Oxford Local Plan 2045: Proposed Submission

The Regulation 19 stage is the second of two statutory stages for preparing a Local Plan.

At this stage, the Council publishes the proposed submission version of the plan and invites representations from relevant bodies and persons.

The focus of this consultation will be on whether or not the plan meets the criteria for being sound and legally compliant.

Comments received at this stage are then submitted, alongside the plan, to the Planning Inspectorate for independent examination. This will be the final consultation before the plan is submitted.

The planning inspector will consider whether the submitted plan:

  • complies with the legal requirements; and
  • meets the tests of soundness

Legal Requirements

To comply with the legal requirements, the Proposed Submission Draft must:

  • be identified in the Local Development Scheme
  • have involved the community as set out in the Council’s Statement of Community Involvement
  • be published in line with the procedure for publishing a policy document, as set out in the regulations
  • have involved the production of a Sustainability Appraisal Report

Tests of Soundness

To be sound the Proposed Submission Draft must be:

  • positively prepared: i.e. providing a strategy which, as a minimum, seeks to meet the area’s objectively assessed needs and is informed b agreements with other authorities, so that unmet need from neighbouring areas is accommodated where it is practical to do so and is consistent with achieving sustainable development
  • justified: i.e. it is an appropriate strategy, taking into account the reasonable alternatives, and based on proportionate evidence
  • effective: i.e. the Plan should be deliverable over its period and based on effective joint working on cross- boundary strategic matters that have been dealt with rather than deferred, as evidenced by the statement of common ground; and
  • consistent with national policy: i.e. enabling the deliver of sustainable development in accordance with the policies of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)

Proposed Submission Plan

The Proposed Submission Plan contains a series of policies that cover a range of topics including housing, economy, infrastructure to support development, communities, green spaces, design and heritage. It also includes allocated development sites and policies that address areas of focus for development in the city.

The Draft Plan has been developed by building on the issues identified at the early engagement processes and through the alternatives as set out at the preferred options (Regulation 18) stage.  The work has been based on a comprehensive evidence base and in alignment with national policy frameworks.

Go to Oxford Local Plan 20245: Proposed Submission Draft Chapters 

Sustainability Appraisal and Background Papers

The purpose of the Sustainability Appraisal process is to appraise the social, environmental and economic effects of a plan from the outset. It helps to inform decisions by assessing the likely positive and negative impacts of options, policies and sites across a wide range of topics. It therefore performs a key role in providing a sound evidence base for the plan and is an integrated part of the plan preparation process.

Part of the Sustainability Appraisal is presented as Background Papers that correspond with the subjects that are addressed in the emerging plan. They cover the relevant national and local policy context, research data and other pieces of evidence that have directly informed the policy options.

Go to Sustainability Appraisal Documents and Appendices including Background Papers

Go to Site Capacity Assessments

Evidence Base and Supporting Documents

The Proposed Submission Draft of the Plan is supported by a suite of studies, as well as the Sustainability Appraisal.

Go to Evidence Base and Supporting Documents

Go to Strategic Flood Risk Assessment (SFRA) Level 1 documents

Go to Strategic Flood Risk Assessment (SFRA) Level 2 documents

Policies Map

Our interactive policies map displays spatial polices as proposed in the Submission Draft document. It also includes the location for allocated development sites in Chapter 8. The map is searchable with selectable layers for ease of navigation. 

A PDF version is also available.

View a PDF version of the Policies Map (PDF 1.4MB)

Regulation 19 stage Consultation

We are inviting comments on the Local Plan 2045 Proposed Submission Draft for 8 weeks between Friday 30 January 2026 until Friday 13 March 2026. Representations can be submitted via our Consultation Portal. 

Go to Oxford Local Plan 2045 Consultation Portal 

Representation forms are also available for download and can be returned:

  • by email to: planningpolicy@oxford.gov.uk
  • by post to: Planning Policy Team, Oxford City Council, Town Hall, St Aldate’s, Oxford OX1 1BX

Hard copies of the Oxford Local Plan 2045 Proposed Submission document and the entire evidence base and background papers will be available for inspection in the reception area at our offices in Oxford Town Hall. Hard copies of the key consultation documents are also available to view at all the libraries in the city as follows:

  • Barton Library: (Monday - 2pm to 5.30pm; Tuesday, Wednesday - 9am to 1pm, 2pm to 5.30pm)
  • Blackbird Leys Library: (Monday - 9am to midday, 1.30pm to 5pm; Tuesday - 9am to midday; Wednesday, Thursday - 9am to midday, 1.30pm to 5pm; Saturday - 9.30am to 12.30pm)
  • Botley Library: (Monday, Tueday, Thursday - 9.30am to 5.30pm; Friday - 9.30am to 7pm; Saturday - 9.30am to 1pm)
  • Cowley Library: (Monday - 9.15am to 5.30pm; Tuesday, Wednesday - 9.15am to 7pm; Friday - 9.15am to 5.30pm; Saturday - 9am to 4.30pm)
  • Headington Library: (Monday - 9.15am to 1pm; Tuesday - 9.15am to 7pm; Wednesday - 9.15am to 1pm; Thursday - 9.15am to 7pm; Friday - 9.15am to 7pm; Saturday - 9am to 4.30pm)
  • Littlemore Library: (Monday, Tuesday - 2pm to 5pm; Thursday - 9.30am to 5pm; Friday, Saturday - 9.30am to 12.30pm)
  • Old Marston Library: (Tuesday - 2pm to 7pm; Thursday - 2pm to 5pm, 5.30pm to 7pm; Friday - 10am to midday, 2pm to 5pm; Saturday - 9.30am to 12.30pm)
  • Oxford Westgate Library: (Monday to Thursday - 9am to 8pm; Friday, Saturday - 9am to 5.30pm)
  • Summertown Library: (Monday - 9.30am to 5pm; Tuesday, Thursday - 9.30am to 6.30pm; Friday - 9.30am to 5pm; Saturday 9am to 4pm)

Next Steps 

The comments received from the Regulation 19 consultation will be used to inform a final draft of the Local Plan, which we aim to submit to the Secretary of State in Autumn/Winter 2026. The Secretary of State will appoint an Inspector who will subject the submitted plan to an independent examination. This process is managed by the Planning Inspectorate (PINS) and the timetabling will be outside our control. However, from previous experience we anticipate the timescales to roughly be as follows:

  • Submission: Autumn/Winter 2026
  • Examination: Spring 2027 (dependent on Planning Inspectorate)
  • Adoption: Spring 2028

The full detail of our timetable for developing the new Local Plan is set out in the Local Development Scheme (LDS) on the website.

View the Local Development Scheme

Previous Consultation Stages

Early Engagement

In March/April 2025, Oxford City Council the early engagement survey was designed to ask a series of questions to assess to what extent the public and businesses deem certain topics important for the Local Plan to influence and prioritise.

Regulation 18 (Preferred Options) Stage

The City Council carried out its Regulation 18 consultation on the Oxford Local Plan 2042 Preferred Options from 27 June to 8 August 2025, using the First Draft Oxford Local Plan 2042 as the main document. This stage sought views on the draft policies identified as preferred options - those considered most likely to deliver the best outcomes compared with alternatives outlined in the Background Papers.

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