Comment
2021: The year of the city region plan in the north?
Members of our northern planning team have reviewed the direction of travel for city region plans in the north of England and their role in meeting housing need in a post-pandemic world.
The much-anticipated revised standard method (‘SM2’) for calculating Local Housing Need (LHN) figures across England was published by the Government just before the Christmas break. Many commentators have referred to SM2 as a ‘sticking plaster’ to appease conservative backbenchers and in advance of the implementation of more wide-scale planning reforms discussed in the ‘Planning for the Future’ White Paper which was published in August 2020. Whilst SM2 was not as positive for the north as many had hoped – or we had been led to believe by the Government and MHCLG – it does apply a 35% uplift in the LHN for the country’s largest cities.
In the north, this means an uplift in the ‘baseline’ housing needs for the cities of Bradford, Hull, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield. The updated national guidance indicates that this uplift ‘should’ be met in the cities rather than being distributed to surrounding areas. However, in many cases that will not be achievable – the uplift to the LHN does not mean that more brownfield land supply has suddenly become available. There will inevitably be an element of unmet needs in some of these cities that will need to be met by the neighbouring authorities; a matter which will fall to Local Plans to resolve.
Manchester
We are already starting to see a number of ‘city region’ level plans emerge across the north. The Greater Manchester Spatial Framework (GMSF) is currently the most progressed, but has been subject to significant delays. Following Stockport’s removal from the process, the remaining nine authorities have reiterated their commitment to the process, and we are currently expecting the plan (now apparently with a working title of ‘Planix’ - ix being nine in roman numerals) to be launched in the summer, depending on any delay to the May 2021 elections. The plan is unlikely to be significantly affected by the 35% uplift in the LHN in Manchester; principally due to the potential for continued urban delivery within the city centre and the ‘release valve’ provided by adjacent land within Salford which forms part of the regional centre.
Liverpool
The same cannot be said for Liverpool, however, where the city centre is more concentrated and the urban area is largely self-contained. Initial consultation on the Liverpool City Region Spatial Development Strategy (SDS) is currently underway, but doesn’t yet grapple with development requirements and spatial strategy; we expect this to form part of the next round of consultation during 2021. How the 35% uplift in Liverpool’s LHN is to be met will be a key issue to resolve, and may require collaboration with adjoining authorities. This may well require further Green Belt release in some areas (e.g. St Helens, Knowsley and Sefton) given how tightly the existing boundaries are drawn, although this will again fall to individual Local Plans to detail and is likely to be met with strong political opposition.
Sheffield
The Sheffield City Region devolution deal introduces new spatial planning powers, including creation of a non-statutory Spatial Framework for the city region. We are expecting to see progress and consultation on the early stages of the plan during 2021.
Housing supply
As always, however, housing delivery is not just a numbers game. It will also be important to ensure that city region plans facilitate the delivery of the type, quality and location of housing that meets identified needs. This will be even more important in a post-pandemic world, with initial research and studies suggesting that demand from buyers has shifted, with an increased focus on larger homes within more suburban and rural areas than previously. With some form of pandemic restrictions likely to be in effect throughout much of 2021, this shift in demand is unlikely to be short-lived, and its potential impacts on the allocation of land within Local Plans will be a key issue to grapple with during 2021 and beyond.
The Government’s proposals to introduce further permitted development rights to enable ‘Class E’ uses (typically those found on the high street) to be converted to residential use may help to increase housing supply within existing urban areas, but will do little to reflect the renewed appetite for family homes in suburban areas which has been fuelled by the pandemic.
Looking ahead
2021 is likely to be ‘crunch time’ in the preparation of city region plans across the north of England. It will be vitally important for the development industry to engage during the early stages of the plan-making process to inform overall development requirements; particularly in the context of SM2 and how best to accommodate the 35% uplift within core city regions. It will also be critical to ensure that the spatial strategy facilitates the delivery of the right kind of housing in the right places which responds to needs. Engagement during preparation of the spatial frameworks will be critical, notwithstanding that individual development sites may only be allocated through subsequent Local Plans at the authority level (particularly in Liverpool and Sheffield city regions).
There is a clear need for a strong and consistent voice from the development industry in highlighting the benefits of meeting, and exceeding where appropriate, baseline housing needs as well as ensuring that the right type of homes are located in the right places. We look forward to continuing to work alongside our clients throughout 2021 (and beyond) to deliver the homes that are needed across the north of England.
For further information please contact Anna Relph, Nick Graham or David Diggle.
29 January 2021