The Plan organises local planning using a small set of recurring legal mechanisms. Understanding these is essential for advising clients and preparing applications.

Zones and objectives (Part 2, cl 2.1-2.3, Land Use Table)

• The Plan defines a discrete set of zones (rural, residential, employment, mixed use, special purpose, recreation, conservation, waterways) (cl 2.1). Each zone entry in the Land Use Table contains objectives and specifies development that is permitted without consent, permitted with consent and prohibited (cl 2.3(1)-(2)). The consent authority must have regard to zone objectives when deciding DAs (cl 2.3(2)).

Maps and spatial instruments (cl 1.3; cl 1.7)

• Application and operation of the Plan are map‑driven: Land Application Map, Land Zoning Map, Lot Size Map, Riparian Land and Watercourses Map, Terrestrial Biodiversity Map, Salinity Map, Drinking Water Catchment Map and others referred to across clauses and Schedules. The Plan allows maps to be combined and updated (cl 1.7(1)-(3)) and requires maps to be publicly available (cl 1.7(3) and notes).

Permitted, exempt and complying development (Part 3, cl 3.1-3.3; Schedules 2-3)

• The Land Use Table (Part 2) distinguishes development requiring consent from development that may be carried out without consent. Schedule 2 is for additional exempt development (when populated); Schedule 3 includes local additions to complying development. Exempt and complying development must meet Building Code of Australia requirements and the Plan’s Part 3 provisions (cl 3.1(3), cl 3.2(3)(b)). Exempt or complying development is prohibited on environmentally sensitive areas defined in cl 3.3.

Principal standards and flexibility (Part 4)

• Minimum lot sizes and subdivision rules play a central regulatory role (cl 4.1, cl 4.1AA, cl 4.1A). The Plan contains a standard exceptions mechanism for development standards (cl 4.6) allowing non‑compliance where the applicant demonstrates the matters in cl 4.6(3) and the consent authority records its assessment (cl 4.6(4)). Certain standards are expressly excluded from this clause (cl 4.6(8)).

Local overlay controls and assessment matters (Parts 5 and 6)

• The Plan imposes requirements and assessment matters on matters such as heritage (cl 5.10), flood risk and flood planning (cl 5.21, cl 5.22), intensive livestock agriculture (cl 5.18), aquaculture (cl 5.19 and Sch 6), earthworks (cl 6.1), essential services (cl 6.2), terrestrial biodiversity (cl 6.3), riparian land (cl 6.4), groundwater vulnerability (cl 6.5), salinity (cl 6.6), and development on specified river corridors and lake margins (cl 6.9). Consent cannot be granted unless the consent authority is satisfied the development meets the relevant environmental protection objectives and mitigates adverse impacts (see, for example, cl 6.3(4)).

Covenants, planning agreements and savings (cl 1.9A; cl 1.8A)

• The Plan provides that private covenants and agreements that would otherwise restrict development do not apply to the extent necessary to enable development in accordance with the Plan, with specified exceptions (cl 1.9A(1)-(2)). The Plan also protects pending development applications by requiring that DAs made before the Plan’s commencement be determined under the previous planning rules (cl 1.8A).

Local schedules and site‑specific permissions (Schedules 1, 4, 5, 6)

• Schedule 1 grants particular additional uses on specified lots; Schedule 5 lists heritage items and conservation areas with associated consent triggers; Schedule 6 sets out pond/tank aquaculture minimum site and operational requirements. Schedule 4 classifies/reclassifies public land for Local Government Act purposes (cl 5.2).

Cross‑reference to State policy and the Act (cl 1.9, throughout)

• The Plan is expressly subject to State environmental planning policies that prevail (cl 1.9(1)). It repeatedly references the Act and other State statutes (e.g. the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016, Heritage Act 1977, Local Land Services Act 2013) as operative cross‑links for exclusions, notifications and standards (see cll 1.9A(2), 5.10, 5.19, 3.3 and numerous others).

In sum, the Plan is an LEP that combines spatial zoning, numerical/qualitative development standards, overlay protection and a map‑driven regime with specific local departures (schedule items and exception clauses). Practitioners must treat the Plan as a map-and-schedule centred code that defers to State policy and the Act on any conflict (cl 1.9(1)).

Explicitly and practically, the Plan affects the following groups and interests:

• Landowners and prospective purchasers within the Hilltops Plan area: their land is re‑zoned, minimum lot sizes and permitted uses set out on the Land Zoning Map and Lot Size Map will constrain or enable subdivision, intensification, dwellings and commercial activities (cl 1.3; cl 2.2; cl 4.1; cl 4.1A). Schedule 1 identifies specific additional uses on particular lots (Sch 1), so owners of those parcels are affected by bespoke permissions.

