Plans

Council Annual and Long-Term Plans

The Local Government Act 2002 requires the Council to develop a Long Term Plan (LTP) in consultation with the community. The LTP is required to cover a minimum of ten years from the date of its publication. The LTP will be reviewed and updated every three years following a further consultation process. In the first year of an LTP, the financial and service level information in the LTP, is by law, the Annual Plan. In the following two years, the Council will publish an Annual Plan. Each Annual Plan will describe the work programme to deliver that year’s part of the LTP. No significant changes can be made through just the Annual Plan process, unless there is an amendment to the LTP. Any amendment and the Annual Plan can be consulted on and adopted concurrently.

Amendments to the Local Government Act 2002 require the Council to consult with the community on the proposed content of the LTP by way of a Consultation Document (CD), with the draft components of the new LTP available to the community.

The Council has to produce an LTP every three years. In the in-between years (i.e. years two and three) the Council will produce an Annual Plan. This will focus on budget implications of the LTP for that year.

2025-34 Long-Term Plan

South Wairarapa District Council’s 2025-34 Long-Term Plan was adopted on 25 June 2025.

The document that was adopted can be found in the supplementary agenda items from the Council meeting.

The Wairarapa Combined District Plan

The purpose of the District Plan is to assist the Council to carry out its functions in order to achieve the purposes of the Resource Management Act. The Wairarapa Combined District Plan (WCDP) was adopted by South Wairarapa, Carterton and Masterton District Councils in May 2011. The WCDP is the principle means by which the Councils seek to ensure the sustainable management of the natural and physical resources of the district.

Our operative plan is now more than 10 years old. We need a modern plan which provides clear objectives, policies and rules to manage the effects of land use activities on the environment. In 2021-23 we checked in with our communities to understand people’s needs and expectations, and we revisited the direction for our district’s development.

The review must consider any recent changes in legislation, national and regional policy statements, environmental standards and other regulations. One of the changes has been the introduction of the National Planning Standards which sets out the format for the District Plan and will change the way the District Plan looks, including making it easier to find information and read online.

The review process is outlined on the WCDP website. Find out about:

• the review process
• where and when you can contribute to the review process
• what the outcomes and decisions are in each phase of the process

‍The plan was reviewed by a joint committee formed by delegated members of the three Wairarapa District Councils.

The review process saw the committee identify and confirm significant resource management issues, including subdivisions, financial contributions, indigenous biodiversity, historical heritage and planning for natural hazards and climate change.‍

Masterton, Carterton, and South Wairarapa District Councils have now completed the hearing process and on 8 October 2025 made decisions on the Proposed District Plan.

Find the Proposed Wairarapa Combined District Plan ‘decisions version’ here. Hard copies are available for viewing at our libraries.

People who have made submissions or further submissions have until 21 November 2025 to appeal decisions made by the panel to the Environment Court.

After 21 November, all parts of the plan for which an appeal has not been lodged will become operative. Where an appeal has been lodged, it will be a matter for the Environment Court to progress.

Other plans