Worcester City Council has welcomed the opportunity to respond to the Government’s proposals for the reform of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has released proposals to make changes to the NPPF, a key policy document which governs housing and other development across England.
The Leader of Worcester City Council, Councillor Lynn Denham, said: “The existing NPPF is clearly in need of reform and we welcome the opportunity to respond to this comprehensive consultation.
“The Government has made it clear that local authorities are expected to have an up-to-date Local Plan, and this is something that Worcester City Council is committed to, working with our neighbours and partners in Wychavon and Malvern Hills to review the South Worcestershire Development Plan (SWDP).
“If we are to see the level of housing and economic growth and quality of new development that we and the Government aspire to, we need the Government to support us in bringing forward a new Local Plan as quickly as possible. We hope to start the examination hearings into the revised SWDP with the planning inspectors early next year.
“In our response to the Government’s consultation, which we have submitted this week, we have welcomed changes to the delivery of affordable housing that would prioritise social rented accommodation over other types of affordable housing. We have also welcomed the renewed emphasis on the delivery of essential infrastructure as part of any new development so that we have the capacity that we need in our schools and on our roads, alongside good access to high-quality green open spaces, sport, recreation and play facilities.”
The Government’s proposed revisions to the NPPF include the reintroduction of housing targets, dropped by the previous government in December last year, and the introduction of a different standard method under which they will be calculated.
The new method would produce a housing figure for each local authority district, and it would then be up to each council to determine how and where it will meet that figure.
For Worcester, the existing method calculates a housing need of 343 houses to be provided each year. Under the proposed new standard method, as calculated by the new Government, this figure would rise to 584 per year, an annual increase of 241 houses.
Further development within the city of Worcester is limited by physical, environmental and economic constraints. These include the river, heritage buildings and assets, valuable urban green spaces and the fact that previously developed land is often more challenging to bring forward for development than greenfield land.
The Government’s changes to national planning policy also look to strengthen support for the delivery of economic development in key employment sectors and to ensure essential infrastructure is delivered to support any new development, aims which the City Council has supported in its response to the consultation.
