In traditional top-down and command-set approaches, which is the hierarchical style of management, the power of planning and decision-making remains with the technocrats and experts, which tends to be biased and can result in a disparity in implementing Sustainable Settlement Design (SSD). The study aims to understand the importance of community participation in planning and decision-making using a bottom-up approach in an SSD framework. The study employs a critical review of the SSD framework in existing literature using the Web of Science database and national and international reports. Case studies involving community participation in planning and decision-making showed long-term sustainability, local ownership, self-reliance and community empowerment. The study stands out as a critical review of the SSD framework through the lens of community participation. The study can have the potential for future toolkits and frameworks to contribute to building sustainable and resilient settlements by engaging communities. The study acknowledges several limitations with the literature review as it is based on secondary research only.