Decision details

To endorse the Cotswolds National Landscape (CNL) Management Plan 2025-2030 as a material consideration n planning decisions including development plan formulation.

Include strategic policies referring to the CNL in the Strategic and Local Plan (SLP).

Background information:

The Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) Management Plan is referenced within our adopted Development Plan (Joint Core Strategy 2017 and the Cheltenham Plan 2020) in terms of making it clear that proposals will be required to be consistent with the Management Plan including the latest iteration. 

Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) are now referred to as National Landscapes. This name change is non-statutory.

The main purpose of the management plan 2025-30 is to conserve and enhance the natural beauty of the Cotswolds National Landscape (CNL) through three interlinked issues covering: the climate emergency, nature’s decline and ecological crisis, and health and societal changes.

Background papers:

Cotswold National Landscape Management Plan 2025-2030 

SLP joint response to CNL consultation on their management plan review. 

Cotswolds AONB Management Plan 2023-2025? 

Guidance for relevant authorities on seeking to further the purposes of Protected Landscapes?? 

Cheltenham Borough Council endorsed the 2023-2025 Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Management Plan on 19 September 2023. The Board of Cotswolds National Landscape undertook a review of this plan and updated the Management Plan to its 2025-2030 iteration. During this process, our Strategic and Local Plan team provided feedback during December 2024, and we received an official request to endorse the new management plan in March 2025.

The original “have regard to” duty of local authorities in relation to protected landscapes has been upgraded to the proactive “seek to further” duty, with Government guidance listing that we should take actions to embed protected landscaped measures in the design of our development plans, policies and strategies. 

There are already policies in the adopted Joint Core Strategy and the adopted Cheltenham Plan which commit the Council to assessing proposals against the policies set out in the Cotswolds National Landscape Management Plan referencing its latest iteration. Therefore, there is no suitable alternative option. 

Strategic and Local Plan team (planners from Cheltenham, Gloucester and Tewkesbury) were involved in the writing of the response.

Cabinet member, Cllr Mike Collins, engaged during consultation response raising queries about watercourses and affordable housing within the AONB, that were addressed by officers.

Presented to Planning Liaison Member Working Group (PLMWG), councillors wanted strategic policies to focus on the ecology instead of aesthetics of the protected landscape.