Local Plan Issues and Options (Regulation 18)

1 Introduction

1.1 All local planning authorities have a statutory planning framework, known as a Local Plan, to guide development and achieve sustainable development. Cheshire West and Chester’s current adopted Local Plan consists of:

• Local Plan (Part One) Strategic Policies: adopted in January 2015, which provides the overall vision, strategic objectives, spatial strategy and strategic policies for the borough to 2030.
• Local Plan (Part Two) Land Allocations and Detailed Policies: adopted in July 2019, which provides further detailed policies and land allocations which support the strategic objectives and policies set out in the Local Plan (Part One).

1.2 Councils have a duty to maintain an up-to-date plan. National policy states that policies in local plans and spatial development strategies, should be reviewed to assess whether they need updating at least once every five years, and should then be updated as necessary.

1.3 In January 2024, the Council decided to prepare a new style Local Plan under the provisions of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023. However, since the new government was elected last year, the implementation of the new plan-making system has been delayed, and the deadline for submitting plans under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act (2004) has been extended to December 2026.

1.4 As a result, Council Cabinet decided on 15 January 2025 to begin preparation of a  new Local Plan under the current plan-making system, with the option to switch to the new plan-making system should it prove necessary and expedient to do so.

1.5 This Issues and Options (Regulation 18) consultation document is the first formal stage in producing a new Local Plan, in line with the Local Planning regulations 2012 (as amended), and is seeking views on whether the right issues have been identified and which options are the best for addressing them.

Scope

1.6 The new Local Plan will create a single local plan document that updates and replaces all policies in the current Local Plan (Part One) and Local Plan (Part Two) . The new plan will set out how much development is required in Cheshire West. It will include housing, retail and employment uses and may allocate sites required to deliver the level of development needed.

1.7 It will also set out policies that cover the same issues as those in the existing Local Plan such as protecting the Green Belt, delivering sustainable development, protecting and providing open space and the natural and historic environment, and consider what changes have taken place in national policy and how we respond to these.

1.8 The document broadly follows the thematic structure of the Local Plan (Part One) setting out our proposed approach in the context of national policy, guidance and what our evidence is telling us. It sets out  how we think the current Local Plan policies should be updated, combined, retained or deleted. We have provided more detail for those areas where we have a clearer idea of how the current policies need to be changed. There are other areas where we are seeking views, through the consultation, on what approach the new Local Plan should take.

1.9 A summary schedule of all current Local Plan policies and the proposed approach is included in Appendix A ‘Proposed approach to existing Local Plan policies’

1.10 Cheshire West and Chester, along with Cheshire East and Warrington Councils, has been confirmed as part of the government's devolution priority programme. This means outline plans to set up a Combined Authority and hold mayoral elections in May 2026 have been accepted by government. A final decision will be made by the three councils later this year. While a combined authority would hold devolved powers related to strategic planning and have a duty to produce Spatial Development Strategy (SDS), the SDS will take several years to produce and cannot make allocations therefore it will be important to progress the new Local Plan.

How to response to this consultation

1.11 Representations can be made to this consultation by submitting comments using the online consultation portal.

1.12 Each section has a number of questions on key topics where we would like your views. You are welcome to answer as many questions as you wish. This is a lengthy document, so it is up to you whether you focus on topics of particular interest to you, or answer a broader range of questions.

1.13 Using the online consultation portal is the most straight forward way to share your views with us. This method also helps ensure that officer time is used most efficiently in handling and analysing consultation responses. However, if you are unable to comment using the online form, we will also accept responses by email or post to either:

• Email – planningpolicy@cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk
• Post – Planning Policy, Cheshire West and Chester Council, The Portal, Wellington Road, Ellesmere Port, CH65 0BA

1.14 Please ensure that you include the following information if responding by email or post, so we can consider your comments:

• Name and contact details
• Organisation (where relevant)
• What you are commenting on – which chapter, policy approach or section. Please include the suggested policy approach reference and/or paragraph, and the relevant question number

National development management policies

1.15 The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act (2023) introduced national development management policies (NDMPs) covering a range of planning issues, such as design standards, environmental impacts and infrastructure requirements, that will override the content of local development plans when the two conflict. NDMPs are expected to be introduced this year.