• Developers, builders and designers: the Plan determines what requires development consent, what can be exempt or complying development and the relevant standards (Part 2, Part 3, Sch 2-3). For example, temporary uses are limited to 52 days in a 12‑month period unless used as a sales office (cl 2.8). Complying/exempt development must meet Building Code of Australia and Plan standards (cl 3.1(3), cl 3.2(3)(b)).

• Hilltops Council (the consent authority): the Council is the consent authority for the Plan area (cl 1.6) and is required to apply the zone objectives (cl 2.3(2)), consider the specified assessment matters (heritage, biodiversity, riparian, flood planning, etc.) and to keep records where development standards are contravened under cl 4.6(4). The Plan also permits the Council to classify or reclassify public land (cl 5.2), and designates the Council or State authorities as acquisition authorities for land in Schedule mapping (cl 5.1).

• Existing holders of private covenants, agreements and instruments: those instruments are, in many cases, suspended to the extent necessary to enable development consistent with the Plan (cl 1.9A(1)), but specific categories are excluded from suspension (cl 1.9A(2)). Public authorities’ rights under registered instruments are preserved (cl 1.9A(3)).

• Heritage owners and managers: heritage items and conservation areas are listed in Schedule 5 and trigger mandatory consent requirements for demolition, external alterations, specified internal alterations, and subdivision (cl 5.10(2)-(3)). Owners proposing works on archaeological Aboriginal places must engage with local Aboriginal communities and the Heritage Council per cl 5.10(7)-(9).

• Primary producers and rural enterprises: rural zones RU1 and RU4 have particular objectives and permitted uses (Part 2 Land Use Table). The Plan contains detailed provisions on intensive livestock agriculture (cl 5.18) and farm stay/farm gate premises (cl 5.24-5.25). Minimum lot sizes, subdivision rules, and protections against fragmentation (cl 4.1, cl 4.2, cl 4.1AA) directly affect primary production holdings.

• Aquaculture and fisheries operators: the Plan contains targeted rules for pond‑based, tank‑based and oyster aquaculture (cl 5.19 and Sch 6), including site exclusion zones, operational requirements (no discharge to natural waterbodies for intensive systems except open flow through,Sch 6 Div 2 cl 4), and exemptions for development within priority oyster aquaculture areas (cl 5.19(6)).

• Licensed premises and nightlife operators: cl 5.20 prohibits consent being refused merely on the basis of music genre, live/amplified music, presence of a stage or dance floor, or decorative staging features, and bars consent authorities from refusing consent on noise from music if the noise can be managed to acceptable levels (cl 5.20(1)-(2)). This affects venue operators and residents near licensed premises.

• Residents in flood‑ and bushfire‑prone areas: flood planning and special flood considerations impose specific assessment matters and thresholds for development in flood planning areas and between flood planning area and probable maximum flood (cl 5.21-5.22). Clause 5.11 permits bush fire hazard reduction works authorised by the Rural Fires Act 1997 without consent.

• State and other public authorities: the Plan preserves State policy primacy (cl 1.9) and sets out which State authority is the relevant acquisition authority for owner-initiated acquisitions (cl 5.1). It also preserves the Crown’s entitlement to use existing Crown buildings (cl 5.12(2)).

• Aboriginal communities: the Plan requires consultation and specific consideration for Aboriginal places of heritage significance (cl 5.10(8)) and identifies land of high Aboriginal cultural significance as an environmentally sensitive area for exempt/compliant development exclusions (cl 3.3(2)(g)).

Practitioners should note who has decision power (Council as consent authority, cl 1.6; Ministerial and State functions where specified) and who bears the cost or benefit of particular rules (e.g. owners of heritage items face consents and possible conservation obligations under cl 5.10; primary producers are constrained by subdivision and land fragmentation controls under cl 4.1 and cl 4.2).

The Plan allocates duties, decision factors and some rights. Below is a practical ordering of those legal duties and rights as the Plan sets them out.

Consent authority duties and decision framework

• The Council is the consent authority and must have regard to zone objectives when deciding applications (cl 1.6; cl 2.3(2)). For particular types of development the Plan prescribes mandatory matters to be considered and thresholds that must be satisfied before consent can be granted (for example cl 5.19(2) for pond/tank aquaculture, cl 6.3(3)-(4) for terrestrial biodiversity, cl 6.4(3)-(4) for riparian land, cl 5.21(2)-(3) for flood planning).
• When a development would contravene a development standard, the consent authority must be satisfied the applicant has demonstrated the matters in cl 4.6(3) and the authority must keep a record of the assessment (cl 4.6(3)-(4)). The EP&A Regulation 2021 requires an accompanying document for such contraventions (cl 4.6 note).

