BABERGH residents can comment on the first part of a new district plan, which will shape the future development of towns including Sudbury and Hadleigh.

Public consultation on proposed changes to the new planning policy framework for the Babergh district opened this week.

The consultation is part of the authority’s process of working towards adopting the first part of a new Local Plan for the area.

The proposed modifications, which were agreed by the full council last month, aim to make the Core Strategy document conform to the Government’s recently-approved National Planning Policy Framework. Although the changes in the document are limited, it defines the boundaries for most of the district’s strategic sites, including Hadleigh, land north of Sudbury and the Ipswich fringe.

Rich Cooke, Babergh’s spatial planning policy corporate manager, said: “The new framework will be extremely important for the future planning of the Babergh area and the delivery of a range of identified planning-related objectives.

“All-in-all, it will have at its heart, an approach that recognises and respects the individual character and distinctiveness of the district, and helps to make it the place that it is.”

The draft Core Strategy aims to promote the local economy and job opportunities within the district. Housing and the related infrastructure have also been earmarked as a priority, and the plan contains positive new approaches towards delivering affordable housing across the Babergh area. The consultation documents can be viewed at www.babergh.gov.uk/babergh/ldf and submmissions must be made before August 24.