Bradford District Local Plan - Publication Draft (Regulation 19) (October 2026)

Section 6: Infrastructure and Delivery Comment

6.1 Introduction

6.1.1Having clearly set out the direction for the future growth and development of Bradford district and its communities through the policies and proposals of the Local Plan, it is essential that the appropriate tools are put in place to help implement them. This will help to ensure the successful delivery of the Plan.

6.1.2When planning for the long-term development of the district, it is vital that future growth is supported by appropriate infrastructure. The capacity, quality and accessibility of services and facilities are all key components in ensuring people can enjoy living, working and visiting the area.

6.1.3The term infrastructure can be taken to include roads and other transport facilities, flood defences, schools and other educational facilities, health facilities, mobile and broadband technology, sporting and recreational facilities and open spaces. This is not an exhaustive list and there may be a range of other services and facilities that could constitute infrastructure, which will be required to deliver this Plan. Generally, it can be described under three categories – physical, social and environmental/green infrastructure.

6.1.4This section of the plan sets out how the council intends to ensure that infrastructure is delivered to support growth and that development contributes towards its provision, where required, and how developer contributions to fund infrastructure will be secured. It highlights that delivering the Plan requires significant of partnership working with a range of bodies and provides the context for monitoring the Local Plan.

Explanation

6.1.5New development can often create a requirement for additional infrastructure or improved community services and facilities, without which it has the potential to cause harmful impacts. The mechanisms for securing developer contributions including the use of planning conditions and planning obligations.

6.1.6A planning condition is imposed on a grant of planning permission. These should be imposed where they are “necessary, relevant to planning and to the development to permitted, enforceable, precise and reasonable in all other aspects.^[2]”

6.1.7Developer contributions can assist in mitigating the impact of unacceptable development to make it acceptable in planning terms. The Council considers it essential that development adequately addresses its impact on the District’s physical, social and green infrastructure.

6.1.8As such developers may be requested to provide contributions for infrastructure in a number of different ways. This may be by way of the Council’s adopted Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) and/or via the use of planning obligations in the form of Section 106 agreements or Section 278 agreements. These are planning tools that can be used to secure financial and non-financial contributions, or other works, to provide infrastructure to support development and mitigate the impact of development. There will also be a need to comply with any conditions attached to any planning permission.

6.1.9In with Government’s Planning Practice Guidance and CIL Regulations, planning obligations may only be sought where it meets the statutory tests listed below:

1. It is necessary to make the development acceptable in planning terms;
2. It is directly related to the development; and
3. It is fairly and reasonably related in scale and kind to the development.

6.1.10The Council adopted its CIL Charging Schedule July 2017. The following types of development are liable for CIL:

• Any residential development of 1 new dwelling or more
• Residential extension/annexes over 100 square metres in size (gross internal floor area)
• Supermarket over 2,000 square metres in size (use class E)
• Retail warehouses (use class E) in central Bradford

6.1.11The CIL rate charged on residential development varies across the district, which is divided into four charging areas (Residential Charing Zones 1 to 4). The charge varies across the different zones. In Zone 4 the charge is £0 per m² – as such the Council will returning to the use of Section 106 Agreements.

6.1.12In line with CIL Regulations 2010 (as amended) 15% of CIL income is passed directly to those town and parish councils where development has taken place, subject to a cap set out in CIL Regulations. This increases to 25% in any areas with an adopted neighbourhood development plan.

6.1.13The Council publishes an Infrastructure Funding Statement (IFS) on an annual basis in line with CIL regulations. This provides a summary of financial developer contributions secured either through Section 106 Agreements or CIL payments within the district. The IFS will be accompanied in future by list of key infrastructure priorities, which will be informed by the Local Infrastructure Plan (LIP).

6.1.14Section 106 agreements are legal agreements linked to planning permissions that regulate the way a development is undertaken and are used where it is not possible to regulate the permission by means of a condition. They may be in the form of in-kind benefits, or a financial contribution, and may be used to prescribe the nature of a development, compensate for loss or damage created by a development, or mitigate the impacts associated with the development.

6.1.15Section 278 agreements fall within the auspices of the Highways Act 1980. These are agreements for highway works to be delivered by developers in respect of the highway and transport works resulting from the development.

