Recommendation 10

HM Government · verbatim extract Accepted in Part

Government response Supporting vulnerable coastal communities is a priority for the Government, and both the CAP and CTAP will be evaluated to inform future policy making. The CAP is managed by the EA and has been directly shaped by emerging findings from the CTAP and the evidence presented to the committee in December. The CAP will run between 2026/27 and 2028/29. A key objective of the CAP is to provide the evidence for a long-term model of support for homeowners at risk of coastal erosion. This includes developing and testing approaches to transition and relocation, with the aim of creating solutions that are practical, scalable, and applicable across different coastal settings. The CAP is also tasked with developing and testing a proof of concept for long-term coastal adaptation. This includes addressing complex legal issues, financial mechanisms, and the acceptability of proposed measures within affected communities. The pilot’s results – supported by technical guidance and evidence – will help establish a sustainable, long-term model of support. These outputs will inform the policy and investment frameworks needed to embed coastal erosion adaptation into national practice. The EA will ensure that the practical lessons and evidence generated from CAP and CTAP are shared directly with coastal practitioners through the Coastal Group Network and RFCCs, facilitating the national rollout of learning. The EA is currently reviewing its national FCERM Strategy and will incorporate the lessons learned from CTAP. The refreshed Strategy is expected to be published in 2027. The updated national FCERM Strategy will embed coastal change, transition and adaptation as key priorities, and will identify measures to support mainstreaming innovative measures to adapt to coastal erosion. We will also continue to develop and oversee implementation of the SMPs to inform investment and decision-making on the coast for the next 100 years and beyond. Committee recommendation, paragraph 37: The Environment Agency should work with MHCLG to strengthen the role of SMPs within Local Plans and use the ongoing Local Plan reforms to establish a statutory requirement for coastal planning authorities to incorporate SMPs as a core part of the evidence base for plan making, with compliance monitored through the Local Plan examination process. By December 2026, Defra and MHCLG should publish a fully costed roadmap for coastal planning authorities to achieve this. Government response The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) sets out that local plans should reduce risk from coastal change by avoiding inappropriate development in vulnerable areas and not exacerbating the impacts of physical changes to the coast. The Framework is clear that plans should identify any area likely to be affected by physical changes to the coast as a Coastal Change Management Area (CCMA). Development within a CCMA will only be appropriate where a series of tests can be demonstrated, including (but not limited to) that it will be safe for its planned lifetime, it will not have an unacceptable impact on coastal change, and will provide wider sustainability benefits. The NPPF is supported by Planning Practice Guidance (PPG) which sets out that local planning authorities will need to demonstrate that they have considered Shoreline Management Plans (SMPs) when defining CCMAs. Between 16 December 2025 and 10 March 2026, the Government consulted on changes to the NPPF, including proposals to strengthen our approach to managing coastal change. We proposed a new plan-making policy that specifically references SMPs, setting out that development plans should take into account relevant SMPs and the NCERM when assessing the risks arising from and appropriate approaches to coastal management. To further guard against inappropriate development in vulnerable areas, our proposed new decision-making policy includes a new requirement that proposals within areas shown as being vulnerable to erosion on the NCERM should be subject to the same tests as development proposed within CCMAs (where these areas are not already included within CCMAs). The NCERM is itself informed by SMPs. We are currently analysing the feedback received and will publish our response in due course. Furthermore, we are aiming to reduce the complexity and scale of evidence required to support a local plan in the new plan-making system, rather than increase it. The new approach will help ensure local plan evidence is proportionate, relevant, and prepared at the right time, supporting faster and more focused plan-making. The revised NPPF and supporting guidance will support this, helping local planning authorities focus on the evidence required and the level of detail that is genuinely needed to support their plans, limiting abortive work and delays. In the new plan-making system, local authorities are also required to consult on the scope of the evidence base proposed to be prepared to support the local plan.