Supplementary Planning Documents

The Agricultural Planning SPD includes the following guidance to help improve the quality of information developers may need to provide when submitting proposals for agricultural development:

• An outline of the issues that may arise in relation to agricultural development. Better quality information at the planning application stage will assist the decision making process.
• A tool to determine the phosphate loading of a proposed development. This will help inform the determination of planning applications within the River Wye Catchment. It is an innovative approach to include this in an SPD to inform decision making.

At this time, the SPD is produced to supplement the policies of the adopted Core Strategy 2011-2031 and it can only apply to farming developments that require planning permission. The SPD is designed to provide additional immediate guidance to developers between now and when the updated Local Plan is formally adopted to become the county's new development plan during 2024.

Herefordshire Council is committed to improving the quality of the county's rivers. Despite this being an important issue to Herefordshire, it is not possible to introduce new policy approaches in the SPD but there is opportunity to do this as part of the emerging Local Plan 2021-2041 and comments received regarding local ambitions to strengthen and extend existing policies beyond what is stated in this SPD will form a useful evidence base for future policy development.

View the Agricultural Planning Supplementary Planning Document

The consultation on the Agricultural Planning Supplementary Planning Document (AP SPD) ran from 28 November 2022 to 24 February 2023.

We will carefully consider all feedback received during the consultation, before the final draft is put forward for formal adoption by the council.

If you have any questions, please contact ldf@herefordshire.gov.uk or telephone 01432 383637.

Wider work in relation to the Agricultural Planning SPD

Developing a replacement for Farmscoper

Farmscoper is a decision support tool that can be used to assess diffuse agricultural pollutant loads on a farm and quantify the impacts of farm mitigation methods on these pollutants. This SPD includes a guide to using Farmscoper for assessing phosphate loading. The Farmscoper tool is used as it is currently considered to be the best tool available for this purpose.

The approach to providing the methodology for determining phosphate loading in an SPD is one of the first in the country. We understand that research will continue and new mechanisms to do this may emerge over time. The council is already working with leading national experts on this to scope a more specific tool. However this will take time and as nutrient loading in rivers is an urgent and pressing issue in the county, it is important that something is in place as soon as possible. We believe that the SPD is a step forward in seeking to address this issue.

The Cabinet Commission for Restoring the Wye

Herefordshire Council has brought together the four councils that encompass the Wye Catchment to develop further proposals to restore the Wye. Within the Cabinet Commission Herefordshire, Powys, Monmouthshire and Forest of Dean Councils, are working intensively to develop solutions to this complex challenge. The Commission will report in the spring of 2023.