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Planning consideration

Minerals plan

Locations for future minerals extraction such as sand and gravel pits or crushed rock quarries

Important

We are currently designing this consideration. You can view the latest updates here.

Design stage
Research
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Background information

Each planning consideration we work on passes through the stages of our design process, where we research and answer specific questions to help us collect more information.

Backlog

  • Who asked for 'Minerals plan' data?

  • What is the driver for the request?

  • Which 2024 focus area does the request support?

    • Faster local plans

Screen

  • What is the 'Minerals plan' consideration?

    A minerals and waste plan is a document produced by mineral and waste planning authorities that outlines where and how minerals can be extracted, and where waste management facilities can be located within their area.

    There is no definition of Mineral and waste plans in legislation, but there is legislation relating to the preparation and maintenance of Mineral and waste Development Schemes (MWDS), of which a mineral plan and a waste plan are outputs. MWDS' set out the programme for preparing and monitoring mineral and waste plans.

  • Is there legislation that defines 'Minerals plan'?

    No

  • Who, in law, is responsible for the planning consideration or makes decisions about 'Minerals plan'?

    On the guidance page for minerals in paragraph one, it states:

    "The mineral planning authority is the county council (in 2-tier parts of the country), the unitary authority, or the national park authority. Minerals extraction may only take place if the operator has obtained both planning permission and any other permits and approvals. These include permits from bodies such as the Environment Agency, and licenses from Natural England and, in relation to coal resources, the Coal Authority."

  • Which organisations do we think should publish the data?

    • Local authorities

  • Is the Minerals plan a trigger?

    No

  • Is the Minerals plan something to consult during plan making?

    Yes

    • Provide information about when Minerals plan is used during plan making

      The Minerals and Waste Plan provides the policies which seek to ensure that there are sufficient minerals or construction to meet the needs of the plan area, as well as ensuring that sufficient sites for facilities to meet the waste needs are provided. The policies must be followed when decision-making.

  • Is there any Minerals plan data already available?

    Yes

  • Do we think the data should come from a single source?

    No - the research and the way these plans are held suggests this will be a document-based dataset in which we will have to collect the documents from each individual Mineral planning authority.

  • Will a data standard be required?

    Yes

Research

  • Do we understand the lifecycle of a Minerals plan?

  • Do we understand how the data is created/produced?

  • Where will or should the data be used?

    The policies set out within the Minerals and Waste Plan must be followed when submitting planning applications, as well as during the decision making process. Therefore, the data will be used byboth developers/landowners and LPA planning officers.

  • Authority Monitoring Reports, County Councils, Development Plans, Development Plan Policies, Local Development Schemes, Local Planning Authority, Unitary Authorities, Waste and Recycling Facilities, Waste and Recycling Statistics.

  • Who are the statutory consultees for Minerals plan?

    The Environment Agency, Natural England, Forestry Commission, the relevant authority

  • Other than the statutory consultees who are the primary users of Minerals plan? How do we expect them to use Minerals plan?

    developers/landowners/site promoters, LPA DM planning officers

  • What are the planning needs for this data?

    Minerals and Waste Plan are an important element of Development Plans, which are the foundation of local planning decisions. The Minerals and Waste Plan provides the policies which seek to ensure that there are sufficient minerals or construction to meet the needs of the plan area, as well as ensuring that sufficient sites for facilities to meet the waste needs are provided. The policies must be followed when decision-making.

  • Who are the types of users who might benefit from having access to Minerals plan data?

    developers/landowners/site promoters, LPA DM planning officers

  • What are some potential uses of Minerals plan data?

  • What's the value of adding Minerals plan data to the platform?

    Minerals and Waste Plan are an important element of Development Plans, which are the foundation of local planning decisions. The Minerals and Waste Plan provides the policies which seek to ensure that there are sufficient minerals or construction to meet the needs of the plan area, as well as ensuring that sufficient sites for facilities to meet the waste needs are provided. The policies must be followed when decision-making.

  • From what we have learnt so far are there any risks to making Minerals plan data available?

2 updates

  • Kieran Wint (22 January 2025)

    Through the research, these can also be called "Mineral and waste local plans", and that they follow a vigorous process as specified in each mineral and waste planning authority's individual "development schemes."

    With that in mind, it might be that the collection method for these plans would be similar to our Local plan dataset, although the defining and mapping of mineral and waste planning authority boundaries could mean that making this data live takes longer. An example from Hertfordshire (any map from the bottom of this page)supports this, as their maps are in PDFs, so getting the mapping on the platform might prove tricky.

  • Claire Miller (26 September 2024)

    As per some research we did, summarised in this blog on an analysis of local plans and local area requirements, we're confident that this consideration acts as an INPUT to the process of creating a local plan.

Last updated: 2025-11-14 14:59:34