Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has informed Locality that the Government will not be commissioning new neighbourhood planning support services in the current financial year.

Following the Spending Review, my Department announced that it is unable to commission new neighbourhood planning support services for 2025 onwards.

Locality were informed of the decision and set it out on the official neighbourhood planning website, where announcements regarding the availability neighbourhood planning support have historically been made, thereby ensuring that neighbourhood planning groups and local planning authorities were made aware.

Technical support which has already been awarded will continue to be provided but must be completed before the end of March 2026.

We will ensure that local planning authorities continue to be appropriately funded for their neighbourhood planning function, including funding for neighbourhood planning examinations.

The government remains of the view that neighbourhood plans can play an important role in the planning system. Communities can continue to prepare neighbourhood plans where they consider that doing so is in their best interests.