Quality of life at heart of Council’s Draft Local Plan
Telford & Wrekin Council’s cabinet will consider the next stage of consultation on the Draft Local Plan when it meets later next week (25 JUNE).
The Local Plan will guide future land use and planning decisions in the borough for the 20 year period, 2011–2031.
It will propose to cut the number of new homes to be built in the borough by over 39 per cent from 26,500, a figure agreed by a previous administration back in 2010, to below 16,000 – of which over 80 per cent have either already been built, or have planning permission.
This means that the allocation of sites is for less than 3,500 additional new homes to be built up until 2031, in order to meet the needs of local people, support and sustain services and provide the foundation for economic growth. This is equivalent to around 230 additional new homes a year, from now until 2031.
The Draft Plan will seek to reinforce the Council’s commitment to protect and enhance the borough’s community green spaces which are a fundamental aspect of Telford and Wrekin’s appeal to residents, visitors and investors.
Councillor Richard Overton, the Council’s deputy leader and Cabinet Member for Housing, Public Health and Protection, said: “We are clear that the adoption of the Draft Local Plan is essential in order to ensure that future housing and employment development in the borough is clear and measured and utilises brownfield sites where possible.
“We have been clear that we thought the allocation of 26,500 in 2010 for Telford and Wrekin was too big for a borough of our size. It was this high number that is one of the key reasons why so many developers, encouraged by Government policy, have been putting in planning applications across our borough.
“We have worked hard over the past five years to drive this number down, reflecting the views and feedback from local people, first to 22,000 after the 2011 local elections and now to below 16,000. It should be remembered that the vast majority of these have already been built or have planning permission. We have now reduced the housing growth target, agreed by previous administrations of the Council by over 10,000 homes. That is a significant reduction.
“The Draft Local Plan will create a vision for the borough that goes beyond house building; it will seek to promote a healthier, more prosperous and even better connected place to live, providing a high quality of life for everyone.”
Next week’s Cabinet report will pave the way for the Draft Local Plan to be presented to Cabinet next month and, subject to approval, it is proposed that an extended period of public consultation on the document would begin in August and run throughout September.
