A KEY planning document that will guide development in the district has been approved for submission to Government.
Councillors gave the green light to the Stratford District Council Proposed Submission Core Strategy at a special meeting on Monday (May 12).
The document identifies the broad locations, scale and type of development and supporting infrastructure that will take place in the district until 2031 – including plans to build 3,000 homes on land at Gaydon and Lighthorne Health (GLH).
As well as highlighting those areas which will be protected from future development, the Core Strategy also covers community issues such as quality of life, the environment, housing, education, community safety and the economy.
Dave Nash, planning and housing policy manager, said: “The Core Strategy is a hugely important document as ultimately, it lays out the vision on how Stratford district could look in 2031.
“Residents, community groups and organisations took a lot of time submitting comments on the draft document and we have made changes to reflect those suggestions where possible.
“The Government inspector will now look at whether the strategy can progress and become the planning policy for the district.”
All local councils must produce a Local Development Framework, which sets out proposals for the homes, offices and shops that must be built to meet local need.
Sitting at the heart of the framework is the Core Strategy which proposes new planning policies and how the district council will plan for future development.
The proposals include: planning for 10,800 new homes in Stratford district, improving the affordability of housing across the district by providing 35 per cent of dwellings on eligible sites as affordable homes.
They also include provisions to maintain the rural, historic and local distinctiveness of the district, to protect the Greenbelt and countryside, to improve transport services and reduce traffic congestion.
Preparing the Core Strategy has been a major undertaking for the council and the document has been developed through a number of consultation phases.
It is founded on a substantial amount of background evidence and research in conjunction with the Planning Inspectorate.
But before it is submitted to Government, it will be subject to a six week period of public consultation, where interested parties will be invited to comment on the soundness of the document.
These final comments will be forwarded to the Government’s independent inspector who will hold a public examination of the document before making a recommendation to the council on whether the Core Strategy can be adopted.
