The Official Plan is the policy document that establishes the overall land use strategy for accommodating residential and employment growth in the County in a responsible and sustainable way.

In Oxford, the County Official Plan serves as the Official Plan for both the County and all eight Area Municipalities comprising the County.  The Official Plan is used for assessing planning applications received by the County and Area Municipalities and helps to guide potential infrastructure and other municipal investment decisions.

The policies and land use schedules contained in the Official Plan establish appropriate locations and development requirements for various land uses (residential, commercial, industrial, institutional, parks etc), set out how agricultural land and other natural and heritage resources are to be protected and provide direction on how environmental constraints are to be addressed.