Amendment templates

The Planning and Environment Act 1987 (The Act) requires an Explanatory Report be prepared for every amendment. The report must explain the purpose, effect and strategic basis for the amendment and address the matters set out in Minister’s Direction No. 11 – Strategic Assessment of Amendments.

Practice Note 46: Strategic Assessment Guidelines must be considered whenever you prepare an explanatory report or report on an amendment. The Strategic assessment guidelines checklist may also be helpful to use while preparing an amendment assessment.

Explanatory report templates

Supporting information

The amendment Instruction Sheet is the front page of an amendment and sets out the instructions for amending the planning scheme. The Instruction Sheet and the attached maps and documents to which it refers, constitute the amendment and therefore must clearly state the instructions for executing the amendment. It is essential that these are drafted carefully and accurately.

The Instruction Sheet must list, in the following order :

1. Planning scheme maps that are to be amended, inserted or deleted. These should be sorted by zoning maps followed by overlay maps.
2. Planning scheme clauses and schedules that are to be amended, inserted or deleted. These should be listed in ascending numerical order.

The amended planning scheme map sheets form attachments to the Instruction Sheet. The map sheet shows the part of the overall planning scheme map being changed. If areas of a zone or an overlay are removed a deletion map needs to be prepared.

The department provides a free map preparation service to planning authorities preparing planning scheme amendments.

Complete the online form and allow five business days for preparation.

The amended planning scheme clauses and schedules are documents that form attachments to the Instruction Sheet. The format of the attached documents must comply with the Ministerial Direction: The Form and Content of Planning Schemes, which outlines the format for all clauses and schedules including the font, paragraph, bullets, numbering and layout.

Local Provision templates, as outlined in the Ministerial Direction, are provided in MS Word to assist with drafting ordinances only.

See the Practitioner's guide to Victoria's planning schemes for information about preparing a Municipal Planning Strategy and local planning policy and guidance on writing local provisions.

Practice Notes, such as Planning Practice Note 59 - The Role of Mandatory Provisions in Planning Schemes, also provide guidance on writing local provisions and specific planning topics.

Any ordinance submitted to the department as part of an amendment must be via ATS Authoring. ATS guidelines can be located in Amendment Tracking System Guides.

New or amended incorporated documents must be supplied to the department electronically via the Amendment Tracking System as they form part of the amendment. Incorporated document names must include a date (month and year).

The Practitioner's guide to Victoria's planning schemes explains the role of the external documents in schemes; the difference between incorporated documents and background documents; and provides guidance when a document should be an incorporated or background document.

New or revised background documents must be supplied to the department electronically via the Amendment Tracking System as they form part of the amendment.

The Practitioner's guide to Victoria's planning schemes explains the role of the external documents in schemes; the difference between background documents and incorporated documents; and provides guidance when a document should be an incorporated or background document.

Supporting documentation forms part of the amendment and must be submitted to the department electronically via the Amendment Tracking System.

Combined amendment and planning permit under s.96C of the Planning and Environment Act 1987: