Content

To endorse the Cotswolds
National Landscape (CNL) Management Plan 2025-2030 as a material
consideration n planning decisions including development plan
formulation.
 
Include strategic policies
referring to the CNL in the Strategic and Local Plan
(SLP).
 
Background information:
 

The Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
(AONB) Management Plan is referenced within our adopted Development
Plan (Joint Core Strategy 2017 and the Cheltenham Plan 2020) in
terms of making it clear that proposals will be required to be
consistent with the Management Plan including the latest
iteration. 

Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) are now
referred to as National Landscapes. This name change is
non-statutory.

The main purpose of the management plan 2025-30 is
to conserve and enhance the natural beauty of the Cotswolds
National Landscape (CNL) through three interlinked issues covering:
the climate emergency, nature’s decline and ecological
crisis, and health and societal changes.

Background papers:

Cotswold National Landscape
Management Plan 2025-2030 

SLP joint response to CNL consultation on their
management plan review. 

Cotswolds AONB Management Plan
2023-2025? 

Guidance for relevant authorities
on seeking to further the purposes of Protected
Landscapes?? 
 

Reasons for the decision

Cheltenham Borough Council endorsed the 2023-2025
Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Management Plan on 19
September 2023. The Board of Cotswolds National Landscape undertook
a review of this plan and updated the Management Plan to its
2025-2030 iteration. During this process, our Strategic and Local
Plan team provided feedback during December 2024, and we received
an official request to endorse the new management plan in March
2025.

The original “have regard to” duty of
local authorities in relation to protected landscapes has been
upgraded to the proactive “seek to further” duty, with
Government guidance listing that we should take actions to embed
protected landscaped measures in the design of our development
plans, policies and strategies. 
 

Alternative options considered

There are already policies in the adopted Joint Core
Strategy and the adopted Cheltenham Plan which commit the Council
to assessing proposals against the policies set out in the
Cotswolds National Landscape Management Plan referencing its latest
iteration. Therefore, there is no suitable alternative
option.