Applicant duties and evidentiary thresholds

• Applicants must comply with the Building Code of Australia requirements for exempt and complying development (cl 3.1(3)(a); cl 3.2(3)(b)).
• For contravening development standards, applicants must provide the document required by the regulations setting out grounds under cl 4.6(3) (cl 4.6 note).
• For heritage, where the consent authority requires a heritage management document or conservation management plan, the applicant must prepare and submit it before consent is granted (cl 5.10(5)-(6)). For Aboriginal places, the consent authority must be satisfied the effect on heritage significance has been adequately investigated and must notify and consider local Aboriginal communities’ responses (cl 5.10(8)).
• For aquaculture and intensive livestock projects, the applicant must demonstrate compliance with site and operational requirements in Schedule 6 (cl 5.19(2), Sch 6); for intensive livestock, applicants must address odour, water pollution, soil degradation and demonstrate intention to comply with industry codes (cl 5.18(3)(a)-(g)).

Rights created or curtailed by the Plan

• Rights to carry out development permitted without consent are preserved subject to other Acts and overlay exclusions (cl 2.3 notes; cl 3.1(3)(c) and cl 3.3 where environmentally sensitive areas are excluded). Exempt development remains subject to approvals under other Acts (Schedule 2 note).
• Owners of land subject to private covenants and instruments have those instruments suspended to the extent necessary for compliant development (cl 1.9A(1)), except where the Plan expressly excludes suspension (cl 1.9A(2)). The Plan preserves public authorities’ rights under registered instruments (cl 1.9A(3)).
• Applicants for DAs made before the Plan’s commencement retain the right to be determined under the old instrument (cl 1.8A). That is a savings right.

Procedural and consultation duties

• For archaeological sites (other than State heritage register land), the consent authority must notify the Heritage Council before granting consent and consider any response within 28 days (cl 5.10(7)).
• For Aboriginal places, the consent authority must notify local Aboriginal communities in an appropriate manner and consider responses within 28 days (cl 5.10(8)).
• For demolition, subdivision or works affecting heritage items, consent is required unless the consent authority advises in writing that the proposed development is minor and will not affect heritage significance (cl 5.10(2)-(3)).

Limitations to administrative discretion and notable prohibitions

• The Plan prohibits canal estate development (cl 2.9).
• The exceptions clause (cl 4.6) gives discretion to permit contraventions but excludes some standards from being relaxed (cl 4.6(8) , standards for complying development, BASIX commitments, clause 5.4 and 5.5 as specified). Certain subdivision contraventions are forbidden under cl 4.6(6) for particular rural and conservation zones (no consent if subdivision results in multiple lots below minimum or at least one under 90% of the standard).
• Temporary uses have prescribed limits and conditions for consent (cl 2.8).
• Exempt and complying development cannot be carried out on environmentally sensitive areas (cl 3.3).

Record‑keeping and transparency duties

• The consent authority must keep a record of its assessment under cl 4.6(3) (cl 4.6(4)). The Plan requires maps be kept and made available to the public in accordance with Ministerial arrangements (cl 1.7(3)).

Interplay with State policy and other statutory instruments

• The Plan is subject to State environmental planning policies that prevail (cl 1.9(1)). Many Plan provisions refer to other Acts where particular rights or duties are allocated (e.g. biodiversity certification under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 is excluded from covenant suspension cl 1.9A(2)(b); heritage duties reference the Heritage Act 1977 in cl 5.10). Practitioners must observe these cross‑references.

In short, the Plan imposes a regime that: (1) confers rights to carry out certain development by zone; (2) sets non‑delegable duties on the consent authority to consider overlay matters and notify relevant authorities/communities; (3) creates procedural duties for applicants to prepare specified management documents; and (4) limits private instruments where they would impede Plan‑consistent development, subject to express exclusions.

The text of this Plan does not itself set out offences, penalties or detailed enforcement procedures. The Plan repeatedly frames rights and permissions in terms of development consent and references “the Act” and the State Policy framework (for example, cl 1.6 notes the consent authority is the Council “subject to the Act”, and cl 1.9(1) acknowledges State environmental planning policies that prevail). That means enforcement and penalties for unauthorised works, breaches of conditions or other contraventions will be matters governed by the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act and its regulations, and other relevant Acts invoked by particular provisions (for example, the Heritage Act 1977, the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016, or the Local Government Act 1993), rather than by express sanction provisions in this Plan.

