Solihull housing crisis as plan set to crash over green belt row

A massive housing plan for Solihull has been thrown into crisis in a row over green belt development. The blueprint should be withdrawn, the government’s planning inspectorate has said. Solihull Council ’s leader said he was "disappointed" by the decision on the authority's ‘local plan’ as the authority considered what to do next.

The plan is a document which, once adopted, becomes the main consideration in deciding planning applications. But its adoption has been delayed since 2022 as the council and planning inspectorate, which is examining it, have been at loggerheads.

At the centre of the dispute has been the inspectorate’s view around where 2,000 extra homes - needed to help meet the need for housing from the wider Birmingham area before the end of the decade - should be built. Writing to the authority on September 4 inspectors Kevin Ward and Kelly Ford wrote: “It is highly likely additional site allocations on land currently in the green belt would be required.

READ MORE : Solihull's new homes changing as 'one in 100 expectation' set

“The council has already demonstrated there are exceptional circumstances which justify altering the green belt to accommodate housing growth. The council has made it clear it is not willing to identify and allocate additional sites in the green belt to address the significant shortfall in supply we have identified.

“There is a fundamental issue with soundness in terms of the supply of housing which the council is not willing to address.” In their conclusion the inspectors said: “Unfortunately we have reached the point where we have concluded the local plan should be withdrawn.

“The only alternative to this would be for the council to ask us to proceed with our report. However, this would inevitably recommend that the local plan is not adopted and would involve additional time and cost.” Council leader Ian Courts told councillors in February he was against the building of extra homes on green belt land.

Andy Mackiewicz, cabinet member for planning, reiterated that stance at a meeting in April. In August the council set out an improved land supply position to the inspector, which aimed to show extra homes didn’t need to be built on the green belt.

Citing one example, the council said the Mell Square redevelopment in Solihull town centre would now deliver 1,430 homes - 337 more than originally estimated. But on that the inspectorate wrote that plan for Mell Square had not been subject to scrutiny, adding it couldn’t be “justified”.

Coun Courts said: “We are deeply disappointed in the inspectors’ conclusions, which could have massive implications for the borough. We have consistently set out a pragmatic approach to the inspectors, to enable them to progress the examination in a positive and timely manner.

“We had sought to plan positively and sustainably for the homes and economic growth opportunities the borough needs, whilst working collaboratively with our neighbours. However, it seems the inspectors are insistent on further substantial loss of green belt, along the lines of recent government pronouncements, rather than a pragmatic plan.

“We will need to carefully consider our next steps and will do so with the best long-term interests of the borough in mind.” Coun Max McLoughlin, leader of the Green Party opposition group who regularly raised the 'local plan' delays at full council meetings - said this outcome had been predictable.

“There has been mismanagement of the whole process by the administration," Coun McLoughlin said. “They have tested the patience of the inspector to breaking point and the council will have to restart the process - which will be very costly.

“It was a choice to stick or twist, they have twisted when they had already gone bust.”

We are now on WhatsApp. Join our dedicated community here

For more stories from across Solihull including BHX, breaking news, politics and what's on, sign up to our MySolihull newsletter