Guidelines for Regional Plans and Joint Planning Arrangements released

The review of the planning system identified a desire for a more regionalised approach to local government structures for planning. Accordingly the PDI Act provides the opportunity for groups of Councils to perform certain functions as a Joint Planning Board (JPB), established by way of a Planning Agreement entered into with the Minister for Planning. The only mandated function of a JPB is preparation of a Regional Plan for the area of the Board, although other functions can be undertaken, such as appointing a regional development assessment panel and undertaking the process to make regionally relevant amendments to the Planning and Design Code.

The Department has been running a pilot project with 8 groups of Councils, as well as the Local Government Association and the Office of Local Government, to explore how Planning Agreements and JPBs will work. The pilot is now complete and guideline documents are now available to assist Councils that are seeking to form a JPB. These consist of:

• Planning Agreement and Joint Planning Board Guidelines (PDF, 7306 KB) – a local  government ‘tool-kit’ based on the learnings and challenges faced during the pilot
• Joint Planning Board Business Case Template (DOCX, 2164 KB) – developed to lead potential Council JPB groups through a process to understand what they seek to achieve and to set up the right governance framework
• Planning Agreement Template (DOCX, 1253 KB) – which can be tailored to suit regional circumstances