Planning is confusing. There are a lot of documents, a lot of acronyms, and a lot of stages - and understanding which decisions have already been made and which ones can still be influenced is genuinely difficult. This page tries to explain it clearly.

Note on policy numbering: examination-era documents refer to the North East Thatcham allocation as Policy SP17. The adopted Local Plan calls it Policy SP14. If you’re reading older documents, SP17 and SP14 refer to the same thing.

Hierarchy: how it all fits together

Think of the planning process as a set of nested documents, each one providing more detail than the one above it:

National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)
  └── West Berkshire Local Plan
        └── Policy SP14 (the NE Thatcham allocation)
              └── Masterplan SPD (being drafted now)
                    └── Individual planning applications
                          └── S106 agreements

Each level must conform to the one above it. The SPD cannot contradict the Local Plan. Planning applications must conform to the SPD. This matters because it means some battles were lost at earlier stages and cannot be relitigated now - and some battles are still very much open.

Stage 1: National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)

Status: In force. Cannot be changed locally.

The NPPF is the government’s national planning policy, setting the rules that all local authorities must follow. It requires councils to plan for sufficient housing to meet local need and to make “effective use of land.” The Inspector who examined West Berkshire’s Local Plan was applying the NPPF when he made his decisions.

The NPPF was revised in December 2024. The revised version introduced stronger housing delivery requirements and - importantly for NE Thatcham - a minimum net density of 40-50 dwellings per hectare for development within walking distance of a railway station.

Who is responsible: Central government (MHCLG). Not influenced by local councillors or residents.

Stage 2: West Berkshire Local Plan Review 2023-2041

Status: Adopted June 2025. Cannot be changed without a new Local Plan review.

The Local Plan sets the planning framework for the whole district until 2041. It was originally submitted in April 2023 under the previous Conservative administration and examined by an independent Inspector appointed by the Secretary of State.

Key facts:

• The Lib Dem administration, elected May 2023, attempted to withdraw the plan in December 2023. The government directed the council to continue.
• The Inspector, William Fieldhouse, issued his report in April 2025. He increased the NE Thatcham allocation from 1,500 to 2,500 homes, against the council’s wishes.
• The council adopted the plan in June 2025, noting significant risks if it failed to do so - including the possibility of the government adopting it directly, with no SPD requirement and none of the environmental protections.
• The plan requires a minimum of 9,270 new homes across West Berkshire between 2023 and 2041.

Who is responsible: West Berkshire Council (Executive and Full Council). The Inspector’s decisions are binding on the council.

Can it be changed? Not without a new Local Plan review, which would take several years. The 2,500 homes figure is settled.

Stage 3: Policy SP14 - North East Thatcham

Status: Adopted as part of the Local Plan, June 2025.

SP14 is the specific policy that allocates the NE Thatcham land for development. It sets out what the development must deliver, including:

• Up to approximately 2,500 dwellings - with the final number to be set by the SPD
• At least 40% affordable housing; 3% custom/self-build
• Two new primary schools and land for a secondary school
• Primary healthcare provision that is “operationally and financially viable”
• Active travel connections to the town centre and station
• Green infrastructure buffer on the northern part of the site
• Ancient woodland buffers
• A Transport Assessment and Travel Plan
• A Biodiversity Strategy
• Surface water drainage strategy

SP14 explicitly delegates several key decisions to the masterplan SPD - including the final dwelling count, the extent of green infrastructure, and the detailed infrastructure requirements. This is why the SPD matters so much.

Note on SP17: During the examination, the policy was numbered SP17. After adoption it was renumbered SP14. Most examination documents use the old number.

Read the full SP14 policy here

Stage 4: Masterplan SPD

Status: Being drafted now. Early-stage consultation closed 14 May 2026. Draft SPD consultation expected summer 2026.

A Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) provides detailed guidance on how a policy should be implemented. It cannot introduce new requirements beyond what the Local Plan already requires - but it can, and must, fill in the detail that SP14 leaves open.

For NE Thatcham, the SPD will determine:

• The final dwelling count (explicitly delegated to the SPD by SP14)
• The location and extent of built development and green infrastructure
• The design code - what homes must look like, how streets are laid out, how green space is managed
• The phasing schedule - which infrastructure must be in place before which homes can be occupied
• The detailed requirements for schools, healthcare, local centres and employment space

This is the last opportunity to influence the development across the whole site. Once the SPD is adopted, the framework is fixed and future planning applications must conform to it.

The SPD is being developed by West Berkshire Council’s planning policy team, working with the North East Thatcham Partnership (a developer-funded body) and their consultants. The consultation process is being facilitated by DevComms on behalf of the Partnership.

Who is responsible: West Berkshire Council planning policy team; Executive Member for Planning (Cllr Denise Gaines).

Can it be changed? Yes - this is the active battleground. The draft SPD consultation in summer 2026 is the key moment. Representations made at that stage must be formally considered and responded to.

Stage 5: Individual Planning Applications

Status: Not yet submitted. Expected from late 2026.

The developers have indicated they intend to submit an outline planning application by the end of 2026. There will almost certainly be multiple applications - one per neighbourhood (Dunston Park, Siege Cross, Colthrop Village) or even smaller parcels.

Each application will be assessed against the adopted SPD and the Local Plan. Planning applications are determined by the Eastern Area Planning Committee - nine elected councillors who vote on whether to approve or refuse.

The risk of planning by increment

When a large development comes forward in multiple separate applications, there is a significant risk that infrastructure obligations get negotiated down phase by phase. Each applicant can argue that the wider infrastructure costs are disproportionate to their specific parcel. The only protection against this is a strong SPD with a binding phasing matrix that ties each application to specific infrastructure requirements - and robust S106 agreements at the application stage.

Stage 6: S106 Agreements

Status: Future - negotiated at planning application stage.

A Section 106 agreement is a legal contract between the developer and West Berkshire Council, signed when planning permission is granted. It is the mechanism that converts the SPD’s policy requirements into legally binding obligations - with specific trigger points, timescales and financial contributions.

S106 agreements cover:

• Affordable housing delivery
• Infrastructure contributions (roads, schools, healthcare)
• Occupation triggers - conditions that must be met before homes can be occupied
• Financial contributions to off-site improvements

There will be a separate S106 for each planning application. A well-drafted SPD makes S106 negotiations harder for developers to water down, because the council can point to adopted policy as the basis for each obligation.

What has already been decided

What can still be influenced

Who decides what

Further reading

• Policy SP14 - the adopted allocation
• Inspector’s Report (April 2025)
• Main Modifications Schedule (November 2024)
• What is an SPD? (Designing Buildings)
• All references and sources