6.1.16The type of matters where developer contributions may be sought include:

• Affordable housing;
• Community facilities;
• Provision and maintenance of drainage infrastructure including SuDSs and flood prevention.
• Provision for schools and other education facilities;
• Environmental improvements and mitigation schemes;
• Provision for primary health care facilities;
• Open space, sports and leisure;
• Employment and skills agreements;
• Measures to provide transport infrastructure;
• Travel plan measures;
• Mitigation for impacts to the South Pennine Moors SPA/SAC as well as habitats and species.
• Mineral extraction site restoration and aftercare

This list is not exhaustive and may be added to.

6.1.17The nature and level of any contribution will be negotiated by the Council through planning application discussions and will be determined having regard to:

1. The scale and form of the development.
2. Capacity of existing infrastructure provision.
3. The demands and potential impacts created on infrastructure in the surrounding area and facilities by the development concerned.
4. The Council’s priorities and
5. The impact of the obligation upon the viability of the proposed development.

6.1.18The scale and type of benefits sought must be related to the demands created by the development. Large developments have impacts that spread beyond the immediate site, creating demand for labour, transport, housing and amenities, and they have an impact on the wider environment. Some of these impacts may be mitigated by the direct provision of infrastructure or services by a developer, others may require a financial contribution.

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Explanation

6.1.19The provision of new or enhanced infrastructure is vital to support the delivery of the Local Plan’s vision, objectives and policies. It also essential in helping to maintain and create sustainable communities and better places. In addition, it can also bring economic opportunities and benefits. A key role for the Local Plan is to ensure that appropriate physical, social and environmental infrastructure is delivered in a timely manner to support growth and development.

6.1.20To help ensure that the infrastructure need to support development is delivered, the Local Plan is supported by a Local Infrastructure Plan (LIP). This is a key piece of evidence that provides a mechanism to define the infrastructure requirements to support and deliver the Local Plan. It examines existing infrastructure capacity, and its ability to absorb growth, identifies future physical, social and green/blue infrastructure requirements, alongside the potential cost and sources of funding. It also considers, where appropriate, the investment plans and strategies of other infrastructure providers and public bodies.

6.1.21Its preparation has involved working closely with internal and external partners to identify the specific infrastructure projects to be delivered over the Local Plan period. The LIP includes an Infrastructure Delivery Schedule (IDS) that identifies what new or improved infrastructure is planned, who will be involved and the resource implications. This provides a detailed investment plan for infrastructure requirements in the District and will help the Council to negotiate and obtain appropriate levels of planning contributions. It will also assist the Council in attempts to secure funding for infrastructure and key projects.

6.1.22The LIP, including the IDS, is a “live document”. It will be monitored, as part of the Annual Monitoring Report process, and reviewed and updated to ensure that appropriate infrastructure is delivered.

6.1.23New development will be expected to make the best use of existing infrastructure, where sufficient capacity is available to accommodate needs. Where improvements to existing infrastructure are required, new development will normally be expected to meet the costs of such infrastructure, along with providing any additional infrastructure requirements arising from the development.

6.1.24For individual developments, developers, working in conjunction with the Council, will be required to demonstrate that there is adequate infrastructure capacity both on and off site to serve their development. Where there is a capacity problem, developers will be expected to fund or to contribute towards the necessary improvements or new provision to serve needs arising from their development.

6.1.25Developers should be clear over the extent of infrastructure required to service developments at an early stage of the development process and that required as a scheme starts to be built out.

6.1.26Contributions for infrastructure will be sought via the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) or planning obligations. The council will identify key infrastructure priorities and projects in its Infrastructure Funding Statement (IFS) as set out in the Infrastructure List and reports on the infrastructure projects or types of infrastructure that the Council intends to fund either wholly or partly using the CIL and other planning obligations.

6.1.27There are several ways in which the Council can assist with the delivery of infrastructure including:

• partnership working with infrastructure providers
• the mitigation of the impacts of development through the planning process
• supporting asset reviews and making the best use of existing facilities

6.1.28The responsibility for infrastructure delivery does not solely rest with the Council. It relies on close collaboration and combined efforts as well as investment from a wide range of partners from across the public, private and voluntary sectors. The Council already works closely with partners at the Bradford District and sub-regional level including the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, and this will continue to aid the delivery of the Local Plan. Other key partners in this process will include health and education providers, utilities providers and government agencies.

Links

^[1] As defined in Regulation 122 of the Community Infrastructure Levy Regulations 2010 (as amended).

^[2] National Planning Policy Framework (2023) – Paragraph 55