Policy WS/IO: Creating inclusive employment and business opportunities through new developments

1. New developments of 1,000sqm or more gross floorspace that fall within Use Classes E (commercial, business and service); B2 (general Industrial), B8 (storage and distribution); C1 (Hotel); F1 (learning and non-residential) ; F2 (local community) and Sui generis will be required to submit and implement an Employment and Skills Plan for both the construction and occupation stages of the development. A development that forms part of a larger development which would cumulatively exceed the 1,000 sqm threshold would also be required to deliver a Skills and Employment Plan. 

2. New developments consisting of 10 or more dwellings will be required to submit and implement an Employment and Skills Plan for the construction stage. 

3. An Employment and Skills Plan will be expected to include: 

  a. How and when the developer will, as a minimum, deliver the benchmarks for the development use and gross development value set out in the latest version of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) National Skills Academy for Construction (CITB NSAfC) Client Based Approach guidance and benchmarks. 

  b. Where required by this policy, employment and training targets in the occupation stage of the development and how and when they will be delivered. 

  c. How these opportunities will be made available to local residents who have difficulty accessing the labour market and/or who would not have traditionally accessed the career paths available through the development.

  d. How procurement opportunities associated with the construction and occupational phases will be promoted to local businesses and what support will be available to them to understand the tendering process. 

4. A target percentage of all jobs created by the development will be secured for local residents. 

5. Employment and skills provision during the construction stage will be provided or facilitated directly by the developer or their sub-contractors. Occupation stage developers will agree internal protocols/ agreements with new occupier(s) that cover the targets, measures and monitoring laid out within the Employment and Skills Plan. 

6. Payments in-lieu will only be considered in exceptional circumstances where the developer can satisfactorily demonstrate that: 

  a. there are circumstances specific to the scheme such that direct provision is not operationally feasible, or 

  b. an alternative means of delivery would result in a more effective outcome. 

7. Developers will be expected to use reasonable endeavours to implement the agreed Employment and Skills Plan. The developer will be required to provide monitoring reports for review by the councils on the implementation of their Plan at agreed regular intervals. 

This policy responds to the persistent poverty and skills gap in both Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire. Despite improvements in certain indicators since 2014, poverty remains a significant issue in Cambridge, exacerbated by a "hollowed out labour market" where the dominance of higher-skilled industries limits opportunities for those with intermediate-level qualifications. In South Cambridgeshire, while inequality is less pronounced, rural deprivation is often overlooked due to its dispersed nature. 

The construction industry, which offers considerable potential for local employment, faces a critical skills shortages with employers in this sector struggling to fill vacancies due to a lack of skilled applicants and insufficient training of young people. Given the scale of new developments planned for the area, it is both essential and valuable to create opportunities that address these skill deficits locally. 

By implementing requirements for local employment, on-site apprenticeships, work experience, and other skills development initiatives, the policy would help equip local residents with the skills needed to meet the demands of growing sectors locally increasing social, particularly financial, inclusion. The policy will also help to foster a more self-sufficient and resilient workforce and reduces reliance on external labour. 

Examples of the types of employment and training activities that can form part of a Skills and Employment Plan include: 

  a. Recruitment of local residents through job brokerage, job centres and other local organisations; 

  b. Apprenticeships, accredited training, pre-employment support, work experience 

  c. Education initiatives linking with local schools and colleges, school talks and careers advice. 

  d. Work with the voluntary and community groups locally to support disadvantaged people. 

  e. Participation in local forums to promote sector development. 

The Construction Industry Training Board National Skills Academy for Construction (CITB NSAfC) Client Based Approach guidance includes benchmarks for the following performance indicators: 

  i. Work Experience Placements 

  ii. Job starts (including apprenticeships and people previously unemployed) 

 iii. Construction Careers Information, Advice & Guidance (CCIAG) Events 

  iv. Training Weeks on Site 

  v. Qualifying the Workforce 

  vi.  Green Skills Training 

Local residents who have difficulty accessing the labour market, include but are not limited to NEETS (not in education, employment or training), armed services leavers, refugees and asylum seekers, care leavers, people in long-term unemployment, and those with a disability, sickness, or caring responsibilities. Those who have not traditionally accessed the career paths available through the development include, for example, women in construction. 

The policy requires a minimum target percentage of local labour during construction and operational phases. This percentage will be agreed with the Local Planning Authority prior to signing a S106 agreement. ‘Local labour’ for the purposes of this policy primarily refers to residents of

The combined areas of Cambridge District and South Cambridgeshire District Councils.

and a “local business” means a business based in, or having a significant permanent physical presence in

The combined areas of Cambridge District and South Cambridgeshire District Councils.

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The policy seeks to support community wealth building by requiring developers to consider how they can ensure that local businesses can access procurement opportunities during both the construction and operational phases of the development. The inclusion of local procurement within the policy aligns with the broader efforts to achieve sustainable development, by reducing the reliance on external supply chains and connecting new development projects with the needs of the local community. 

It is recommended that the developer will engage with the councils at an early stage to develop their Employment and Skills Plan. The Plan itself will need to have been approved in writing by the council by an agreed point in the development process (typically, three months prior to implementation, although exact timescales will need to be agreed as part of the detail of the planning obligations in individual cases). 

The Employment and Skills Plan will normally be secured by means of the s106 legal agreement. This will also typically include a monitoring fee to aid the implementation of the policy. The council may provide supplementary planning guidance to provide more detailed guidance. 

A formula for calculating potential in-lieu payments will be developed following consultation on the Draft Plan. 

The combined areas of Cambridge District and South Cambridgeshire District Councils.

A plan for the future development of a local area, drawn up by the local planning authority in consultation with the community. In law this is described as the development plan documents adopted under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. A local plan can consist of either strategic or non-strategic policies, or a combination of the two.

: Topic Paper 4: Wellbeing and Social Inclusion

We will consider all comments while developing the next version of the

A plan for the future development of a local area, drawn up by the local planning authority in consultation with the community. In law this is described as the development plan documents adopted under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. A local plan can consist of either strategic or non-strategic policies, or a combination of the two.

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All comments must be received by 30 January 2026 at 5pm.