Introduction
The Somerset Local Plan Call for Sites ran for 6 weeks from 13 January 2025 to 24 February 2025.
During this time, landowners, developers, and site promoters were invited to submit land they want to develop to the Council. This process is crucial for gathering information to help create the new Somerset Local Plan, following national policy and guidance.
Interim Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment (HELAA) Report
In 2025 we ran a Local Plan Call for Sites for 6 weeks from 13 January 2025 to 24 February 2025. Following this, we have undertaken assessments of sites received, alongside other sources of sites. These are contained within the Interim HELAA Report (2026).
The HELAA is a high‑level technical study with the purpose of evaluating the potential suitability, availability, and achievability of identified sites for future development. The HELAA forms the initial stage of the site assessment process and provides an evidence base for the preparation of Somerset Council’s new Local Plan. The report sets out:
- What the HELAA is, why we do it, it’s role and status and how it links with other parts of the planning process (Sections 4 and 5);
- The methodology used (Section 6); and
- Assessment outcomes (Section 7).
The best way to review the sites assessed in relation to a specific development type is by using the maps in Section 7. However, to browse all outcomes for all assessed sites you can view maps of these in Appendix A.
Please see the disclaimer at Section 1 for key important information on the report, its outputs and the mapping resources within.
The HELAA process sits as a first stage in the wider Local Plan site selection process. It does not allocate sites or grant them planning permission or planning status of any kind. It is a ‘policy off’ assessment which means that it considers some high-level constraints, but ignores adopted plan policy constraints at this stage. Given it is high-level in nature and uses a ‘policy off’ approach, the report is deliberately badged as an ‘Initial HELAA Report’. No sites are labelled as conclusively ‘suitable’, and the best a site can come out as is ‘potentially suitable’, ‘available’ and ‘achievable’.
Rolling call for sites
We are now re-opening the Call for Sites to enable further sites to be submitted.
To submit a site please go to our Call for Sites portal.
During this time, landowners, developers, and site promoters are invited to submit land they want to develop to the Council. This process is crucial for gathering information to help create the new Somerset Local Plan, following national policy and guidance.
The portal for submitting sites will remain open on a rolling basis until further notice. However, it is likely that we will close this again in the lead-up to the next consultation on the Local Plan (see Local Plan Timetable for more details).
The Submission Guidance, below, explains more about the process and submission information requirements. The guidance also includes a full list of the questions asked in the submission survey.
Next steps
We will assess each site’s suitability, availability, and achievability. We will use a staged method that combines automated and officer-led assessments based on various criteria. This process will help filter and prioritise sites for detailed assessment. The method used to assess sites will be published along with a report summarising the assessment outcomes.
If further information is required, then officers may get in touch with site submitters to seek this information, but generally, assessments will be made based on the submitted information. We will not meet with specific site submitters or promoters to discuss their Call for Sites submissions. If sites from this process are considered as potential options for the local plan, meetings may be considered then.
Site submitters will not get individual feedback on their submissions. However, there will be combined assessment summaries in the overall report when it is published.
These assessments will help decide which sites might be considered in future consultations for the new Local Plan. However, the Call for Sites is just one of many ways we gather information for this process.