Monday’s meeting at Lichfield District Council was a real eye-opener, highlighting the complex web of issues facing our local planners – chief among them: the Local Plan.

Frankly, the current Local Plan is not fit for purpose and not really looked at these days. It’s old, outdated, and frankly, not worth the paper it’s written on. This creaking framework is a major problem, especially when we consider the recently withdrawn Local Plan, which would have guided development until 2040 but failed to make it to the inspectorate.

The Developer’s Open Door

A Local Plan is crucial; it defines an area’s essential needs for housing and, crucially, infrastructure. Without a robust, up-to-date plan, the doors are thrown wide open to developers. They can, and often do, cite the changes in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) from late last year. This allows for ambiguous wording around ‘greenbelt to greybelt conversion’ to be exploited, potentially sacrificing vital green spaces.

Lichfield’s planners are currently tasked with hitting a daunting target: 760 new homes per year until the end of this government’s term.

A New Vision: The New Settlement

Enter Chris Brewerton and his team at Lichfield District Council, who are defining the future in the new Local Plan. While this new plan isn’t expected to be in force until at least the end of next year (we hope it’s sooner!), Chris explained a key nuance: they don’t necessarily have to hit that yearly target of 760 homes, provided they meet the overall number set by the government across this governments term.

So, what’s the big news?

Alongside identifying new, potentially smaller sites (some of which might be on Greenbelt), the new Local Plan is introducing a new settlement!

This is genuinely exciting. A new settlement means a new town that is planned holistically and could contain 10,000 new homes. It comes complete with its own dedicated infrastructure: doctors, schools, parks. It’s not just a large development “plonked” on the edge of an existing town, straining already overstretched services.

This sounds like a great solution right? – a way to meet housing numbers and deliver the necessary supporting infrastructure.

The Government Push

There’s clearly a big push from central government to get these Local Plans completed. The recent document sent from Matthew Pennycook MP (Minister of State for Housing and Planning) to Paul Morrison (Chief Executive, The Planning Inspectorate) clearly demonstrates this urgency. Click to read the full letter here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/68e7d53a187483de54d766f0/Local_Plan_examinations_-_letter_to_the_Chief_Executive_of_the_Planning_Inspectorate.pdf

What we were particularly drawn and encouraged by was this paragraph: “Whilst it is the role of strategic policy-making authorities to decide to review Green Belt
boundaries where they are unable to meet development needs, I am revoking the letter issued in March 2014 by the then Minister Nick Boles. This is to ensure PINS can fully play their part in helping to give local plans the best chance of being found sound. This provides PINS, where necessary, with the option to recommend as part of the examination that a Green Belt review is undertaken to consider whether additional sites could be identified, in line with national policy, to meet development needs.”. At last another glimmer of hope!

This push is exactly what we need. We must have a Local Plan that allows us to work toward developing the correct number of houses, in the right places, where there is supporting infrastructure, and ideally in urban areas with good commuting links.

We must put a stop to the forced developer-led green-to-grey belt conversions. We shouldn’t be controlled by developers; the Local Plan and our Council should control the developers.

It really is that simple.