People can now have their say on how the district will be shaped for the next 20 years.

Dover District Council today published the first draft of its new Local Plan setting out the vision and framework for development in the district to 2040.

Local residents, businesses, community groups, and statutory consultees are invited to review and comment on the draft Local Plan during the first round of public consultation which runs for eight weeks.

A dedicated Local Plan website has been developed so that as many people as possible can participate in the consultation despite current pandemic restrictions on public meetings and social distancing.

The website includes the full draft Local Plan document for the towns of Dover, Deal and Sandwich along with supporting evidence and a virtual exhibition with story maps for each part of the district.

Six online events will be held for members of the public, community groups, businesses and parish and town councils to listen and view a virtual presentation on the draft Local Plan proposals, and to post their questions online.

Two public events will be hosted on: Thursday, February 4 from 7.30pm to 9pm and on Tuesday, February 23 from 12.30pm to 2pm.

A dedicated email address localplan@dover.gov.uk and telephone hotline on 01304 872244 have been set up, staffed Monday to Thursday 10am-noon have also been set up for public enquiries and information about the draft Local Plan.

The first round of consultation ends at 5pm on Wednesday, March 17.

There will be a further period of consultation in the autumn with the final version of the Local Plan submitted for independent review by the Planning Inspectorate early in 2022.

Council leader Cllr Trevor Bartlett said: “The Local Plan lies at the heart of the planning system and will guide the development of housing, the economy, community facilities, and infrastructure in the district for the next twenty years.

“It’s vital that local people, businesses, community groups and stakeholders have their say in shaping the final document to make sure that we are reflecting what you want the future of our district to look like.

“I would encourage everyone to take some time to look at the draft plan which contains some ground breaking policies, especially on climate change, which will help ensure that sustainable development contributes to our ambition for the district to be carbon neutral by 2050.”

Read more: All the latest news from Sandwich

Read more: All the latest news from Dover

Read more: All the latest news from Deal