Council’s draft Local Plan for 27,000 homes to go before cabinet

A draft blueprint setting out where thousands of new homes, jobs and supporting infrastructure could be delivered across Bath and North East Somerset over the next two decades is set to go before councillors.

The Guildhall in Bath

Bath & North East Somerset Council’s cabinet will consider the Draft Local Plan on 10th September, with members being recommended to approve it for a six-week public consultation starting in the week of 14th September.

The plan is intended to guide future development across the area, including where new housing could be located and how growth would be supported by schools, healthcare, transport and community facilities.

It has been drawn up following feedback from residents, businesses, developers, landowners, community organisations and other stakeholders.

Under government housing requirements, the council must identify land for new homes up to 2043.

An Options Consultation held in 2024 identified land for 14,000 homes over 20 years, but the government has since increased the requirement to 27,324 homes over 18 years.

The draft being presented to cabinet identifies proposed land allocations capable of delivering around 80% of that new requirement.

Council leader Kevin Guy said: “We need to plan more homes in Bath and North East Somerset, but homes do not exist in isolation.

“The people living in them need healthcare, schools, places to meet, transport links to jobs and education and the infrastructure that supports thriving communities.

“The government has imposed a requirement for 27,324 homes over 18 years. We had no choice over that figure and we remain concerned that the unique characteristics of our area, including our World Heritage status and the extent of our Green Belt, have not been taken into account in the way we would have hoped.

“The reality is that a large number of homes are likely to be built in our area. Our only choice is whether we plan for that growth or leave ourselves at the mercy of developers.

“Without a Local Plan, there is less influence over where homes are built, what type of homes are built and how the infrastructure needed alongside them is delivered.”

The council said having an up-to-date Local Plan would give it greater control over development and reduce the area’s vulnerability to speculative planning applications.

Councillor Matt McCabe, cabinet member for built environment, housing and sustainable development, said the increased housing target presented a significant challenge while there remained a pressing need for more homes, particularly affordable properties.

He said: “The Local Plan is our opportunity to strike the right balance, meeting housing needs while protecting what makes Bath and North East Somerset such a special place to live.

“We must plan for sustainable growth, ensuring new development is supported by the infrastructure, transport links, community facilities and environmental protections that residents rightly expect.

“Agreeing a sound Local Plan is the best way to shape our own future and ensure development happens in the right way, rather than having decisions imposed upon us. This consultation is the final piece of the jigsaw following an options consultation last year.”

If the cabinet approves the draft, the forthcoming consultation will be the final opportunity for people to comment before the document is submitted to the Planning Inspectorate for independent examination.

Responses will be submitted alongside the plan and should focus on whether it is sound and ready to undergo that examination.

The Local Plan will also feature prominently at a series of community meetings during September and October, although formal views must be submitted through the consultation.

Online Bath Briefings will be held on 15th September from 5pm to 6pm and 21st September from noon to 1pm.

The Somer Valley Area Forum will meet online on 16th September from 6pm to 7pm, followed by the Bathavon Area Forum on 22nd September at the same time.

An in-person Chew Valley Area Forum will take place at The Library at Chew Valley School on 23rd September from 6pm to 7.30pm, while the Keynsham Area Forum will meet at the Community Space in Temple Street on 24th September from 6.30pm to 7.30pm.

A Parish Liaison meeting will also be held at the same Keynsham venue on 21st October from 6.30pm to 8.30pm.

Links to the online meetings and information can be found on the council website here.