About regional spatial plans

Providing long-term strategic direction

The new planning system is designed to help local authorities and their communities make decisions for the long term about growth, change, infrastructure and environmental outcomes. 

Regional spatial plans are an important part of the new system. They set the long-term direction for how regions need to grow and change over the next 30 years and beyond. They will help local authorities, iwi, communities, infrastructure providers and central government establish the long-term and strategic direction for land use and natural environment plans, and for infrastructure investment.  

How regions change could include: 

• housing and business growth to support changing populations 
• significant changes to land use or infrastructure to respond to priorities such as improving resilience and natural hazard risk 
• new or changing economic opportunities. 

Regional spatial planning is intended to:  

• streamline planning and investment decisions 
• reduce duplication
• lower costs across the system.  

It can also help regions and New Zealand get better value from current and future infrastructure by improving connections within and between regions, supporting more efficient housing and labour markets, and lifting productivity.  

A strategic guide for other planning

Regional spatial plans are intended to be high-level, strategic documents that influence other regional and local planning. They will generally be focused on the broad spatial layout of the region, providing long-term direction.