What the Plan does say that affects enforcement practice

• Development that requires consent cannot lawfully be carried out without consent; the Plan distinguishes permitted-without-consent development from development that requires consent (Part 2, cl 2.3; Part 3). Practitioners should therefore treat any work outside the Plan’s permitted classes and not covered by exempt/compliant pathways as potentially unauthorised.
• The Plan requires documentation and investigations in particular contexts (heritage management documents, heritage conservation management plans, aquaculture site and operational requirements, intensive livestock assessments). Failure to provide required documents or comply with imposed conditions will engage the enforcement regime of the Act and any other named statute (e.g. cl 5.10(5)-(6), cl 5.19(2), cl 5.18(3)).
• Where the consent authority grants consent involving a non‑compliance with a development standard using the exceptions clause (cl 4.6), the authority must keep a record of that assessment (cl 4.6(4)); that record is relevant evidence in any subsequent enforcement or merits review.

Practical implication for advisers

• Because the Plan itself is silent on penalties, practitioners must consult the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and the relevant regulations for enforcement processes, penalties, remediation powers, compliance notices and criminal/civil sanctioning. The Plan’s consistent cross‑references to other Acts mean that contraventions may also trigger enforcement under those statutes (for example, unlawful damage to a State‑listed heritage item could trigger heritage Act processes). The Plan’s provisions that require involvement or notice to ministerial/statutory bodies (cl 5.10(7)-(9)) create additional procedural steps that, if ignored, could render a consent invalid or subject to challenge.

In short, the Plan allocates rights and permissions and imposes duties but leaves the statutory enforcement machinery and penalties to the Act and other named legislation; the absence of penalty provisions in the Plan means advising clients requires immediate cross‑reference to the Act and regulations.

The Plan is integrative: it sits inside the State planning framework and references numerous State Acts and policies that constrain or interact with its provisions. The Plan itself records key interdependencies and exceptions.

Primacy of State policies and the Act

• The Plan is subject to any State environmental planning policy that prevails over it “as provided by section 3.28 of the Act” (cl 1.9(1)). Practically, that means State SEPPs (for housing, transport and infrastructure, resources and energy, resilience and hazards, industry and employment, primary production) may override the Plan in areas of inconsistency; the Plan lists those SEPPs as likely relevant in the Land Use Table notes (Land Use Table note and Part 2 notes).

Cross‑references to specific statutes and how they are used

• Biodiversity and land conservation: the Plan excludes suspension of instruments that relate to biodiversity certification under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 (cl 1.9A(2)(b)) and excludes private land conservation agreements continued under transitional biodiversity regulations (cl 1.9A(2)(c),(g),(h)). Clause 6.3 and cl 3.3 identify lands of high biodiversity significance and direct that exempt/compliant development not occur there (cl 3.3(2)(g); cl 6.3). These cross‑references mean biodiversity law and its approvals/licences operate alongside the Plan.
• Heritage: cl 5.10 relies on the Heritage Act 1977 in multiple ways,heritage items and conservation areas trigger consent, the Heritage Council must be notified for archaeological sites (cl 5.10(7)), and demolition of nominated State heritage items requires Heritage Council notification (cl 5.10(9)). Heritage processes and obligations under the Heritage Act therefore run in tandem with the Plan’s consent requirements.
• Crown land and Crown instruments: cl 1.9A(3) preserves rights and interests of public authorities under registered instruments; cl 1.9A(2)(d) excludes suspension of relevant instruments under the Crown Land Management Act 2016, section 13.4. Clause 5.12 preserves existing Crown building use and does not fetter infrastructure development permitted under State policy (cl 5.12(1)-(2)).
• Local government classification and trust discharges: cl 5.2 engages the Local Government Act 1993 by enabling classification or reclassification of public land, discharging trusts where specified (cl 5.2(1)-(5) and notes). Schedule 4 records classification entries.
• Water, fisheries and aquaculture law: cl 5.19 and Schedule 6 cross‑refer to the Fisheries Management Act 1994 and the Fisheries Management (Aquaculture) Regulation 2017 (Sch 6 references). They also require reference to industry development plans and the NSW Oyster Industry Sustainable Aquaculture Strategy for oyster aquaculture (cl 5.19(5)). Water‑related environmental outcomes are also governed by flood guidelines and the Flood Risk Management Manual invoked in cl 5.21(4)-(5). The Plan’s aquaculture operational rules interact with licencing and approvals that the Fisheries Act and associated regulations control.
• Rural fire, bushfire and environmental hazard laws: cl 5.11 explicitly allows bush fire hazard reduction work authorised under the Rural Fires Act 1997 to occur without development consent; that statute’s regime sits alongside the Plan for bushfire mitigation works. Flood planning clauses (cl 5.21-5.22) reference State flood guidelines and manuals rather than giving prescriptive numerical floors in the LEP itself.

