Councillors to discuss latest plans on future Leeds housing

An update on the proposed allocation of 70,000 new homes across Leeds up to 2028 is to be discussed by councillors next week.

At its meeting at Civic Hall on Friday 26 June, the development plan panel will discuss the latest proposals as to where the future homes identified as being needed by the council’s Core Strategy and endorsed by a government inspector are to be built.

The discussion is the next step in the process of preparing the draft Site Allocations Plan which is expected to go out to public consultation in the autumn.

The panel meeting will discuss the latest position on the proposals, which recommend splitting the city into 11 geographical housing areas and developing the 70,000 new homes in three phases up to 2028.

Included in the key principles are the following elements:

• 618 sites in total have been rejected as being unsuitable, including 409 in the green belt. This equates to 5,253 hectares being protected from housing development, including 4,116ha of green belt land
• Continue the policy which has seen more than 1,000 long-term empty homes returned to occupation since 2012
• In the first five years, the target is for the balance of development to be 65%-35% in favour of regenerating brownfield sites with a focus on bringing empty homes back into use
• Overall 52% of identified sites (by capacity) are brownfield compared with 48% which are greenfield
• Priority areas being released first would be those supporting regeneration, making best use of infrastructure or providing new services such as schools
• Smaller greenfield sites to be held back for possible development until later in phases two and three
• Of the 11 geographical areas, the two highest in terms of receiving new housing would be the city centre and ‘inner area’ of Armley, Beeston Hill, Belle Isle, Gipton and Harehills, Hyde Park and Woodhouse, Hunslet and Seacroft to help boost regeneration and economic growth in those areas.

The latest proposals also include potential sites to meet the needs identified in the Core Strategy for Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople.

To see the agenda and full report to be discussed by the development plan panel, visit http://bit.ly/1LkYwqe

Notes to editors:

The council’s net figure of 70,000 new homes needing to be provided was endorsed in 2014 by government inspector Mr Anthony Thickett after a lengthy public examination.

The council is committed to reviewing its housing policy in terms of need within the first three years of the Core Strategy which was approved last year.