Local Plan Review 2026-2043 Issues and Options Consultation

Foreword

1. This consultation has been prepared in order to consider the significant changes brought into effect by the amendments to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) in December 2024. It therefore has a focus on housing numbers and how they could be accommodated. As the new local plan progresses there will be other subject areas that will need to be addressed in detail. The Council is keen to get a new local plan in place as soon as possible as this will provide certainty for our communities.
    
2. It’s no accident that the Council’s motto is “urbs in rure”, which is Latin for town in the country. This reflects the significant natural environment and open spaces that the Borough has with an urban setting. This includes the significant Green Belt in Solihull, which amounts to around two thirds of the land in the Borough.
    
3. Much of the Green Belt forms the strategically important Meriden Gap – there are few other areas of Green Belt in the Country that separate such large cities as Birmingham and Coventry. This is what helps make Solihull and the West Midlands such an attractive place. But the Green Belt doesn’t just help prevent these urban areas merging; it is also home to important and valuable biodiversity assets and areas for recreation.
    
4. Perhaps the most profound changes to national policy made in 2024 is in relation to Green Belts. In particular, the advent of the concept of Grey Belts – a sub-category of Green Belt that seeks to distinguish between poorly performing Green Belt and better performing areas. Some envisaged that Grey Belt would comprise of unattractive, brownfield sites that would benefit the Green Belt through being redeveloped. However, the national policy does not have such a narrow definition, and it potentially, draws into the definition attractive greenfield sites that sit on the edge of our rural villages.
    
5. Under the 2020 plan, the Council demonstrated it was prepared to make difficult decisions when considering the level of growth to be accommodated in the Borough, and the resultant impact on the Green Belt. Similar decisions will need to be made under this new plan too, and further Green Belt release is inevitable. However, we must ensure we get the balance right as we need to protect what makes Solihull, and the West Midlands, special. It will not be a case of development at all costs.
    
6. Planning policy is not just about ‘the numbers’ of new dwellings that may be required, but how development that will be coming to the Borough can be ‘shaped’ – i.e. ensuring it is of high quality, reflective of its surroundings and it delivers the type dwellings that our residents need. We are therefore seeking views on what sort of policies should be bought forward to help guide new development.
    
7. This Local Plan will be one of the tools the Council will use to achieve its ambition for Solihull as a ‘great place to live, work, invest and enjoy’ – putting people first.

Councillor Andy Mackiewicz,

Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Planning