Suspension of private instruments versus other statutory instruments

• Clause 1.9A permits suspension (non‑application) of private covenants and agreements to the extent necessary to enable development in accordance with the Plan, but expressly excludes covenants imposed by the Council, biodiversity certification, private land conservation agreements continued by regulation, Trust agreements continued by regulation, relevant Crown Land instruments, land management code approvals, and planning agreements under the Act (cl 1.9A(2)(a)-(i)). Rights of public authorities under registered instruments are unaffected (cl 1.9A(3)). The Governor’s prior approval of the clause is noted (cl 1.9A(4) referencing section 3.16 of the Act), signalling an interaction between executive approval and local instrument operation.

Records, maps and technical standards

• The Plan requires maps to be kept and made available in forms and under arrangements approved by the Minister (cl 1.7(3)) and references the Department’s “Standard technical requirements for LEP maps and Standard requirements for LEP GIS data”. This requires practitioners to ensure that map‑based analysis (zone, lot size, overlays) conforms with the Ministerial technical standards and that reliance on maps is consistent with the regulations.

Practical trade‑offs and compliance intersections

• Where the Plan permits a use but another Act requires a licence or prohibits the activity (e.g. aquaculture in certain conservation zones, or excavation affecting Aboriginal objects under the National Parks and Wildlife Act), the other Act’s licencing and prohibitions continue to apply,the Plan notes exempt development remains subject to approvals under other Acts (Schedule 2 note).
• The exceptions to development standards mechanism (cl 4.6) operates inside the regulatory framework formed by the Act and the EP&A Regulation 2021; applications seeking non‑compliance must supply the statutory supporting documentation required by the regulations (cl 4.6 note), and certain standards (complying development standards, BASIX commitments) are excluded from variation (cl 4.6(8)).

In short, the Plan is not stand‑alone law. It is expressly framed to operate within the State planning framework, cross‑linked to heritage, biodiversity, fisheries, Crown land, local government and flood/ bushfire law. Practitioners must map Plan provisions to the applicable State statutes and policies named in the instrument for a complete legal assessment.

The Plan text contains its commencement date and several recorded amendments and substitutions. The following items are recorded in the Plan as enacted or subsequently amended in the text provided:

• Commencement: the Plan commenced on 1 February 2023 and required publication on the NSW legislation website (cl 1.1AA).
• Repeal of predecessor LEPs: cl 1.8 lists the repealed local environmental plans, specifically Boorowa LEP 2012, Harden LEP 2011 and Young LEP 2010 (cl 1.8 note). The clause also preserves one specific provision of the repealed Young LEP (cl 1.8(2A)).
• Land Use Table amendment notes: the Land Use Table carries an amendment annotation: "Land Use tbl: Am 2023 (82), Sch 2; 2025 (382), Sch 1[1]-[5]; 2026 (9), Sch 1." That indicates the Land Use Table was amended in 2023, 2025 and 2026; the Plan text reproduces those amendment stamps. Readers should consult the consolidated LEP for the exact wording changes effected by those amending instruments.
• Clause substitutions and amendments: several clauses carry annotations showing substitution or amendment dates:
  • Clause 5.24 (Farm stay accommodation) is noted as substituted 2023 (458), Sch 1[4].
  • Clause 5.22 (Special flood considerations) shows substitution 2025 (382), Sch 1[6].
  • Schedule 5 (Environmental heritage) carries an annotation "sch 5: Am 2025 (382), Sch 1[7]-[11]" indicating heritage schedule amendments in 2025.
• Repeals: some subordinate items or elements are marked "Repealed" in the body of the Plan (for example, in cl 1.7(1AA) the note "Repealed" appears and in cl 3.1(3)(e) something was repealed). The Plan itself notes when subclauses or items have been repealed; practitioners must treat those parts as absent and consult the consolidated Plan or amending instruments for the amendment history.
• Not adopted entries: several development standards (height of buildings cl 4.3, floor space ratio cl 4.4, calculation of floor space ratio cl 4.5, architectural roof features cl 5.6, development below mean high water mark cl 5.7, dwelling house affected by natural disaster cl 5.9) are labelled “[Not adopted]” or “[Not applicable]”. Those annotations indicate that the Plan includes placeholders for standard LEP clauses that were not selected in this instrument when made.

What the textual amendment stamps mean in practice

• Those amendment notations record that the Plan has been amended since its original making; the Plan text before you includes those amendment stamps. They do not, by themselves in this document, show the detailed content of the amendments. For precise historical drafting changes or the legislative instruments effecting amendments, a practitioner must consult the NSW legislation website for the amending instruments referenced (for example, the Gazette instrument numbers or the consolidated LEP version). The Plan indicates where substantive changes have been made (e.g. changes to the Land Use Table and to flood-related provisions), and those items will materially affect permitted uses and overlay assessments.

