Shropshire’s Local Plan formally withdrawn - but plans to start a new one in motion

Shropshire Council, then run by the Conservative Party, submitted its proposals in 2021, outlining sites across the county that it delt were suitable for new housing developments up to 2038.

Around 31,000 homes featured in the plan, while the authority also agreed to contribute around 1,500 properties and 31 hectares of employment land to help meet unmet need in the Black Country.

It was hoped that the Local Plan would have been adopted in 2022. However, Louise Crosby and Elaine Worthington, who inspected it, raised its soundess. This included thee land which had been identified to meet the needs of the Black Country.

They said: “In terms of employment land, the council has re-purposed 30 hectares of the 39 hectare employment site at Shifnal for Black Country needs.

“Whilst locationally this relates relatively well to the Black Country, the whole site was previously allocated to meet Shropshire’s needs, and exceptional circumstances were argued to justify releasing this site from the green belt.

“Only nine hectares are now being allocated to meet Shropshire’s needs and no new employment sites are proposed to replace the 30ha that is effectively lost to the Black Country.

“Given that the council felt that exceptional circumstances existed to justify the removal of the site from the green belt to meet its own needs originally, it is unclear why the 30ha reduction to its own land supply is now acceptable.”

In response, Shropshire Council said it had little option but to agree to the inspectors’ recommendation to withdraw the plan.

A paper submitted to councillors ahead of a meeting on Thursday (July 17) said that the current development plan for the area will remain the Core Strategy and Site Allocation and Management of Development (SAMDev) Plan, adopted by the council in 2011 and 2015 respectively, as well as a range of adopted Neighbourhood Development Plans.

“I don’t think there is anyone who wants to withdraw the Local Plan,” said Councillor David Walker, portfolio holder for planning.

“It does pose a significant risk to development and how we handle that because of the changes in the policy framework. The existing SAMDev plan is still valid up to the point it expires and beyond, but it will carry less weight.

“It’s important we get to a sound position as soon as we can. One of the problems officers have got though is they’re waiting for the Government to define how the new plan should be set out, so they’re working on the presumption they can start commencing on the plan in January next year.

“In the mean time, they’re working hard to gather all the evidence they need so once they get all that guidance, they can start straight away.”

Councillor Rachel Connolly proposed an amendment, which proposed that council asks for advice and guidance for all councillors in how best to represent residents’ concerns and demands as large scale planning applications are muted, received and processed.

This, she said, is to help members and officers to get the best outcomes possible for existing residents and the environment. The amendment was approved, with the new Liberal Democrat-run administratiom aiming to adopt the Local Plan in 2028.