On 9 February 2026, Rochford District Council launched the Regulation 18 public consultation on its new Local Plan. The consultation runs across the Rochford District, with a particular focus on Rayleigh, Essex, and asks residents to comment on where new homes, services and infrastructure could be located.
The Regulation 18 draft identifies 24 specific sites in the Rayleigh area that could accommodate approximately 3,679 new dwellings. The consultation document forms an early-stage roadmap for growth and planning across the district; the council’s site states the Local Plan will cover the district up until 2042.
Cllr James Newport, Leader of Rochford District Council, has said the council’s priority is an ‘infrastructure first’ approach, seeking to ensure housing growth is accompanied by investment in roads, schools and healthcare.
The council says the Local Plan is intended to give the area stronger control over future development and to reduce the risk of ‘planning by appeal’, where developers can win permission on sites that have not been allocated in a Local Plan.
Residents can review the Regulation 18 proposals and submit comments online via the council’s consultation portal (rochford.oc2.uk), by post, or by attending drop-in exhibitions being held across Rayleigh in February. The public consultation is open for six weeks and closes on 24 March 2026. Further details, including the project timeline, are available in the council’s Local Development Scheme and on the Local Plan consultation pages.
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