Flintshire’s long awaited Local Development Plan set to be approved later this month
A key development blueprint for Flintshire is set to be ratified later this month following a consultation on a number of proposed changes.
Flintshire Local Development Plan (LDP) sets out where around 7,000 houses could be built in the county over the next decade.
The document was first submitted to planning inspectors to be examined in October 2020 with public hearings held last spring.
Cabinet members have given the green light on the LDP for its recommendation to the Council.
This move will see the end of an eight-year-long process which the council says will mark a significant moment for the local authority.
The LDP will provide an up-to-date, “fully evidenced strategic planning framework to facilitate positive growth and development across the County, in line with Flintshire’s National Growth Area status.” The council has said.
The Flintshire Local Development Plan was submitted to the Welsh Government and Planning Inspectorate for examination.
One of the biggest changes requested by the inspectors is for a proposed site for 300 new homes to be removed after ”significant concerns” regarding the Warren Hall site in Broughton were raised.
The local authority was also thrown a curveball in the middle of the process when it was required to take into account tough new targets for phosphates permitted in the Bala Lake and River Dee Special Area of Conservation by the Natural Resources Wales (NRW).
The measures are aimed at ensuring the planning applications do not increase phosphate pollution levels in rivers.
The Council partnered with Wrexham Council and produced the Dee Catchment Phosphorous Reduction Strategy, which is the first of its kind in Wales.
The inspection process has now closed, after the Inspectors gave their final report, and found the LDP to “be sound, subject to the binding nature of it, the plan should now be adopted by the Council.”
The council said: “The LDP is an important document for Flintshire as it sets out the planning policies and proposals for the area, and will be used by developers, land owners, businesses, and local communities to understand the future development plans for the area.”
“It is also a key tool for Flintshire Council to use in making decisions on planning applications and it will guide the future development of the County.”
Flintshire’s Cabinet Member for Planning, Public Health and Public Protection, Councillor Chris Bithell, said:
“The Flintshire LDP will be the primary strategy and policy document against which the Council will make decisions on development proposals going forward.”
“It is a sound and sustainable Plan that includes a requirement to consider the ‘Placemaking’ agenda and presents a positive approach to managing the future growth that Flintshire is going to experience.”
“The policies and proposals within the LDP address the County’s need for new homes, jobs, infrastructure, and community facilities to support economic growth and raise standards of living.”
“Policies promoting development are set out alongside those that require proposals to respect, promote and protect the County’s cultural heritage, important landscapes, and sensitive environments.”
“Planning for growth commensurate with the aspirations of a National Growth Area inevitably involves difficult decisions about releasing land for development, and it is certainly the case that areas will see change.”
“Crucially however, the LDP provides the opportunity to successfully manage this change and ensure that development is of a quality that will ensure the places ultimately delivered across Flintshire will provide a sustainable legacy for future generations.”
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