'''Local development schemes''', in [[local government in the United Kingdom]], are public 'project plans' which identify which [[local development document]]s will be produced, in what order and when. It became a statutory requirement for [[Local planning authority|local planning authorities]] in the UK to produce these schemes under the [[Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004]].<ref name="Guidance">{{cite web|last1=Office of the Deputy Prime Minister|title=Explanatory Notes to Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/5/notes/division/7/2/3|website=www.legislation.gov.uk|publisher=[[Her Majesty’s Stationery Office ]]|accessdate=31 October 2017|language=en}}</ref>
The local development scheme acts as the starting point for the community and [[project stakeholder|stakeholders]] to find out about the local authority's planning policies in respect to a particular place or issue, and what the status of those policies is. It also outlines the details of, and timetable for the production of all documents that make up the [[local development framework]] over a three-year period.
All local authorities submitted their local development schemes to the [[Secretary of State (United Kingdom)|Secretary of State]] by the end of March 2005
