Public Consultation – Three Rivers Local Plan 2026 – 2042

From 31 July to 25 September, the new Three Rivers Local Plan is open for public consultation. This is the Regulation 19 consultation which provides the opportunity for local residents and stakeholders to make representations on whether the Plan is sound (i.e. justified, evidence-based, and consistent with national policy) and legally compliant before it is submitted for Examination.

We will analyse the documentation and provide further guidance before the consultation deadline.

Getting the Local Plan to this point has not been straightforward. The Council had prepared its draft Local Plan following previous public consultations in 2018, 2021, 2023 and 2025 in which it was clear that local residents place a very high priority on the ongoing protection of the Green Belt in Three Rivers District.

However, the Government has intervened in the local authority’s Plan-making process, and has forced the Council to allocate more land within the Green Belt and the Chilterns National Landscape for development. These additional areas are large, covering circa 160 hectares (400 acres) of countryside, or the equivalent of more than 250 football fields. These areas would be allocated for more than 3,200 dwellings and would result in more than 4,000 additional cars on the local roads each day.

We’re appalled that the Government has forced these allocations for development. The 2004 Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act established in law that Local Authorities (i.e. Councils) are responsible for preparing and adopting the Local Plan for their area. The Government’s intervention in Three Rivers is contrary to the 2004 Act and contrary to repeated Government statements about devolution and local empowerment.

Read more in our previous article The State of the Green Belt in Three Rivers: Big Government vs The Council

Also, find out more about this current public consultation on the Local Plan page of the Three Rivers District Council website.