Practitioners advising on older consents or appeals should check whether an application was made before or after any amendment and rely on the savings clause for DAs made prior to commencement (cl 1.8A), and should also check the dates on the amendment annotations cited above.

The text of this Plan contains no court decisions, case citations or a litigation history. It does not name any judicial determinations. Where the Plan references the Act, regulations or other statutes (for example cl 4.6 note referring to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2021), those external instruments have their own jurisprudence which is not set out in this Plan.

Practical consequence for advisers and litigators

• Because the Plan itself contains no reported cases or judicial interpretation, any argument about the proper construction or admissible uses under its clauses will rely on case law under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, State environmental planning policies, and decisions interpreting common LEP provisions such as the exceptions to development standards (cl 4.6). The Plan expressly records the requirement for the consent authority to keep a record under cl 4.6(4) and for applicants to provide documentation in accordance with the regulations,these procedural steps are often central in disputes over special case approvals.
• For dispute and merits review, practitioners should examine the Act and relevant case law interpreting contravention/demonstration standards, heritage obligations, and overlay controls referenced by the Plan. The Plan provides the substantive framework; litigation will turn on how courts have construed equivalent provisions in the Act and other SEPPs and on facts specific to a development application.

In short, there is no litigation history recorded in the Plan text provided. Where advice or representation is required in contested matters, counsel and advisers must build arguments from the Act, regulations, relevant SEPP jurisprudence and LEP interpretation authorities rather than from any cases named in this Plan.

The Plan contains several practical traps and non‑obvious interactions that can affect clients and applicants. The following are concrete operational pitfalls, each cited to the Plan.

1. DAs pending at commencement are preserved under the old rules (cl 1.8A). If a client lodged an application shortly before 1 February 2023, the application must be determined as if this Plan had not commenced. Mistakenly assessing that DA under the new Plan is an avoidable error.

2. Map reliance and deferred matter (cl 1.3; cl 1.7). Many permissions, prohibitions and lot size standards are map‑driven. Land marked “Deferred matter” is outside the Plan (cl 1.3(1A)). Practitioners must check the live Land Zoning Map, Lot Size Map and overlay maps. Maps are amendable (cl 1.7(1)-(2)) and can be combined; reliance on an outdated map layer is risky.

3. Suspension of covenants is limited (cl 1.9A). Clause 1.9A allows private covenants and agreements to be displaced to the extent necessary, but it explicitly excludes covenants imposed by the Council, biodiversity certification under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016, private land conservation agreements continued by regulation, relevant Crown Land instruments, mandatory code instruments for set aside areas, conservation agreements under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974, property vegetation plans continued under transitional regulations, Trust agreements under the Nature Conservation Trust Act 2001, and planning agreements under the Act (cl 1.9A(2)(a)-(i)). Practitioners should not assume all private covenants can be ignored.

4. Subdivision and secondary dwellings interplay (cl 2.6(2), cl 4.1A, cl 4.2A). Subdivision consent must not result in principal and secondary dwellings being on separate lots unless the resulting lots meet the Lot Size Map minima (cl 2.6(2)). Clause 4.2A prevents erection of dwellings on RU1, RU4 or C3 where no dwelling has previously been erected unless minimum lot sizes or grandfathered exceptions are met. Dual occupancy and multi‑dwelling minimum lot sizes differ by zone (cl 4.1A). These interlocking rules make subdivision involving secondary dwellings legally delicate.

5. Exempt and complying development excluded on environmentally sensitive areas (cl 3.3). Do not assume an activity is exempt even if it appears in Schedule 2 or in State Codes; the environmentally sensitive area overlays (cl 3.3(2)(ja),(jb)) bar exempt/compliant development on mapped riparian and sensitive land.

6. Exceptions to development standards have forbidden outcomes (cl 4.6(6), (8)). Clause 4.6 allows departures but forbids use of the clause to permit subdivisions in rural and conservation zones that would create multiple lots below minimum areas or at least one lot under 90% of the minimum (cl 4.6(6)). Clause 4.6(8) disallows contraventions of complying development standards and BASIX commitments and excludes clauses 5.4 and 5.5 from variation. Practitioners must not rely on cl 4.6 to obtain what it expressly excludes.

7. Music and licensed premises (cl 5.20). Consent authorities cannot refuse licensed‑premises DAs on a list of stylistic or staging factors (genre, live/amplified, number of performers, dance floors, decorations) (cl 5.20(1)), and cannot refuse on the grounds of music noise if it can be managed to acceptable levels (cl 5.20(2)). Practitioners drafting objections by neighbours based solely on music type or dancing should be alerted that the Plan prohibits those grounds. Conversely, applicants must show noise will be managed.

