Future house building to be discussed by councils

Two councils are discussing their house building plans this week.

Both Shropshire Council and Telford and Wrekin Council will discuss their respective area's housing needs at separate meetings this week, with the former facing a number of challenges.

Shropshire's housing target has increased to almost 2,000 homes a year, after the government outlined plans in December to build 1.5m homes across Britain over the next five years.

The council said the uplift was too high and meant it could not currently identify enough land for development in the five-year period.

Parts of the green belt, which is located to the east of the county, may have to be released to help the council find new land on which to build.

Shropshire Council was criticised in October for not providing enough homes in its draft Local Plan, which outlines all future development sites from 2016 to 2038.

In the document, the authority proposes more than 31,000 homes over that period, working out at 1,423 dwellings a year, and includes 1,500 properties to help address an unmet requirement for new housing in the Black Country.

But planning inspectors have put the plan on hold, saying it did "not meet the needs or strategic priorities of the area".

Following the government's announcement in December, a housing target which now adds almost 600 further homes a year has left the council in a position of not having a five-year land supply.

That will make it harder for the planning authority to refuse planning permission, as it will not have an approved plan to which to refer.

Green belt

Inspectors also raised concern that housing plans for the Black Country were too far from the West Midlands conurbation and recommended that sites further east were included in proposals.

It means green belt land around Shifnal and Albrighton will now be considered to be released from stricter planning protection so development sites can be identified closer to Wolverhampton and Dudley.

The council has said it would not meet all of the inspectors' concerns within a suggested six-month time frame, but proposed a "positive and pragmatic response" to address some of the concerns.

The council's draft Local Plan should have been formally adopted by 2022.

Inspectors requested the plan's scope be extended by three years to take into account that delay, but the council rejected the proposal as it would have required even more land to be found for housing.

Carolyn Healy said her council's housing plan would help young people buy a house in the borough

Telford and Wrekin Council leaders will discuss their own Local Plan on Thursday.

The council needs to plan for 1,010 homes to be built annually up to the year 2040.

New communities are earmarked on land near Bratton, Wappenshall and north east of Muxton.

The number of proposed sites initially submitted for development has reduced from 212 plots to 53.

Telford and Wrekin Council's cabinet member for planning Carolyn Healy said: "Keeping our Local Plan up to date and having a five-year land supply means we're in control of where developments take place.

"This is a sustainable Local Plan and we're really thinking of the environment and climate change.

"We're protecting more green spaces and we have policies which will create homes for the future while we decarbonise and change the way we heat our homes."