Bristol blueprint for nearly 35,000 new homes by 2040 approved

A cross-party group took four years to draft the new Local Plan for Bristol

A major housing blueprint for nearly 35,000 new homes in Bristol by 2040 has been approved.

Bristol City Council has drafted a new Local Plan with a range of policies to guide how and where property developers build new housing in the city.

The plan includes 11 areas of urban regeneration and three areas of development on the Green Belt.

Councillors say they found a balance between building the need for homes and protecting the local environment.

A cross-party working group took four years to draft the new Local Plan, which was voted on by councillors during a full council meeting on Tuesday.

After a six-week public consultation, the plan will be sent to government planning inspectors to check its evidence.

Bristol currently has a population of 472,000 people

During the council meeting, the Bristol mayor, Marvin Rees, said: "We're not getting any more land, we're 472,000 people and one of the fastest growing cities outside London.

"Our population is predicted to be 550,000 by 2050. There are over 20,000 households on our waiting list and 1,300 households in temporary accommodation.

"This Local Plan offers us a blueprint for the city's future and it will be used to guide decisions on planning applications."

The plan includes 11 areas of urban regeneration with over 17,000 new homes, three areas of development on the Green Belt with over 1,200 homes, and new offices covering 164,000 sq m of floor space.

Local shopping centres and wildlife are both set to receive extra protections.

Green Councillor Jenny Bartle said: "This plan sets out the innovation to make developers include affordable units in their designs from the outset, no matter what their viability assessment says.

"This means that we will have significantly more opportunities to deliver housing at a cost Bristolians can afford."

The new Local Plan is expected to come into force by spring 2025.