Council moves closer to adopting Local Plan
News release issued:
A special meeting of Wyre Forest District Council is to be arranged to consider adopting the Local Plan.
The Council has been working on a revised Wyre Forest District Local Plan since 2015. The Local Plan identifies where development sites for homes and business will be. It also set out the services and infrastructure needed to support them. There are 5,520 new homes and 29 hectares of employment land need in the district up to 2036. The Local Plan allocates sites where this will be.
In April 2020, the Local Plan was submitted to the Secretary of State for independent examination. There had been four public consultations during its development. In early 2021 there were also four weeks of formal hearing sessions. These were led by a government appointed Planning Inspector, Mary Travers BA(Hons) Dip TP MRTPI.
After the hearing sessions, a schedule of modifications was produced. This included the Inspector’s considerations and additional comments from officers. Another public consultation on this took place in October 2021.
The Council received the Inspector’s final report on Friday 11 March 2022. The 50-page report concludes that, subject to the modifications proposed, the Local Plan submitted is sound. It states it is an acceptable strategy for the district and that it is fully aligned with the Government’s policy and guidance. The date of the meeting has not yet been set.
The Inspector’s report and schedule of Main and Minor Modifications can be viewed on the council’s website.
Councillor Helen Dyke, Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Planning and Localism, said;
“I am really pleased to see the positive report received from the Planning Inspector that validates the hard work councillors and officers have put into the Local Plan. The Council now has a sound development strategy to consider for adoption.”