The big Shropshire housing plans currently proposed - ranging from 44 to 1,000 homes
As the Government begins their overhaul of the planning system, we have a look through some of the current plans for new homes in Shropshire.
All councils in England will soon be given new, mandatory housing targets to pave the way for Labour's plans to deliver 1.5 million more homes – tackling what they call "the most acute housing crisis in living memory".
The new targets will mean councils must boost housebuilding in areas most in need, helping more people buy their own homes, removing the largest barriers to economic growth, and getting Britain building again.
The new rules have reversed the decision last year to water down housing targets, by making them explicitly advisory, at a time when planning permissions were at a record low.
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has written to every council Leader and Chief Executive in England to make clear that there is “not just a professional responsibility but a moral obligation to see more homes built”, and that she will not hesitate to use her powers of intervention should it be necessary – including taking over an authority’s plan making directly.
Reforms announced last week will make explicit that the default answer to brownfield development should be 'yes' and promote homebuilding at greater densities in urban centres, like towns and cities.
Councils will also have to review their green belt land if needed to meet their own target, identifying and prioritising ‘grey belt’ land - including land on the edge of existing settlements or roads, as well as old petrol stations and car parks.
Land released in the green belt will be subject to the government’s ‘golden rules’, which make clear that development should deliver 50 per cent affordable homes, increase access to green spaces and put the necessary infrastructure is in place, such as schools and GP surgeries.
In recent weeks, Shropshire has seen many new applications for new housing developments submitted and some approved and the new rules mean we are likely to see many more in the near future.
With that in mind, we've had a dive through some of these applications to see what parts of Shropshire might look like in the next few years.
Albrighton
It's getting hard to keep track of all the plans for new houses in or near Albrighton.
In May, the final extension of the Millfields development got the green light from council planners, which will see 90 homes added to the site.
In July, outline plans for a 800-home development in Albrighton were submitted, despite widespread opposition from those in the town.
Atop the hundreds of new homes there are also plans for a new secondary school, care home and doctors surgery, with the company saying the development would create more than 1,000 jobs and inject £62million into the local economy.