8. Intensive livestock agriculture thresholds provide permitted‑without‑consent loopholes but with tight locational constraints (cl 5.18(4)-(5)). Small scale feedlots/poultry/pig units can be carried out without consent if they meet capacity thresholds and locational buffers (cl 5.18(4)-(5)), but the clause does not apply if the activity is otherwise prohibited (cl 5.18(6)). That delegated “no consent required” route is location and capacity sensitive.

9. Aquaculture operational rules: no freshwater discharge from intensive pond/tank systems to natural waterbodies except from open flow through systems (Sch 6 Div 1 cl 4). Intensive aquaculture requires ponds that can be drained and dried (Sch 6 Div 1 cl 3). Oyster aquaculture has separate allowances and references to NSW oyster strategy and industry development plans (cl 5.19(5)-(6)). Practitioners must coordinate planning approvals with fisheries licencing.

10. Heritage notification windows and consequences (cl 5.10(7)-(9)). Where the Plan requires notification to the Heritage Council or local Aboriginal communities, the consent authority must wait and consider responses within 28 days. Missing or inadequate consultation can invalidate a decision or create grounds for review.

11. Public land classification and trust discharge (cl 5.2). Schedule 4 entries (if populated) can change trust statuses of reserves and enable discharge of trusts under the Local Government Act; the Plan records that Governor’s approval is required for some discharges (cl 5.2(5) note). This is a governance risk in rezoning and subdivision.

12. Complying development certificate conditions reference State Policy (Sch 3 Part 2, sch.3-sec-oc.2). Any local complying development certificate is subject to the same conditions set out in Schedule 6 to the 2008 Exempt & Complying Development Codes SEPP. Practitioners must check both the SEPP and the Plan’s Schedules.

Those items are concrete operational traps visible in the Plan text and should be on any checklist used to advise landowners or make applications.

This section sets out a practical compliance checklist and stepwise approach derived from the Plan’s requirements. It assumes a practitioner is advising a client seeking to undertake development within the Hilltops Plan area.

1. Confirm the applicable spatial instruments

• Check the current Land Application Map to confirm the Plan applies to the lot (cl 1.3(1)-(1A)). Verify whether the lot is marked “Deferred matter” (cl 1.3(1A)).
• Confirm the Land Zoning Map, Lot Size Map and any overlay maps relevant to the property (Riparian Land and Watercourses Map, Terrestrial Biodiversity Map, Groundwater Vulnerability Map, Salinity Map, Drinking Water Catchment Map, Heritage Map, Environmentally Sensitive Land Map). The Plan makes the maps determinative for many rules (cl 1.7; cl 2.2; cl 6.3; cl 6.4; cl 6.5; cl 6.6).

2. Identify permitted uses and cross‑check prohibitions

• Use the Land Use Table for the parcel’s zone to see whether the proposed use is permitted without consent, permitted with consent, or prohibited (cl 2.3(1), Land Use Table). If the use is not listed, check whether “Any other development not specified” appears in the permitted with consent column for that zone.
• Check Schedule 1 for any site‑specific additional permitted uses applying to the lot (Sch 1). If the parcel is listed in Schedule 1, read the conditions set out.

3. Determine whether the activity is exempt or complying development

• Consult Schedule 2 (additional local exempt development) and Schedule 3 (additional complying development) and the State SEPP (Exempt & Complying Development Codes) for the scope and conditions of exempt and complying classes (cl 3.1-3.2). Remember exempt/compliant development is barred on environmentally sensitive areas (cl 3.3). Ensure compliance with the Building Code of Australia (cl 3.1(3)(a), cl 3.2(3)(b)).

4. Check overlay and local provisions that may require additional documentation

• If the site is within a heritage place, archaeological site or heritage conservation area, expect consent for demolition, external works, interior structural changes where specified and possible requirements for heritage management documents or conservation management plans (cl 5.10(2)-(6)). For archaeological or Aboriginal heritage, allow the statutory notification periods (cl 5.10(7)-(9)).
• If the site intersects biodiversity, riparian, groundwater vulnerability, salinity or drinking water catchment overlays, prepare ecological, hydrological and management documentation to address the matters identified in cl 6.3, cl 6.4, cl 6.5, cl 6.6 and cl 6.8. The consent authority must be satisfied that the development avoids, minimises or mitigates significant adverse environmental impacts (e.g. cl 6.3(4), cl 6.4(4), cl 6.5(4)).
• If the site is in a flood planning area or between flood planning and probable maximum flood, prepare flood impact assessments and evacuation/safety measures consistent with the Considering Flooding guideline and the Flood Risk Management Manual invoked in cl 5.21 and cl 5.22.
• For intensive livestock agriculture or aquaculture, ensure the design meets Schedule 6 and cl 5.18 operational/location thresholds. For intensive pond/tank aquaculture, ponds must be drainable and freshwater discharge to natural waterbodies is restricted (Sch 6 Div 1 cl 3-4).

