Sheffield Local Plan gets green light for next stage
The city is moving closer to a long-awaited development framework after independent inspectors confirmed the city’s draft Local Plan can progress, with some changes.
The plan, guiding growth until 2039, has been under review since 2023.
It has identified more than 350 sites for potential development, focusing primarily on previously developed brownfield land.
A small portion of Green Belt land, around 3.5%, is also included, but with strict rules to ensure housing comes with necessary infrastructure and affordable homes.
Residents will have a chance to review and comment on the inspectors’ proposed modifications during a six-week public consultation beginning in early March.
Feedback will be considered before inspectors issue their final report, after which the Full Council will make the final decision on adoption.
The Local Plan prioritises green spaces, heritage protection, and biodiversity and aims to make it easier for the city to attract investment, deliver affordable housing, and coordinate new infrastructure.
Inspectors evaluated feedback from public consultations and hearings before concluding that the plan is fundamentally sound.
Cllr Tom Hunt, leader of Sheffield City Council, said: “Sheffield needs a Local Plan because we are a growing city. Having a Local Plan means control over where development happens and what gets built.
“But growth needs to be inclusive, and the Plan will bring real benefits for communities. It will help us to provide more
affordable housing, regenerate derelict land, create new jobs, improve public transport and reduce our city’s carbon emissions…
“The Plan has a clear focus on developing brownfield land that has already previously been built on. It is a long-term plan and the majority of development won’t happen until the 2030s.
“The Plan means that more housing developments will have to include affordable homes. It means ensuring that developments have the right infrastructure like public transport, children’s playgrounds, schools and health services.
“Continuing without a Local Plan means remaining at risk of speculative, unplanned development and developments built without any infrastructure and without affordable housing.”
Historical, environmentally valuable, animal rich land to be sacrificed for ever whilst brownfield sites abound and are ignored by this spineless council. The Green Party (sic) are involved heavily in this. Surely time for a name change !
Voted on by Councillors who would not know S35 if they were stood in it.
By Ian