What is the Bury St Edmunds MAP?

The Bury St Edmunds Town Centre Masterplan (MAP) has been adopted by St Edmundsbury Borough Council as a supplementary planning document (SPD) and, together with the Vision 2031, will support the statutory planning policy for the town centre. It will supplement existing policies in the Vision 2031 providing more detail and guidance on their implementation and will be supported by a delivery strategy. The MAP will also help support other council documents, particularly the 2009 Streetscape Manual.

As well as supporting current planning policy the proposals set out in the MAP will also be used to shape the future economy of the town centre by more appropriately managing the supply of appropriate land to develop a diverse, vibrant and modern economy to increase jobs and enhance prosperity. The town centre will continue to be a vibrant place that people enjoy for a variety of reasons, as a home, a place to relax and shop, for recreation or to work.

The MAP is only a part of the wider work by local public services and partners to manage growth in St Edmundsbury to improve and support the economy encourage more jobs, enable housing development, create opportunities and support the well-being of communities.

As such the MAP draws together a range of related and complementary initiatives covering economic development, community activities, leisure and wellbeing, accommodating growth, and preserving and enhancing the historic and cultural environment of the town.

With this in mind the MAP is a flexible framework rather than a rigid blueprint, setting out clear aspirations that we would like to achieve while being able to accommodate potential future need. This will be subject to the work of all our partners as well as the availability of funding and land. It is an enabling document, providing opportunities for beneficial investment and change, but be mindful of protecting those qualities that make Bury St Edmunds special. In this regard the MAP will help the town to respect its history, without becoming history.