8. IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITORING OF THE LOCAL PLAN

The Local Plan will ultimately be implemented through the grant of planning permission for individual proposals that are then realised on the ground. Planning permission will be forthcoming in accordance with the national planning policy, the policies of the Local Plan and any relevant policies in the Development Plan for Northamptonshire.  

However activities that can affect the delivery of the Local Plan may rely on the operation of other policies, work of other agencies, behaviour of the general public and actions of industry. Such projects, place making activities, investment decisions and behaviour include the:

• Sustainable Community Strategy for Northamptonshire (and the district ones that flow from it),
• JMWMS for Northamptonshire,
• programmes and projects of the statutory agencies,
• procurement decisions of companies and organisations (including the County Council and its partners in relation to waste management procurement),
• actions and decisions of infrastructure providers, and
• actions of the general public. 

Production and implementation of these strategies, and the actions of these bodies or individuals, may impact upon planning for minerals and waste related development within the plan area. The MWPA will take such matters into account as necessary, including through the process of monitoring and review.  

The County Council, as the MWPA, will therefore seek to meet the Local Plan objectives through its own actions such as:

• Waste management activities - for example, encouraging behavioural change, through the preparation of the JMWMS and procurement of waste management services (contracts).
• Corporate behaviour - for example, through the procurement of materials and goods which in their production have sought to minimise waste, made efficient use of materials that are used, encouraged the use of recycled materials and used local materials.
• Its development and construction activities - for example, in the construction and operation of County Council owned new schools and community facilities.
• Implementation of other plans and strategies - for example, the Local Transport Plan.  

The purpose of monitoring is twofold, as monitoring needs to consider both beneficial and adverse effects. Firstly, to measure the actual significant effects of implementing the Local Plan policies and measure contribution towards achievement of desired objectives. Secondly, it assists in identification of unforeseen adverse effects and the need to undertake appropriate remedial action. Monitoring should aim to answer questions such as:

• Are the policies contributing towards the plans vision and objectives, as well as the SA objectives and sustainable development as predicted?
• Are mitigation measures performing as well as expected?
• Are there any adverse effects? Are these within acceptable limits, or is remedial action desirable? 

The approach taken to monitoring should be objective and target led. It is not necessary to monitor everything, or monitor an effect indefinitely; instead monitoring should be focused on significant effects. Monitoring should involve measuring performance against indicators which may establish a causal link between implementation of the plan and the likely significant effects being monitored. 

In addition it may be beneficial for monitoring requirements to build on existing monitoring systems (such as the SA monitoring framework) in order to reinforce links and ensure efficiency within planning processes. Gaps in existing information will be identified so that consideration might be given to how these could be addressed in the longer term. 

There is a specific requirement for the implementation of the Local Plan and its individual components to be monitored. The most appropriate vehicle for this is the MWMR, which is produced by the MWPA annually.Monitoring is undertaken on an annual basis (unless otherwise specified) in line with the MWMR. The MWMR will also incorporate the annual LAA and an update on Duty to Co-operate matters undertaken over the previous year by the Council as MWPA. 

The plan period for the Local Plan is by calendar year of January to December rather than by April to March. This is largely because monitoring of minerals production by the AWP is on this basis. 

The following Table 8 shows how the Plan will be monitored in relation to its policies. However, the County Council will also seek to monitor other elements relating to the Local Plan and its implementation including production and cross-border movements, although recognising that at present the availability of this information is limited.