Liverpool wants residents and businesses to have their say on 15-year Local Plan

Liverpool has launched a six-week public consultation to invite people and businesses to have their final say on the city’s 15-year Local Plan.

The draft plan sets out how the city would meet the challenges of a predicted population rise of 47,000 people, by creating 35,000 new homes and developing 370 acres of land for 38,000 new jobs.

The plan, which was recently endorsed by the city council’s cabinet, has identified 100 detailed policies to manage this growth, building on work to protect the city’s heritage and also includes a new policy for controlling developments in the city centre.

It will also enshrine a new robust process to control the number of conversions of properties into homes in multiple occupation (HMO’s).

The council will aim to use the Local Plan to support its recently published City Plan, which is focused on delivering a post-Pandemic recovery that delivers benefits for people from all walks of life. The local plan and City Plan embody the Mayor’s and Cabinet triple lock commitment to better environmental, social and equality standards.

Following consultations in 2014, 2016 and 2018, the draft Local Plan was submitted to the Secretary of State in 2018 to be assessed by an independent inspector.

As a result of the inspector’s Main Modifications, the public are now being asked one final time for their feedback, but this time only on these proposed changes.

Key to Liverpool’s Local Plan is to focus future development on brownfield land and making sufficient provision for regeneration projects and job creation in the city’s key employment areas.

The Local Plan will also enforce various area-based masterplans in the Baltic Triangle, Ten Streets, the Commercial District, the Cavern Quarter and the Upper Central area of the city centre.

A Tall Buildings Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) and Public Realm Strategy SPD will also be adopted to supplement the plan.

The council is currently preparing them both for public consultation.

After this final public consultation a report will be prepared for the council’s cabinet to adopt the Local Plan. On approval it will then replace the existing Unitary Development Plan 2002 on all planning matters.

Councillor Sarah Doyle, Cabinet member for Development and Housing, said: “Covid has given everyone time to think about what type of growth Liverpool needs, where and who it will benefit – and this Local Plan provides the framework to how this will happen.

“This Local Plan sets out to determine how we make Liverpool a healthier and more prosperous city that meet the needs of a changing population, and with our City Plan will help shape Liverpool’s post-pandemic recovery.

“Its impact will be huge because it explores all the key issues and acknowledges the importance of measuring social value in what we do and who we work with.

“It reflects on what type of homes and jobs we need as a city to improve community wellbeing, what type of high street we shop in, to how do we enjoy our parks and green spaces and how do we travel between them.

“The public’s feedback has been vital to shaping this plan to date and that will continue to be the case over the coming six weeks.”