Draft Submission Plan (Regulation 19)
North of the Borough Comment
Castle Bromwich and Marston Green
713.Castle Bromwich and Marston Green are popular mature residential suburbs which are generally affluent in character with good schools, strong local centres and lower than average unemployment levels in the Borough. Both areas are largely characterised by relatively high house prices and a shortage of affordable housing. Modern estates within both of these suburbs tend to be open plan with a cul-de-sac layout and with a mix of predominantly semi-detached and detached properties. Comment
714.Castle Bromwich has had a more historic pattern of development including traditional Victorian and Edwardian development. Comment
715.Marston Green is more mixed in character benefitting from natural areas including a small watercourse and the Green Belt buffer. It is bounded by significant commercial development at Birmingham Airport and Birmingham Business Park and has areas occupied by more traditional business premises. The railway runs through the edge of the area with Marston Green Station providing access to Birmingham International, Birmingham and Coventry. Comment
Chelmsley Wood, Fordbridge, Kingshurst & Smith’s Wood
716.In contrast to the rest of the Borough there is part of North Solihull (covering the wards of Chelmsley Wood; Fordbridge; and Kingshurst & Smith’s Wood) that has a high proportion of local neighbourhoods within the 10% most deprived in the country and some in the bottom 5%. The area is largely characterised by 1960’s housing estates arranged around parking courtyards, small green spaces and precinct shopping areas. The separation of pedestrian and car access via a mix of subways and dual carriageways has resulted in poorly overlooked amenity spaces and pedestrian routes. This has contributed to antisocial behaviour, an increased fear of crime and an overall reduction in the quality of environment. Comment
717.Since 2005 the area has been the subject of a large regeneration programme. This has delivered significant improvements to the area providing more than 1,710 new homes (social and private) on 40 different sites as well as a range of other improvements including two new village centres, six new primary schools, six parks and improved green space and play facilities. Development has included the demolition of a large amount of unsuitable housing stock including 5 high-rise blocks. Alongside the physical regeneration, socio-economic programmes have been developed to support the local community and voluntary organisations. Important improvements have been secured in Key Stage 2 and 4 educational attainment and locally based job creation. Comment
718The area does benefit from a network of natural spaces including woodlands, nature reserves and parks which make up the setting of the River Cole. These are important features which influence the availability and focus of further opportunities for development in the future. Comment
719.The North Solihull area has also been identified as part of the wider UK Central Solihull proposals (as one of the four interconnected economic opportunity zones) as an area with potential to benefit from the significant development proposed at the adjacent UK Central Hub. This will be dependent on addressing accessibility barriers both in terms of transport links in and out of the area and a relatively poor skills / training base within the area. Comment
The Settlements in the Future
720.The residential areas of Castle Bromwich and Marston Green are already largely built up and as such there are limited opportunities for further development without compromising the quality of the environment and existing open spaces. Comment
721.Although of limited scope, there is an opportunity for small scale growth within reasonable walking distance of the station at Marston Green. This has been identified as a broad location below. Comment
722.In the Marston Green area industrial restructuring may mean brownfield sites currently occupied by traditional employment uses could become available later in the plan period however there is considerable uncertainty over this. The NEC and Birmingham Airport are significant assets on the edge of the area which together with the UK Central proposals including the HS2 interchange station will provide extensive economic growth during and beyond the plan period. The wider benefits of the proposals may result in opportunities for redevelopment within Marston Green. However, it will be necessary to ensure any development both within and adjacent to the area is sensitive to the existing residential character. The need to ensure an appropriate buffer between neighbouring large scale proposals and the existing built form should be incorporated into proposals. Comment
723.In North Solihull the success of the extensive regeneration programme continues to be built upon with schemes being developed to improve existing facilities including Kingshurst Village Centre and Chelmsley Wood Town Centre. The SLP (2013) had a particular focus on the North Solihull Regeneration Area, and it released a number of Green Belt sites to support the regeneration programme. These have mostly been developed out. As a consequence of this strategy the remaining opportunities are focussed on development of the Simon Digby site, redevelopment opportunities and village/town centre redevelopment. Comment
724.Access to employment opportunities, improving the skills base and environmental enhancements will be key issues when assessing potential opportunities. Comment
What is required for the Settlements in the Future?