1.16 This Issues and Options Local Plan has been prepared in the context that NDMPs have not yet been published. However, it must be acknowledged that publication of the NDMPs may considerably alter the final content of the Local Plan if the content duplicates/conflicts with the any of the suggested policy approaches for the new Local Plan.

Design Code

1.17 The Council is currently preparing a borough-wide design code that will contain a collection of design principles setting out exactly what is expected of new development. This will replace elements of existing Local Plan policy and has been factored into our thinking in terms of our suggested approach for the new Local Plan.

Evidence base

1.18 The new Local Plan must be based on up to date and robust evidence. Details of the current range of studies, reports and evidence which have been produced so far, is available in the evidence base section of the planning policy webpages. 

1.19 We think that the following additional evidence is needed to support a new Local Plan:

• Retail and Town Centres Study (in preparation)
• Strategic Flood Risk Assessment (in preparation)
• Gypsy Traveller Accommodation Assessment (GTAA) (in preparation)
• Housing Needs Assessment (to be prepared)
• Green Belt Study (to be prepared)
• Infrastructure Delivery Plan (to be prepared)
• Strategic Viability Assessment (to be prepared)
• Transport Assessment (to be prepared)
• Land Availability Assessment (in preparation).

1.20 The new Local Plan will also need to take into account approaches set out in the Council’s existing plans and strategies, such as the Borough Plan, the Place Plan, and Housing Strategy.

Monitoring

1.21 It is a statutory requirement that Local Plan policies are monitored through a monitoring framework. The monitoring framework must be included in the plan.

Plan period

1.22 The current Local Plan time period is 2010-2030. In preparing a new Local Plan we will need to decide what period the new plan should cover.

1.23 National policy says that Local Plans should look ahead for a minimum of 15 years following adoption. Where larger scale development are proposed, policies should be set within a vision that looks further ahead (at least 30 years). We think that the update Local Plan should plan for a period of 15 years.

Sustainability Appraisal

1.24 The purpose of a Sustainability Appraisal is to assess the extent to which a Local Plan will help to achieve relevant environmental, economic and social objectives, and this incorporates a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). SEA focuses on environmental effects and meets the requirements set out in the Environmental Assessment of Plans and Programmes Regulations 2004. For this Issues and Options consultation, we have undertaken an initial high-level assessment in relation to the sustainability objectives, available from the appraisals section of the online consultation portal.

Habitats Regulation Assessment

1.25 We have also carried out an initial Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) screening to establish if a full appropriate assessment is required to ensure that there are no potential significant adverse effects of the new Local Plan on Natura 2000 (or European sites designated for their biodiversity and/or habitat value), available from the appraisals section of the online consultation portal.

Neighbourhood Plans

1.26 Neighbourhood Plans, which have been prepared by Parish Councils or Neighbourhood forums, must be in conformity with the strategic policies for the area and should not promote less development or undermine those strategic policies. The new Local Plan will have to identify which the strategic policies are.

1.27 It may therefore be that communities will wish to review their neighbourhood plans in due course. Importantly, however, much of the detailed content of neighbourhood plans won’t be affected by the new Local Plan and policies set out in existing neighbourhood plans will continue to be relevant.

Call for sites

1.28 The Council undertook a call for sites exercise as part of the Local Plan Early Conversation Engagement in 2021, and more recently in early 2024 as part of the draft Land Availability Assessment consultation. This gave landowners/ developers wishing to see their sites considered for development, the opportunity to submit them for consideration. A large number of sites were submitted and in addition, officers have identified a number of other potential development sites in accordance with national planning practice guidance. A report documenting the methodology used for the stage one assessment, and all sites considered at this stage, has been published alongside this Issues and Options consultation here: Land Availability Assessment

1.29 We are still happy to receive additional sites through this consultation via the online site submission form, including potential sites for Gypsy and Travellers, self and custom housebuilding, and minerals development.

Next steps

1.30 Following this Issues and Options consultation, we will consider all of the responses received, along with other sources of evidence and information. We will use this information to inform the next iteration of the plan, at Publication Draft stage, which will present a refined approach to the issues raised in this document and the spatial growth strategy, based on the feedback received and analysis of the evidence gathered. Following further public consultation next summer, the new Local Plan will be submitted to the Secretary of State in December 2026, for examination in 2027.