On 1 October, City of Edinburgh Council received the great news that its Evidence Report successfully passed the Gate Check.
The Gate Check is a key step in the preparation of a new local development plan. It is when the Scottish Government’s Planning and Environmental Appeals Division (DPEA) tests whether a local authority’s Evidence Report has sufficient and accurate information to go on and prepare a Proposed Plan.
For us, the Evidence Report was a huge piece of work that spanned many topics and places, required input across Council services and external partners and involved a huge amount of engagement.
The DPEA highlighted that the Evidence Report was comprehensive, involved extensive engagement and a clear grasp of key matters.
Following this positive decision, we will be preparing our next Development Plan Scheme which will set out the timetable for preparing the Proposed Plan and the next opportunities to engage in the process.
This will give everyone more time to submit their proposals and ideas to help frame the vision, policies and proposals for the Proposed Plan.
You can submit your suggestions via the Council’s Consultation Hub. You can also find out more and what information is required to submit a proposal or idea.
Your ideas should focus on the use and development of land and buildings across Edinburgh – this could be proposals for an area of land, site or building, something you want to protect or improve or planning policies you want to change.
We’re at the very early stages of putting together our next local development plan City Plan 2040.
There is still time to submit your proposals and ideas to help frame the vision, policies and proposals for the Proposed Plan.
Your ideas should focus on the use and development of land and buildings across Edinburgh – this could be proposals for an area of land, site or building, something you want to protect or improve or planning policies you want to change.
You can submit your suggestions via the Council’s Consultation Hub. You can also find out more and what information is required to submit a proposal or idea.
The consultation is open until 30 September 2026 and every idea will be considered.
City Plan 2040 has taken another important step forward with the Evidence Report now finalised and approved by Planning Committee on 3 June 2026, then agreed at Full Council on 25 June 2026.
The Evidence Report will now be submitted to the Scottish Government for the ‘Gate Check’ stage to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to start to prepare the Proposed Plan.
The Evidence Report contains 26 topic papers on a range of subjects and 17 Place Profiles for the different wards within the city and sets out what needs to be considered for the Proposed Plan.
Call for Ideas
We have launched the ‘Call for Ideas’ and this is an opportunity for you to submit proposals and ideas to help frame the vision, priorities and early proposals for the Proposed Plan.
Your ideas should focus on the use and development of land and buildings across Edinburgh.
The Call for Ideas can only be made via the Council’s Consultation Hub. You can find out more and what information is required to submit a proposal or idea there.
If you would like to receive updates on City Plan 2040, you can join the mailing list by e-mailing us at cityplan2040@edinburgh.gov.uk or follow this blog.
We know that Edinburgh is not just one place, but it is made up of many different areas. Each with its own good points and challenges.
We need to get an understanding of each area, what it’s like to live there and what we need to plan for in City Plan 2040.
To gather people’s views, we have launched a public engagement asking people ‘what they think about where they live’.
The questionnaire covers the important things that make a good place such as homes, local shops and services, healthcare, public transport, open space, play facilities, community space and jobs .
If you live in Edinburgh, you can find out more and fill in the questionnaire on our Consultation Hub here
There are also a series of drop-in events:
Monday 3 November at the Waverley Court (Hawthorn Learning Space) from 14:30-19:30
Saturday 8 November at the Gyle Shopping Centre (Main Concourse) from 12:00-15:00
Tuesday 11 November, Kirkliston Parish Church Hall from 15:30-18:30
Wednesday 12 November, Sighthill Library/ Gate 55 from 16:00-19:00
Monday 17 November at Oxgangs Library (Community Room) from 16:00-19:00
Tuesday 18 November at Drumbrae Library Hub (Parkgrove Room) from 15:30-19:00
Wednesday 19 November at Magdalene Community Centre from 15:30-19:00
Friday 21 November at North Edinburgh Arts Centre (Theatre Suite) from 16:00-19:00
Saturday 17 January 2026 at Cameron Toll Shopping Centre from 11:30-14:30
City Plan 2040 Update
City Plan 2040 will be our next local development plan after City Plan 2030.
There are several formal stages that we need to go through as we prepare City Plan 2040. We have produced a Development Plan Scheme which explains these stages and sets out the timetable for the plan preparation.
Currently, we are working on our Evidence Report which is the first stage of preparing a local development plan. This will contain topic papers on a wide range of issues.
The Evidence Report will provide a baseline of information and what we might need to address in City Plan 2040.
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