Consultation opens on plan for thousands of new Telford homes

The 11-week consultation on the proposal started on Thursday, and from Friday, people can view hard copies of the plan – and fill out feedback forms – at local libraries and community centres.

The draft plan, which runs from 2020 to 2040, sets out where housing and business developments can be built across the borough over that time period.

In it the council has put forward a number of potential sites for 8,820 new houses, and 134 hectares of new employment space.

The plan actually includes ambitions for 20,200 homes up until 2040 – but sites for the remainder of the housing, making up 55 per cent of the overall target, have already been approved, or are under construction.

The draft proposals include a host of small sites, along with some larger developments across the borough.

Three 'sustainable urban extension' sites are planned for the north of the town – each including thousands of houses.

One for land north east of Muxton would provide 2,700 homes, another on land to the north west of Bratton and Shawbirch would provide for 2,100 homes, and a third on land to the north of the A442 at Wheat Leasowes would include 3,100 homes.

Councillor Richard Overton, Telford & Wrekin Council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for homes and enforcement, said the plan would actually see a considerable fall in the number of new homes being built every year.

He said: “With more than half of the homes needed for the next twenty years already having planning permission, the draft plan aims to find sites for the remaining 8,800 homes needed around the borough.

"This is equivalent to 441 new homes per year, and a considerable reduction compared to the 1,500 new homes built here in 2022, when the number of new homes being built in the borough peaked.

"This consultation is about ensuring we get the right mix of homes, services and infrastructure and public green spaces in the right places, so it is vital the people have their say on the future of their local communities.

"This is about ensuring people can live well in Telford and Wrekin not just now, but in the future too. We want to make sure the families growing up here have access to good education, good jobs and good homes that meet their needs too.

"If you have a view, and if you want your feedback to count, please get involved.

"As this is a formal consultation, comments and feedback can only be taken into account if they are left through the correct process, known as a duly made comment. These can be made online, where the draft plan can be viewed too, or by viewing the plan in person at locations around the borough."

People can view the draft plan online at telfordandwrekinlocalplan.co.uk

Hard copies can be viewed at libraries at Southwater, Newport, Wellington, Dawley, Madeley, Stirchley and Oakengates, and at community centres in Brookside, Donnington Wood, Madeley, Sutton Hill, Hadley and Woodside.

The consultation will run for eleven weeks, until Friday, January 12.