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Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Antrim and Newtownabbey is home to Belfast International Airport, one of our key employment sites with over 6,000 employed in the various businesses and the foremost gateway to Northern Ireland. It we

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Employment land and premises are essential to the future economic prosperity and growth of our Borough. The identification of a wide range of suitable opportunities is therefore a key role for the LDP

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The attractiveness of our Borough's town centres and commercial areas is also a vital component of economic and social activity within our Borough. Their continued vitality and viability is therefore

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Tourism is a key growth sector within the Borough's economy. The quality of tourism attractions, facilities and accommodation is integral to the performance of this sector and the delivery of the Coun

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Establish Antrim and Newtownabbey as a premier business location where both existing and new, innovative, cultural and creative enterprise can prosper.

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Provide a range and quality of land and premises to facilitate business growth, promote economic diversification and protect our strategically important employment locations including the Regional Gat

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Promote development and regeneration of our town centres and commercial areas.

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Support the development of sustainable tourism and enhanced tourism infrastructure.

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

EMPLOYMENT A Place of Economic Opportunity 5

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Establish Antrim and Newtownabbey as a premier business location where both existing and new, innovative, cultural and creative enterprise can prosper.

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Provide a range and quality of land and premises to facilitate business growth, promote economic diversification and protect our strategically important employment locations including the Regional Gat

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Promote development and regeneration of our town centres and commercial areas.

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Support the development of sustainable tourism and enhanced tourism infrastructure.

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

As part of the Council's commitment to enhanced prosperity in our Borough, the role of the Local Development Plan (LDP) is to facilitate continued employment growth that meets the needs of our Borough

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council will encourage the growth of indigenous businesses, promote innovation and proactively attract investment into our Borough to support enterprise and increase employment for the benefit of

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council will identify and safeguard a range of sites for industrial/employment activity and business use in the Local Policies Plan focussed on Metropolitan Newtownabbey, Antrim, Ballyclare, Cruml

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council will operate a 'Two-Tier' approach to the identification of land and premises for industrial/employment activity and its subsequent retention and protection from alternative use based on:

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council does not intend to identify sites for employment-related developments in the smaller settlements of our Borough in the interests of flexibility. Industrial and business development proposa

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Until such time as the boundary of the SEL at BIA is identified, the Council will operate a presumption in favour of a wide range of industrial, business, airport related and other complementary emplo

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

In addition to SELs the Council will, where appropriate, identify other established industrial and business areas in Metropolitan Newtownabbey and our Borough's towns as Local Employment Sites. The lo

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Whilst these sites will continue to facilitate current local employment needs and be safeguarded for such use, it is recognised that there may be potential for mixed-use redevelopment schemes to deliv

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council will operate a town centre first approach in considering the development of retail and other main town centre uses across our Borough. This will be achieved by: (a) Applying the hierarchy

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Ensuring all development proposals for retail and other main town centre uses are of a scale and type that are commensurate with the centre's size and function within the retail hierarchy;

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Applying a sequential test as set out in Policy DM 7 to all development proposals for main town centre uses that are not within an existing centre; and

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Controlling future retail development at The Junction Retail Outlet and Leisure Park in Antrim in accordance with Policy DM 8.

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Tier Title Role and Function Centres 1. Large Town Centres Provides (or has the potential to provide) a range of shops, services, businesses and community facilities to a significant hinterland which

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council will identify the detailed boundaries of our Borough's retail centres in the Local Policies Plan and will undertake regular health checks in the future (normally every 5 years) to monitor

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council will work with its statutory partners and other stakeholders to bring forward measures that will support our Borough's centres, enhance the quality of retail floor space and reduce overall

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council will promote the growth of a sustainable tourism economy in our Borough. This will be achieved by: (a) Supporting proposals for new or enhanced high quality sustainable tourist attractions

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Developers should note that Major Planning Applications and other significant employment generating schemes and uses provide important opportunities for employment training and skills development with

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Our Borough is home to a number of advanced manufacturing and engineering firms that employ a significant number of people and boasts the highest concentration of transport and logistics firms and emp

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

In conjunction with the Council's Economic Strategy an Employment Land Evaluation Report (ELER) was undertaken in support of the Plan Strategy. This has provided a robust analysis of our Borough's emp

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

BIA is a critical regional gateway into Northern Ireland and one of the most significant employment locations in the Borough. As a strategically important transport interchange, BIA is and will contin

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

In addition to SELs, the Council intends to identify other more locally important employment sites within Metropolitan Newtownabbey and our towns. Whilst these remain an important employment resource,

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Our Borough offers a well-established and vibrant retail sector, which contributes significantly to the economic prosperity of the area and attracts visitors and inward investment. The retail sector i

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Based on the Retail and Commercial Leisure Study undertaken in support of the Plan Strategy, the Council has identified a retail hierarchy that recognises the traditional town centres of Antrim, Bally

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Whilst the five town centres vary greatly in size and the level of provision of services afforded, they all perform an important function in meeting the needs of residents within their surrounding cat

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Regional planning policy recognises the importance of accessible and vibrant town centres and advocates that they are promoted as the appropriate first choice location for retailing and other compleme

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council's Economic Strategy recognises that whilst our tourism offer remains relatively underdeveloped, recent and planned investment in infrastructure, hotel rooms and tourism products is seeing

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Figure 5: Hierarchy of Centres in our Borough

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The aim of this policy is to promote core economic development schemes on zoned employment sites and to facilitate sustainable employment opportunities elsewhere in settlements that are appropriate to

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Large-scale industrial development, business uses, call centres, research and development facilities, logistics and storage and distribution proposals will be directed towards Strategic Employment Loc

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The aim of this policy is to ensure that appropriate sustainable economic development opportunities are available in the countryside to support rural communities and help sustain the rural economy, wh

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Farm diversification, tourism development and the re-use of rural buildings all play an important role in supporting and sustaining jobs in the countryside. The Council also recognises the need to sup

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Policy DM 3: Economic Development – Incompatible Uses DM 3.1 The Council will operate a presumption against development near an existing or approved economic development use that would be incompatibl

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

5.37 The aim of this policy is to facilitate sustainable diversification schemes that will allow farmers to supplement the income they receive from farming. This aim has taken account of and is consis

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council will support the reuse and/or adaptation of farm buildings as part of a farm diversification scheme to be run in conjunction with existing agricultural operations where: (a) The farm busin

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

Exceptionally a new building may be permitted where it has been demonstrated that there is no existing building available to accommodate the proposal, either because they are essential for the operati

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The aim of this policy is to recognise and promote the positive role of our Borough's town, district and local centres as the most appropriate locations for retail development and other employment, le

Antrim and Newtownabbey·LDP 2030 Plan Strategy (adopted 2025)

The Council wishes to promote sustainable development within the Borough's identified centres, ensuring that new developments are located where there are good public transport services, with better ac