The statewide plan replaces Council’s former Community Participation Plan. It sets the minimum public exhibition periods for development applications, planning proposals and strategic plans across NSW.
The main change is that some development applications no longer need to be placed on public exhibition. This means Council will not send neighbour notification letters or invite formal submissions for these applications.
The public exhibition exclusions apply to the development types listed in the statewide plan where the proposal does not need a variation to the building height or floor space ratio standard. The full list of developments excluded from public exhibition is on page 24 of the NSW Government's Statewide Community Participation Plan.
Other development applications will generally be exhibited for at least 14 days. Some larger or higher-impact proposals have longer minimum exhibition periods.
Will Council still assess these applications?
Yes. Not placing an application on public exhibition does not mean automatic approval.
Council must still assess each development application against the planning rules that apply. This includes matters such as privacy, overshadowing, traffic, drainage, noise and heritage, where relevant.
Can I comment on an application that is not on exhibition?
You can give feedback to Council at any stage. However, if an application is not required to be exhibited, your feedback is not treated as a formal submission under the statewide plan.
Council is not required to consider informal feedback in the same way as a formal submission made during a public exhibition period.
How can I stay informed?
Council will continue to publish development applications and their progress through Application Tracking. An application may appear in the tracker even if Council is not required to notify neighbours or invite submissions.
- Use Council’s Development Application Tracker to search by address, application number, or lodgement date.
- Check the application status to see whether it is on public exhibition and open for submissions.
- View the NSW Statewide Community Participation Plan for the full list of development types and exhibition periods.
More time for major strategic plans
The statewide plan also gives the community more time to comment on some plans that guide future growth and change.
- Draft local strategic planning statements must be exhibited for at least 60 days.
- Draft regional and district plans must be exhibited for at least 60 days.
- Structure plans, precinct plans and masterplans for urban renewal areas must generally be exhibited for at least 42 days.
Who introduced these changes?
The NSW Government introduced the statewide plan. It now sets the public exhibition rules for planning matters across all NSW councils.
Council can still choose suitable ways to share information and engage with The Hills community when consultation is required. However, Council cannot replace the statewide exhibition periods with different local periods.
Learn more about community participation plans on the NSW Government website here.