Planning in Buckinghamshire – updated July 2026

Planning in Buckinghamshire offers great opportunities due to its location with Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east and Hertfordshire to the east, together with its position in the Oxford  Cambridge (OxCam) Arc.

Buckinghamshire is one of the home counties with towns such as High Wycombe, Amersham, Chesham and the Chalfonts in the east and southeast of the county forming some of the most densely populated parts of the county. Development in this region is restricted by the Metropolitan Green Belt and the Chilterns AONB. Other large settlements include the county town of Aylesbury, Marlow in the south near the Thames and Princes Risborough in the west near Oxford. The areas around the old county town of Buckingham and near Olney in the northeast, are much less populous. The largest town is Milton Keynes in the northeast, which with the surrounding area is administered as a unitary authority separately to the rest of Buckinghamshire.

The remainder of the county is administered by Buckinghamshire Council as another unitary authority. This Unitary Authority was created in April 2020 from the areas that were previously administered by Buckinghamshire County Council and districts of South Bucks, Chiltern, Wycombe and Aylesbury Vale.

Buckinghamshire Council is continuing to progress the Buckinghamshire Local Plan. The Council has now published the Proposed Submission (Regulation 19) Local Plan, marking the final consultation stage before submission for independent examination. The consultation runs to 6 September 2026, during which representations can be made on whether the Plan has been prepared in accordance with the relevant legal requirements and is considered sound. The Plan sets out the Council’s strategy for delivering homes, employment, infrastructure and community facilities across Buckinghamshire to 2045, together with the planning policies that will guide future development. Following the close of the consultation, the Council intends to submit the Plan to the Secretary of State for independent examination by the Planning Inspectorate.

In the meantime the current Strategic Planning position in Buckinghamshire is as follows:

Milton Keynes

The current Local Plan Plan:MK was adopted in March 2019. Plan:MK now forms part of the Council’s Development Plan and replaces both the Core Strategy (2013) and saved policies of the Local Plan (2005).

The adopted version of Plan:MK with, its updated Policies Maps, can be viewed here.

The Council is progressing the new Local Plan and  MK City Plan 2050 through independent examination. Following Regulation 19 consultation in late 2025 and early 2026, the Proposed Submission Plan was submitted to the Planning Inspectorate in April 2026. Planning Inspectors have since been appointed and the examination is now underway, with the Council responding to the Inspectors’ initial questions. Once the examination is complete, the Inspectors will determine whether the Plan is sound and can proceed to adoption.

Buckinghamshire Council

The Local Development Plans for the former Districts are as follows:

Aylesbury Vale

The Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan (VALP) 2013-2033 was adopted in September 2021. More details of this Local Plan can be viewed here.

Chiltern and South Bucks

The Local Plan for Chiltern District was adopted in 1997. The Local Plan should be read in conjunction with the Core Strategy. The Policies Map shows where the policies in the Plan are applied.

The South Bucks District Local Plan was adopted on 22nd March 1999. South Bucks also have a Core Strategy which is part of the Development Plan together with the Proposals Map.

Wycombe

The development plan for Wycombe is made up of a number of documents.

The Wycombe District Local Plan (WDLP) sets out how future development should take place for the whole area whilst the Delivery and Site Allocations Plan (DSA) – refers primarily to town centres but also contains Wycombe-wide development management policies.

The details of these documents can be viewed here.

Neighbourhood Plans are also in place at a number of villages and local areas throughout Buckinghamshire and are part of the Development Plan once they have been ‘made’.

The currently published Buckinghamshire  5 Year Housing Land Supply Position Statements (March 2026) for each area as follows:

• North and Central Area – 3.73 year years
• East Area – 0.86 years
• South Area 0.97 years
• West Area 1.98 years

The Buckinghamshire Local Plan is currently at Publication (Regulation 19) stage, with consultation running until 6 September 2026. This represents the final opportunity for landowners, developers and other stakeholders to make representations on the Plan before it is submitted for independent examination. The Council’s published housing land supply position also highlights continued pressure to deliver new homes across much of the county. Please contact us for further advice or to find out how your property fits into the emerging planning framework for Buckinghamshire.