Posted on April 21, 2026 by Taylor Finnegan and Megan Hawley 2

Draft CPP and DAs Exempt from Public Notification

On 8 April 2026, the NSW Government released the proposed statewide Community Participation Plan (Statewide CPP) for public comment.

The Planning System Reforms Act 2025 (Reform Act) requires the Planning Secretary to prepare a single statewide community participation plan about how and when planning authorities will undertake community participation that is to be published on the NSW legislation website. There are presently over 100 different CPPs in operation across NSW, resulting in inconsistencies in the consultation practices and timeframes for exhibition and notification of the same type of development between different local councils. Once the Statewide CPP is finalised it will supersede all existing local council and NSW Government agency CPPs to bring consistency to consultation timeframes across NSW.

Exemptions from Public Exhibition and Notification 

Significantly, the Statewide CPP includes, in Table 6, types of residential development and other development in respect of which public exhibition and notification is not required.

Public exhibition and notification is not required if the development is:

• a type listed in Table 6,
• permissible in the relevant zone,
• complies with the relevant planning controls, and
• does not rely on a clause 4.6 variation.

Types of listed development exempt from notification requirements include small projects (e.g. alterations, ancillary development and temporary structures) but also a range of residential developments including dwellings and attached dwellings, group homes, and larger developments such as residential flat buildings and shop top housing. Adjoining neighbors are to be notified 7 days before works commence for residential flat buildings and shop top housing.

The exemption also applies to a range of other development types such as take away food premises, industrial retail outlets, and bed and breakfast accommodation. Modification applications involving minimal environmental impact, and Division 8.2 reviews where the application has not been amended are also exempt.

It is to be expected that there will be significant community backlash to many of these development types not being subject to any notification to neighbours.

Table 7 also sets out circumstances where the Department of Planning, Heritage and Infrastructure is ‘not likely to require public exhibition’ in Activation Precincts and the Alpine Region. This will likely be dealt with through a SEPP.

Exhibition Timeframes under the proposed statewide CPP

Tables 5 and 8 of the proposed Statewide CPP set out the mandatory minimum requirements for exhibition timeframes for public participation. Key changes to community participation under each Table are noted below.

Table 5 – Mandatory minimum public exhibition timeframes in the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EPA Act)

• Planning proposals, draft development control plans and contributions plans must be exhibited for 28 days (subject to a gateway determination in respect of a planning proposal)
• Draft regional or district strategic plans are exhibited for 45 days.
• The Reform Act amended Schedule 1 of the EPA Act so that development applications must be exhibited for 14 days unless the CPP sets out a different timeframe.
• For State significant development, designated development  and certain other types of development such as ‘threatened species development’ the exhibition period is 28 days.
• Minimum consultation on significant state-level strategic planning initiatives is extended from 45 days to 60 days.
• Notification of complying development is standardized. Complying development is exempt from exhibition however adjoining neighbors are to be notified 7 days prior to commencement of works being carried out.

Table 8 – Non-legislative public exhibition timeframes

• Recommended exhibition timeframes are provided for planning functions where there is no legislative requirement for public exhibition e.g. 42 days exhibition period of a masterplan for urban renewal areas.
• Recommended timeframes are guided by community participation objectives but may be truncated on occasions where a governance priority or administrative requirement requires immediate action.

Notably, the reforms and proposed Statewide CPP do not impose a maximum exhibition period, suggesting that a consent authority may exhibit for longer than outlined in the CPP.

Council and Agency Engagement Strategies

Once the Statewide CPP is finalised local councils will still be required to establish and implement a community engagement strategy for engagement with the local community under s402 of the Local Government Act 1993. The strategy may outline specific mechanisms and tools for how the council will undertake targeted engagement with their communities and stakeholders. The strategy must be consistent with the CPP, the community participation objectives and the requirements under any other Act or legislation. An engagement strategy cannot specify timeframes for exhibition of a planning function.

The draft plan is on exhibition until 3 June 2026.

You can read the draft Community Participation Plan and Discussion Paper here.

If you have any questions regarding this article, please leave a comment below or contact Megan Hawley on (02) 8235 9703.