Wolverhampton Local Plan consultation launched

Consultation on a new Wolverhampton Local Plan to guide future development in the city up to 2042 has today (Monday) been launched.

Every local authority must prepare a local plan to cover regeneration, investment and planning application decisions for at least 15 years. 

It also identifies environmental areas to protect and enhance, sites to allocate for housing development and employment use, key transport schemes and policies to guide design and secure infrastructure.

The consultation on the ‘Issues and Preferred Options’ for the plan will run until 5pm on Wednesday, April 10, 2024.

Full details on how people can have their say can be viewed at www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/localplan. People are encouraged to complete the online survey at www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/localplan-respond. Paper copies of the main documents can be viewed at the Civic Centre and all city libraries, where a summary leaflet and response form will also be available.

Council Leader, Councillor Stephen Simkins, has reiterated the Wolverhampton Local Plan will not include green belt sites, a stance that has been reinforced by the Government’s recent change to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), which removes the need to review green belt land for development.

He said: “It is critical to have a Local Plan in place to provide certainty for our communities and support regeneration and investment in our city.

“We have always promoted a brownfield first approach and never had any intention to include green belt land in our Local Plan, so we are pleased that the Government has confirmed in the revised NPPF that green belt land does not need to be considered for development in local plans.

“We are now progressing with the next steps of the Wolverhampton Local Plan - and we intend to bring forward a plan which contains no green belt sites at all.

“The Wolverhampton Local Plan will help facilitate a vibrant mixed use city centre and enable new housing and employment opportunities on brownfield sites across the city, supporting local centres and strengthening the local economy.

“The consultation window is now open and I would urge people to have their say.”

You can view the consultation documents and speak to planning officers at the following drop-in sessions:

Wednesday 6 March, 9am – 5pm

Wolverhampton Civic Centre, St Peter’s Square, Wolverhampton, WV1 1SH

Thursday 7 March, 3pm – 7pm and Saturday 9 March, 10am – 2pm

Wolverhampton Central Library, Snow Hill, Wolverhampton, WV1 3AX

Tuesday 12 March, 10am - 1pm

Wednesfield Library, 2 Well Lane, Wednesfield, WV11 1XT

Wednesday 13 March, 4pm - 7pm

Bilston Library, Mount Pleasant, Bilston, WV14 7LU

Thursday 14 March, 2pm – 5pm

Tettenhall Library, St Michael's Parish Centre, Upper Street, Tettenhall, WV6 8QF

The Wolverhampton Local Plan will build on initial work related to the city that was undertaken during the Black Country Plan process before it was halted in autumn 2022.

Consultation responses will be used to inform the preparation of the next stage of the plan - the ‘Publication Wolverhampton Local Plan’ - in advance of an independent examination by a planning inspector.