5. Subdivision and lot size compliance

• Check the Lot Size Map and cl 4.1 for minimum subdivision lot sizes. For community title schemes, note cl 4.1AA overrides 4.1 in specified zones. For dual occupancies and multi-dwelling development, apply cl 4.1A minimum lot sizes by zone. For rural subdivision flexibility under cl 4.2, ascertain whether subdivision is for primary production and whether the lot would or could contain a dwelling (cl 4.2(3)-(5)).

6. Check for covenant suspension applicability and exceptions

• If private covenants impede the proposed development, evaluate whether cl 1.9A(1) applies to suspend the covenant to the extent necessary. Carefully check the exclusions in cl 1.9A(2) , if the covenant is one of those excluded the developer cannot rely on suspension.

7. BASIX, complying development standards and exceptions

• Be mindful that cl 4.6(8) excludes variation of complying development standards and BASIX commitments. If the proposal relies on the exceptions mechanism in cl 4.6 to contravene any standard, prepare the document required under the EP&A Regulation 2021 demonstrating the cl 4.6(3) grounds and anticipate the consent authority’s record keeping obligation (cl 4.6(3)-(4)).

8. Prepare and lodge an application addressing prescribed assessment matters

• Prepare the DA materials so the consent authority can be satisfied of the matters required by specific clauses: heritage impact, biodiversity impact assessments, flood and evacuation plans, odour and emissions for intensive livestock (cl 5.18(3)), aquaculture operational plans (cl 5.19(2)-(3), Sch 6), bushfire asset protection zones where applicable (cl 6.10 for Carinya Estate), and essential services availability (cl 6.2).
• Where the Plan requires consultation (Heritage Council, local Aboriginal communities, relevant State agencies), allow the statutory timeframes and integrate responses into the DA package (cl 5.10(7)-(9)).

9. Comply with development consent conditions and recordkeeping obligations

• Where consent is granted with conditions, ensure compliance; the Plan’s structure places many mitigation obligations in consent conditions, and failure to comply may trigger enforcement under the Act and other statutes to which the Plan refers. When a consent is granted under cl 4.6, keep records demonstrating the assessment (cl 4.6(4)).

10. Pre‑application and planning strategy steps

• For larger or staged urban release areas, cl 6.11 mandates a development control plan with staging, transport hierarchy, landscaping strategies and infrastructure staging before the consent authority will grant development consent. For such projects, prepare a DCP that directly responds to cl 6.11(2)(a)-(j).

11. Check acquiring State approvals and licences outside planning consent

• Remember that exempt development under the Plan remains subject to licences and approvals under other Acts (Schedule 2 note). For aquaculture, fisheries licences and industry development plans under the Fisheries Management Act and regulations will be required in addition to planning consent (cl 5.19(5)).

12. Seek confirmation where boundary‑spanning uses are proposed

• Where the proposed development is near a zone boundary and the other zone contains uses that would enable a more logical development, cl 5.3 allows the consent authority to grant consent for uses permissible in the adjoining zone subject to compatibility tests and limits on where the clause applies. If relying on cl 5.3, prepare justification addressing cl 5.3(4)(a)-(b).

Practical documentation checklist (minimum)

• Current maps and zoning/lot size printouts.
• Site survey and plans showing overlays (riparian, biodiversity, heritage, flood).
• Statement of environmental effects addressing specific Plan clauses (heritage, biodiversity, riparian, groundwater, salinity, flood).
• Heritage management document or conservation management plan where required (cl 5.10(5)-(6)).
• Noise management plan and evidence for managing music/noise for licensed premises (to satisfy cl 5.20(2)).
• BASIX certificate and any building code compliance documentation required for exempt/complying development (cl 3.1(3)(a), cl 3.2(3)(b)).
• For contravening development standards, the statutory cl 4.6(3) demonstration document required by the EP&A Regulation 2021 and supporting environmental planning grounds (cl 4.6 note).
• For aquaculture and intensive livestock, site design documentation demonstrating compliance with Schedule 6 and cl 5.18 capacities and buffers.

Following these steps will align applications with the Plan’s procedural and substantive requirements. The Plan’s multiple map‑based overlays and specific local controls mean that the early step of confirming maps and overlays is the most cost‑effective compliance action.