Hart District Council published its Gateway 1 Self-Assessment on 23 September 2026. That milestone formally starts the new 30-month process for preparing the Hart Local Plan 2044.
What happens next?
Hart’s revised timetable confirms that the first formal consultation within the 30-month plan process will run from 19 October to 30 November 2026. Hart says that consultation will cover the Plan’s draft vision, proposed spatial strategy and a summary of the evidence gathered to date.
Local government reorganisation — what the September change means
The Government announced a pause and review of the local government reorganisation programme on 7 September 2026. Updated MHCLG guidance on 24 September makes clear that this uncertainty is not a reason to delay Local Plan preparation. Hart should therefore continue its Local Plan work and any committed milestones.
The same guidance says that an existing authority can prepare a plan only for land within its current administrative area until any new unitary authority becomes operational. Authorities may still collaborate on joint evidence and cross-boundary matters. For Murrell Green, the practical point is that uncertainty over Hart’s longer-term council structure does not put the district-wide assessment of future growth locations on hold.
Why this matters to Murrell Green
The Murrell Green application 26/01201/OUT remains a separate live planning application and can be determined on its own planning merits. The emerging Local Plan is nevertheless important strategic context because the new plan will set the overall amount and distribution of development across Hart, identify site allocations and establish the policy framework to 2044.
The October material should therefore help answer a wider question: how does a 2,160-home proposal at Murrell Green sit within Hart’s emerging assessment of housing need, spatial options, infrastructure capacity, environmental constraints and alternative locations?
This page does not assume that the emerging Local Plan either supports or rules out Murrell Green. The purpose is to compare the current planning application with Hart’s forthcoming district-wide evidence and spatial strategy.
What to look for when consultation opens
- the housing requirement and the assumptions used to derive it;
- the proposed spatial strategy and distribution of growth;
- the Land Availability Assessment and treatment of promoted sites;
- any specific reference to Murrell Green, Winchfield, Hook, Hurst Farm or other strategic-site options;
- transport capacity, including M3 Junction 5, local roads, public transport and rail;
- water supply, foul-water, drainage and flood-risk evidence;
- Thames Basin Heaths SPA, SANG/SAMM and wider ecological implications;
- major utility and infrastructure constraints;
- schools, health and community infrastructure;
- landscape, settlement pattern and coalescence;
- cumulative impacts where several promoted sites interact; and
- the environmental assessment and the treatment of reasonable alternatives.
Gateway 1 — what it establishes
Hart describes the Gateway 1 Self-Assessment as evidence that it is ready to commence the formal 30-month plan-preparation period. The assessment covers the timetable, project management and governance, consultation and engagement, anticipated plan content, and the authority’s Strategic Environmental Assessment obligations.
Current programme
- 23 September 2026: Gateway 1 completed; 30-month plan-preparation period starts.
- 19 October – 30 November 2026: consultation on proposed plan content and evidence.
- 30 June – 30 July 2027: Gateway 2.
- 3 September – 29 October 2027: consultation on the proposed plan.
- 3 January – 29 February 2028: Gateway 3.
- 31 March 2028: planned submission for examination.
- 31 October 2028: planned adoption.
Primary sources
- Hart District Council — Gateway 1 Self-Assessment Summary.
- Hart District Council — Local Plan timetable.
- Hart District Council — New Hart Local Plan.
- Hart District Council — Call for sites.
- MHCLG — Plan-making and local government reorganisation (updated 24 September 2026).
Evidence note updated 25 September 2026. The website will be updated when Hart publishes the 19 October consultation material or if the timetable changes.