Every local authority must prepare a local plan to cover regeneration, investment and planning application decisions for at least 15 years.
It also identifies environmental areas to protect and enhance, sites to allocate for housing development and employment use, key transport schemes and policies to guide design and secure infrastructure.
The consultation on the ‘Issues and Preferred Options’ for the plan will run until 5pm on Wednesday 10 April, 2024.
Full details on how people can have their say can be viewed at Wolverhampton Local Plan. People are encouraged to complete the online survey at Wolverhampton Local Plan. Paper copies of the main documents can be viewed at the Civic Centre and all city libraries, where a summary leaflet and response form will also be available.
Council Leader, Councillor Stephen Simkins, has reiterated the Wolverhampton Local Plan will not include green belt sites, a stance that has been reinforced by the Government’s recent change to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), which removes the need to review green belt land for development.
He said: “It is critical to have a Local Plan in place to provide certainty for our communities and support regeneration and investment in our city.
“We have always promoted a brownfield first approach and never had any intention to include green belt land in our Local Plan, so we are pleased that the Government has confirmed in the revised NPPF that green belt land does not need to be considered for development in local plans.
“We are now progressing with the next steps of the Wolverhampton Local Plan - and we intend to bring forward a plan which contains no green belt sites at all.
“The Wolverhampton Local Plan will help facilitate a vibrant mixed use city centre and enable new housing and employment opportunities on brownfield sites across the city, supporting local centres and strengthening the local economy.
“The consultation window is now open and I would urge people to have their say.”
You can view the consultation documents and speak to planning officers at the following drop in sessions:
- Wednesday 6 March, 9am to 5pm
Wolverhampton Civic Centre, St Peter’s Square, Wolverhampton, WV1 1SH - Thursday 7 March, 3pm to 7pm and Saturday 9 March, 10am to 2pm
Wolverhampton Central Library, Snow Hill, Wolverhampton, WV1 3AX - Tuesday 12 March, 10am to 1pm
Wednesfield Library, 2 Well Lane, Wednesfield, WV11 1XT - Wednesday 13 March, 4pm to 7pm
Bilston Library, Mount Pleasant, Bilston, WV14 7LU - Thursday 14 March, 2pm to 5pm
Tettenhall Library, St Michael's Parish Centre, Upper Street, Tettenhall, WV6 8QF
The Wolverhampton Local Plan will build on initial work related to the city that was undertaken during the Black Country Plan process before it was halted in Autumn 2022.
Consultation responses will be used to inform the preparation of the next stage of the plan - the ‘Publication Wolverhampton Local Plan’ - in advance of an independent examination by a planning inspector.
