

• Tuesday 13 August 2024 - The Braid, Ballymena
• Thursday 22 August 2024 - Town Hall, Larne
• Thursday 5 September 2024 - Town Hall, Carrickfergus