Consultation Process

This section outlines:

  • Why we are consulting
  • Who we are engaging with, and
  • How we are doing it.  

Statutory requirements

Under The Planning Act 2008, which established the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC), introduced National Policy Statements (NPS) and defined Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPS),  East Anglia Offshore Wind Limited (EAOW) is required to consult with a number of bodies on the development of East Anglia ONE.  These are divided into two main sections:

Section 42 - all statutory consultees:

  • Local authorities
  • Landowners, tenants, leaseholders and those with an interest in the land
  • Oil and Gas industry
  • National Grid, and
  • Nationally recognised conservation, marine, aviation and heritage organisations.

Section 47 - all non statutory consultees

  • The local community
  • Parish Councils
  • Local Interest Groups
  • Local Amenity Groups

EAOW is required to demonstrate that it has consulted adequately with all these groups before submitting the Development Consent Order (DCO) application to the IPC for East Anglia ONE.

Project requirements

In support of these requirements, the project needs your views.  The consultation is a chance for you, whether you are an individual or an organisation, to have your say.  Local knowledge from local communities combined with environmental and engineering studies will help us make the right decisions, both for the area and for East Anglia ONE.  So please let us know what you think!

Engagement process

Statement of Community Consultation

Under the Planning Act 2008 EAOW must issue a statement setting out how it will consult with local communities on the proposals.  EAOW published this Statement of Community Consultation (SoCC) in local newspapers at the end of March and held two public information days in Lowestoft and Ipswich on 6th and 7th April to inform members of the public about the process and to gain feedback on how we planned to undertake the consultation.  There were also project leaflets, information on the website and feedback forms to collect people’s views, as well as documentation from the IPC on the consultation process.

Phase 1 Consultation

A Scoping Report on the Electrical Transmission Works was published in July, following which EAOW held two more public information days in Felixstowe and Ipswich on 20th and 21st July.  There was also a meeting in the evening on 20th July to engage with fishermen, to inform on the East Anglia ONE proposals and to gain feedback on our plans. 

On the advice of Local Authority planning department representatives, EAOW set up unmanned exhibitions in libraries around Ipswich.  Leaflets were also distributed in local shops around Bramford, the proposed connection point for the transmission works.  This part of the process is known as Phase 1 Consultation and lasts 28 days.

Phase 1, Part 2 Consultation

To ensure we reached as many local people as possible, EAOW decided to voluntarily extend the consultation period, a part of the process it has called Phase 1, Part 2 Consultation.  EAOW has contacted 38 parishes which might be affected by the onshore transmission works and has offered to present the proposals  at Parish Council meetings or provide an information pack.  This part of the consultation process closes on 31st October 2011.

Phase 2 Consultation

This follows the submission of the Preliminary Environmental Information (PEI) in February 2012 and is designed to inform and enable stakeholders to comment on plans for  the offshore wind farm and the associated onshore and offshore electrical works and cables. The Phase 2 Consultation will be undertaken over 42 days.  Public information days and unmanned exhibitions are planned to engage with local people and stakeholders to discuss the PEI, and details will be published on this website as well as local newspapers.

Stakeholder responses from the PEI are intended to feed into the final Environmental Statement which will be submitted to the IPC in November 2012 in support of the DCO. 

Consultation Report

EAOW is required to submit a Consultation Report to demonstrate how it has consulted with stakeholders and the effectiveness of the consultation throughout the development process. The key element of the Consultation Report is to highlight where stakeholder suggestions have been included within the project design, and if applicable, where feedback has not been taken forward and a justification provided. The Consultation Report is a key document and will be submitted alongside the DCO.

You can view all the consultation material by going to the downloads section of the website.

Thanet Offshore Windfarm Thanet Offshore Windfarm