The proposed development site is located outside of the green belt and occupies a highly sustainable location on the edge of the settlement boundary of Lower Quinton. The site has been assessed in Stratford-on-Avon District Council’s Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA) as being “Likely to be deliverable”, and being suitable, available and achievable for development within the next 1 – 5 years.
Increased housing targets for Stratford-on-Avon District
Changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), announced by the Labour Government in late 2024, has more than doubled the number of homes Stratford-on-Avon District will need to deliver from 553 to 1,126 homes per year.
Five-year housing land supply
The NPPF also requires that local authorities are able to demonstrate a five-year housing land supply. This is the amount of land that the Council must identify to ensure there are sufficient deliverable sites for it to meet its housing target over a rolling five-year period. Recent appeal decisions by the Planning Inspectorate have confirmed that Stratford-on-Avon District Council currently cannot demonstrate a five-year supply of deliverable housing land.
South Warwickshire Local Plan
The current development plan for Stratford-on-Avon District is out of date, with a new South Warwickshire Local Plan (SWLP) in preparation. This is being jointly produced by Stratford-on-Avon and Warwick district councils. The site has been promoted through the SWLP, however the plan has focused on strategic growth areas, is subject to delays and currently holds little weight in planning terms.
Quinton Neighbourhood Plan
Quinton Neighbourhood Plan was adopted in 2023. Policies within the Neighbourhood Plan have been considered to help inform the emerging outline proposals for the site, such as those in relation to Valued Landscapes and Key Views.
It is noted that a potential reserve site for housing was identified in the Neighbourhood Plan to the east of Goose Lane. However, when considered in terms of the National Planning Policy Framework which has dramatically changed the planning landscape since the Neighbourhood Plan was adopted, that site does not constitute an allocation for housing delivery, and no development proposals have come forward for that site.
Bridging the housing delivery shortfall
To bridge the shortfall in housing supply, Stratford-on-Avon District Council is actively considering granting planning permissions on non-allocated sites as set out in a recently published Interim Planning Policy Statement.
In light of the site’s identification within the SHLAA, the District’s acute housing land requirements and ongoing delays with the SWLP, Barratt Redrow is preparing an outline planning application for the site.
Extract from the Council’s SHLAA which identifies the site (18 and 19) as being suitable for development (Orange). Red sites have been deemed undeliverable. The hatched area in the northern part of the site is where the Council has assessed development could be focussed. Click to enlarge,
The updated NPPF of December 2024 more than doubled Stratford-on-Avon District’s housing targets from 553 to 1,126 homes per year.