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The plan – which was first consulted on in 2020 and has been shaped by three more rounds of public consultation – was set to go out for a final round of consultation later this year, before being submitted for independent examination. This consultation will not now take place, pending consideration of the updated government guidance and any further work which may be required.
Councillor Mark Canniford, North Somerset Council’s executive member who is responsible for spatial planning, placemaking and economy, said: “The government’s planning reforms have major implications for our proposed Local Plan.
“The new standard method is 23,805 dwellings in North Somerset over the next 15 years – that’s nearly 9,000 dwellings more than our current Local Plan target. This figure also doesn’t take into account the needs of our neighbours, as the government has asked all councils to work together to jointly address unmet need.
“In light of this, we will not be proceeding with our planned final consultation on the Local Plan. We’re working hard to review our draft plan in the light of the government’s announcements, and hope to progress this as quickly as we can.
“As a council, we support the government’s commitment to growth and meeting the housing need of our communities. All our communities will need to play a role in helping to meet this challenging housing requirement, and we’ll work closely with them as we develop a revised plan.
“However, we want to create a Local Plan that also reflects the needs of our environment. Around 85 per cent of our land is at risk from flooding, part of the Mendip Hills landscape, high-quality Green Belt or protected in other ways for environmental or heritage reasons. This is a practical geographic constraint on the amount of development that’s possible in North Somerset.
“New homes also need to be supported with the right infrastructure, so communities have access to the services they want and need. We want to make sure that infrastructure challenges are being met before we consider further development.
“We appreciate that this has been a long process. It’s really important that we get our Local Plan right, as this will shape development in our area for the next 15 years. Thank you to our residents for your patience, and to our officers for their continued hard work.”