Employment Planning

One of the Council's strategic objectives is to promote "prosperous communities, creating opportunity for all by promoting sustainable local economic development".

The Council's planning policy function has an important role to play in meeting this objective. In order to promote a prosperous economy, there must be adequate employment land and premises within the District. The portfolio of land and buildings should meet the needs of the local economy.

The Council is currently producing a Local Development Framework (LDF). Within this there will be policies on employment generating development. Policies will guide employment uses to appropriate locations and allocate and/or safeguard sufficient land to meet business needs.

Employment Land Review

In March 2005, the Council appointed Bone Wells Associates to carry out an Employment Land Review. The work was split into two parts, with the second part taking place once the panel report had been published on the East of England Plan, Examination in Public. Part 1 was completed in February 2006. The panel report was published in June 2006, and Part 2 of the Employment Land Review has now been completed.

The reason for doing Part 2 after the publication of the panel report was in the hope that it would contain more guidance on job targets for the district. The Employment Land Review will now form part of the evidence base for the Local Development Framework. In February 2007, Part 2 was further updated to take into account the revised job and housing figures in the Secretary of State's proposed modifications to the East of England Plan (which were largely unaltered by the final publication of the East of England Plan in May 2008).

Employment Land Review (Part 1) November 2006 (387KB) (link opens in a new window)

Employment Land Review (Part 2) December 2005 (208KB) (link opens in a new window)

Employment Land Review (Part 2 Addendum) February 2007 (95KB) (link opens in a new window)

A further update was carried out in light of recent economic trends, which was published in August 2009, below.

Employment Land Review Update August 2009 (408KB) (link opens in a new window)

Employment Monitoring

The Council monitors employment generating planning permissions on a six monthly basis. Sites which have planning permission are surveyed to see if they are under construction, completed or if work has not yet started. This survey work is reported in the Annual Monitoring Report and in the separate Employment Monitoring Reports.

There is more information on employment related matters and business start up at the Business in North Herts part of the website.