725.The suburbs would benefit from opportunities to expand the mix and affordability of housing however the lack of sites opportunities for development will impact on the extent to which this can be achieved. Comment
726.Future developmentin North Solihull, described above, will provide the opportunity to further address existing issues relating to: Comment
727.Improving the skills base and access to employment–The North Solihull area itself has very limitedemployment and commercial floor space and with car ownership lower than in other parts of the Borough access to jobs is limited. North Solihull forms one of the four zones identified through the UK Central programme which seeks to redistribute the benefits of the wider scheme. Comment
728.Improving the mix and quality of housing – Although the regeneration programme brought about significant achievements, there is still opportunity to seek improvements in the quality of the housing stock and to ensure a wider mix in the type and tenure of housing. The ability to deliver improvements may be affected by economic viability and require different delivery mechanisms. Comment
Improvements to Chelmsley Wood Town Centre and Kingshurst Village Centre
729.A masterplan has been approved for the Northwest Quarter of Chelmsley Wood Town Centre (CWTC). The Council is developing a long-term plan to ensure that Chelmsley Wood Town Centre continues to thrive and meet the needs of the local community. A concept masterplan for phased delivery of the site was prepared and approved by Cabinet in January 2023. The CWTC Phase 1 North-West Quarter project forms a key part of the Chelmsley Wood Town Centre Masterplan and is intended to support the long-term regeneration of the town centre. The project seeks to unlock underutilised brownfield land and deliver a vibrant mixed-use development comprising a discount food store, residential development, commercial units, improved public realm and enhanced pedestrian connections to the existing shopping centre. These improvements are intended to increase footfall, attract investment, improve health and wellbeing outcomes, and reduce crime and anti-social behaviour. Since development of the masterplan, significant changes in the ownership of neighbouring land have impacted project progression. In particular, the acquisition of the shopping centre by new owners in 2023. The project also requires ongoing engagement with additional landowners, including West Midlands Police, to support future phases of development. Comment
730.Phased delivery of the redevelopment of Kingshurst village centre is being undertaken, with Phase 1 having been completed in 2024. Phase 2 is due to commence development before the end of 2026 with later phases to follow after. The phased regeneration of the village centre is being delivered in accordance with planning consent granted in 2022. Comment
731.Improving access to public transport - The provision of a well-integrated public transport system is key to provide access to jobs and facilities outside the area. It is proposed that as part of the development of the UK Central Hub there will be improvements which will provide access to the facilities and opportunities presented by the new development. Comment
732.Health provision – The Council is working with the BSOL ICB to establish the impact of new development on local GPs and other services, and how this can be addressed. Comment
733.Public space enhancements – There are still pockets of the built-up area which would benefit from environmental enhancement to improve amenity and sense of place. It is important that public realm improvements continue to be pursued as part of the redevelopment of the remaining sites and that any further regeneration opportunities do not compromise existing public open spaces such as playing pitches, unless the impacts can be mitigated. The supply of open space is already constrained therefore finding replacement facilities in the local area will be challenging. Comment
Proposed Approach
734.There have been no suitable sites identified in Castle Bromwich and any future development is likely to be confined to smaller previously developed infill sites with potential limited opportunities to increase the mix and affordability of the housing stock. These would be more likely to come forward as windfall sites. Comment
735.In Marston Green the availability of sites is further constrained by the presence of significant recreation assets, which make up the setting of the settlement. In addition, the Green Belt in this area provides an important open space buffer between built up areas and commercial premises to the south and east of the area thus preserving the identities of the settlements. Comment
736.Development opportunities in North Solihull are focused on the remaining regeneration sites largely identified by the North Solihull Regeneration programme. These options are mainly on brownfield sites, which support the Council’s strategic vision for promoting economic growth, local centres and making best use of previously developed land. Comment
Recent Planning Applications
SLP Site 3 – Simon Digby, Chelmsley Wood (capacity 200)
737.This site was allocated for residential development in the adopted 2013 Local Plan (SLP site 3). Planning permission was granted in 2026 for 177 affordable dwellings, and the site is currently under construction. Comment
Kingshurst village Centre
738.Planning permission has been granted for the demolition of Kingshurst local centre and for the development of a new mixed-use local centre including up to 79 residential units. Comment
739.The residential development on the site of the former public house has been completed, and it is expected that the next phase (community, heath and retail hub) will commence before the end of the year. Comment
740.This site was previously allocated in Policy NS1 – Kingshurst Village Centre in the Draft 2020 Local Plan Comment
Broad Locations[57]
NS2 - Land around Marston Green
741.NDMPs S5 (1)(h): Principle of development outside settlement and GB7 (1)(h): Development which is not inappropriate in the Green Belt, now support development within reasonable walking distances of railway stations and as such development consistent with these national policies can be expected to come forward in this settlement. This will include development around Marston Green station and as such it is included as a broad location in this plan. Comment
[57]See Policy SMBC/HO2: Broad Locations for the policy wording relating to these areas.
