Across 20 long-term projects, Cairngorms 2030 will bring about transformational change in the Cairngorms, benefitting people’s health and wellbeing, delivering on climate change and enhancing nature across the National Park.
Volunteer Cairngorms supports and develops volunteering for nature, the environment and physical activity across the Cairngorms National Park. Start your volunteering journey here!
The Local Development Plan enables the right kind of development to happen in the right place, to help deliver the aims of the Cairngorms National Park.
All planning applications in the National Park are assessed against the Local Development Plan and Scottish Government's National Planning Framework 4.
The current Local Development Plan was adopted by the Park Authority on 26 March 2021.
Paper copies of the Local Development Plan are available at our office in Grantown-on-Spey, at public libraries and some council offices in the National Park.
The Cairngorms National Park Authority has now begun work on its next Local Development Plan. It will be shaped by the views and aspirations of communities across the National Park. The plan will replace the existing Local Development Plan adopted in 2021 and alongside Scottish Government’s National Planning Framework 4, will set out planning policies and proposals for the use and development of land across the National Park.
Planning engagement at the Grantown Show
James Lee
Houses in landscape
Rupert Shanks
Public engagement
Louise Took
Statutory and non-statutory guidance
We have prepared two pieces of statutory supplementary guidance which form part of the Local Development Plan policies on housing and developer obligations. We have also prepared a suite of non-statutory guidance to support the delivery of the Local Development Plan. You can view and download these policy guidance documents below or request them at our office.
This document contains supplementary guidance for the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan 2021, focusing on housing policies within the National Park. It aims to guide applicants, community groups, and agencies in understanding and applying Policy 1, which relates to housing, across the park. The guidance covers defining affordable housing, outlining on-site delivery requirements, and setting out financial contributions for smaller developments. It also provides guidance on housing development in various settings, including settlements, rural groups, and the countryside, as well as alterations, conversions, replacement houses, and housing for gypsies, travelers and travelling show people.
Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.
This document contains non-statutory guidance for Policy 2, Supporting Economic Growth, of the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan 2021. It explains how development should support sustainable economic growth within the Cairngorms National Park, emphasizing the importance of town centres, tourism, leisure, and existing economic activities. The guidance provides considerations for planning applications with potential economic impacts, encouraging proposals that align with the Cairngorms National Park Partnership Plan and Economic Action Plan, and which are compatible with local priorities and existing businesses. It also highlights the need to protect existing economic activity and offers sources of advice and information for businesses.
Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.
This document contains non-statutory guidance related to Policy 3, Design and Placemaking of the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan 2021. It gives guidance to those planning developments in the Cairngorms National Park, making sure that new construction respects the special environment of the park. It also stresses the importance of community engagement, and using site analysis to inform design. The document presents six qualities for successful places; distinctive, safe and pleasant, welcoming, adaptable, resource efficient and easy to move around and beyond, and considers sustainable drainage systems, as well as offering various case studies.
Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.
This document contains non-statutory guidance for Policy 4, Natural Heritage, within the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan 2021. It provides information on how to safeguard natural heritage interests when planning developments, including considering the potential effects on habitats and wildlife. The guidance outlines a mitigation hierarchy, which prioritizes avoiding negative impacts, then minimizing them, and finally mitigating or compensating for any remaining effects. It also emphasizes the importance of ecological surveys and provides sources of advice and information for developers to ensure their proposals comply with Policy 4.
Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.
This document contains non-statutory guidance that forms part of the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan 2021. It applies to all planning applications within the Cairngorms National Park and should be used when preparing and assessing these applications to ensure that Policy 5, which focuses on landscape, is followed. The guidance offers advice on considering the landscape, including special landscape qualities, National Scenic Areas (NSAs), and Wild Land Areas (WLAs), and it highlights the need to avoid adverse effects on the landscape by using a mitigation hierarchy. It also covers private roads and ways and the assessment of development effects on the landscape, providing links to other useful information sources and guidance for different steps in landscape assessment and design.
Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.
This document contains non-statutory guidance from the Cairngorms National Park Authority (Park Authority) regarding Policy 7 of the Local Development Plan 2021, which focuses on renewable energy. The guidance aims to support planning applications that incorporate renewable energy systems within the Cairngorms National Park and outlines considerations for various renewable energy proposals, including hydro-electricity, wind energy, biomass, energy from waste, solar power, and heat pumps; it emphasizes minimizing adverse impacts on the environment, landscape, community, and cultural heritage and directs readers to relevant resources from NatureScot and Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA). The document offers specific guidance for different types of renewable energy systems, encompassing site selection, potential impacts, and necessary assessments, and stresses the importance of early engagement with relevant authorities and adherence to the mitigation hierarchy to minimize adverse effects.
Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.
This document contains non-statutory guidance for Policy 8 of the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan 2021, focusing on open space, sport, and recreation. It provides direction for planning applications to protect and enhance these assets, aligning with the goal of promoting active and healthy lifestyles. The guidance outlines criteria for new developments and redevelopments, emphasizing sustainable design, community needs, and access to path networks. It also stresses the importance of considering the impact on local communities and the need for alternatives if facilities are reduced, directing people to the Cairngorms Core Paths Plan for information on public access rights.
Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.
This document contains non-statutory guidance for Policy 9, Cultural Heritage, of the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan 2021. It applies to all planning applications within the Cairngorms National Park and should be used during the preparation and assessment of planning applications to ensure that the requirements of Policy 9 are met. The document outlines general principles for safeguarding cultural heritage, including repair and restoration, re-purposing, and replacement, and addresses specific cultural heritage interests in the Park, such as scheduled monuments, conservation areas, listed buildings, planned towns, inventory gardens and designed landscapes, battlefields, and archaeological sites. It also provides guidance on supporting information for planning applications and other considerations, such as the potential impact on protected species.
Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.
This document contains non-statutory guidance for Policy 10 Resources within the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan 2021. It gives direction on how to support the conservation, extraction, and use of resources in a sustainable way, while also supporting the aims of the National Park. The guidance covers water resources, including managing water quantity and quality, drainage requirements, and flood risk. It also addresses waste management, encouraging waste minimisation and sustainable practices. The document details considerations for developments affecting mineral reserves, carbon sinks and stores (like peat and soil), and contaminated land, emphasizing the importance of minimizing environmental impact and ensuring proper restoration. It also provides information on useful resources and contacts for further guidance.
Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.
This document contains supplementary guidance for Policy 11 of the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan (LDP) 2021, which focuses on developer obligations. This guidance is used to assess planning applications and determine necessary contributions from developers to lessen the impact of new developments on local infrastructure and facilities. These contributions, secured through legal agreements or planning conditions, ensure that infrastructure and services can meet the increased needs from new developments, and can be put towards things like education, healthcare, community facilities, transport, and natural heritage. The level and type of contributions depend on the development's scale, location, and potential impact, and this document provides information on how these contributions are calculated by the five local authorities within the National Park.
Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.
The Local Development Plan has a delivery programme that updates the Local Development Plan action programme 2022 and sets out how the plan is being implemented.
Development plan scheme
The development plan scheme sets out a planning authority’s programme for preparing and reviewing their local development plan. We are required to prepare a development plan scheme every year.
The 2021 Local Development Plan process
Find out more about the process for developing the Local Development Plan 2021.
The Local Development Plan preparation process publicly began when we consulted on our main issues report towards the end of 2017.
The main issues report asked for views on the big issues that the new Local Development Plan would need to address and the options for tackling them.
We reported a summary of responses and recommended actions to our planning committee in June 2018. Redacted copies of all responses received are available by request to our planning team.
We received many responses to the main issues report consultation, including some new site proposals that were not included in the main issues report. We considered these proposals and identified a small number of new site allocations that we thought were appropriate to include in the new Local Development Plan.
Government guidance states that planning authorities may need to carry out further consultation on any sites they intend to include in the proposed plan that were not included in the main issues report.
We carried out a focussed consultation from 13 August to 21 September 2018on the small number of new sites proposals.
We reported a summary of responses and recommended actions to our Planning Committee in November 2018. Redacted copies of all responses received are available by request to our Planning team.
The proposed Local Development Plan was approved for consultation by our board in December 2018.
We consulted on the proposed Local Development Plan from 25 January to 5 April 2019.
The proposed plan outlined a strategy for future development in the National Park. It set out suitable land allocations to help to deliver appropriate development within the National Park, and policies that would be used to make future decisions on applications for planning permission.
We held several public drop-in events across the National Park which provided an opportunity for people to find out more about the proposed Local Development Plan. Information on these events is available by request to our Planning team.
288 representations from 207 individuals and organisations were received to the consultation, which are available by request to our Planning team.
Where concerns were raised, these were summarised and responded to by the Park Authority in documents known as Schedule 4's. Where representations indicate support, or make only a comment on an issue, then these are not defined as unresolved issues and are not referred to in the Schedule 4's.
The proposed Local Development Plan was submitted to Scottish Ministers on 20 September 2019. The examination of the proposed plan began on 31 December 2019 and considered all 12 issues identified as unresolved representations to the proposed plan.
The examination process included site inspections and requests for additional information. No oral sessions were required by the reporters.
The Park Authority received the examination report, which sets out the conclusions in relation to each unresolved issue and the list of reporter’s recommendations to the proposed plan on 24 August 2020.
The Cairngorms National Park Authority gave notice that it intended to adopt the proposed Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan 2020, as modified following the examination on 24 November 2020, and submitted the documents to Scottish Ministers.
On 2 February 2021, the Scottish Government responded to the Cairngorms National Park notification and advised that Scottish Ministers had decided that the proposed plan as notified was unsatisfactory and issued a direction, under section 20(5) of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997, that Cairngorms National Park Authority consider modifying the proposed Local Development Plan 2020 as indicated in the annex to the direction.
The annex required the following text to be inserted into the settlement objectives for each settlement located adjacent to the A9 trunk road:
“Please consult the Transport Scotland website for the latest A9 dualling route information. This can be accessed via; A9 Dualling Perth to Inverness (transport.gov.scot).”
These modifications were made to conform with the direction and the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan 2021 was adopted on 26 March 2021.
By visiting our office, or sending post to, 14 The Square, Grantown on Spey, Scotland, PH26 3HG, which is open to the public Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.
