Planning policy - FAQ

The Council has a statutory responsibility to prepare a Local Plan as part of the overall development plan for the whole of the Borough under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 (as amended). New legislation and regulations in 2012 through the enactment of the Localism Act 2011 abolished Regional Spatial Strategies (RSSs) which set out housing and employment targets for each local authority. 

The Localism Act places greater control in the hands of local authorities with locally based targets and a new style of Local Plans including Neighbourhood Planning. The East Staffordshire Borough Local Plan in turn has evolved to become more strategic with the abolition of the RSS and the Staffordshire Structure Plan. By preparing an up-to-date Local Plan the Council has set out clearly how much development should take place to meet the needs of the Borough's residents and where this development should take place.

The main criterion for this level of housing development is the government’s household projections. It is also important that housing delivery associated with the delivery of new jobs. The housing requirement for the Local Plan is for 11,648 new dwellings over the Local Plan period 2012-31.

Burton upon Trent is the main settlement in East Staffordshire with the majority of residents living in or around the town. Burton upon Trent as the largest settlement, therefore it is considered to be the most sustainable location for new homes, employment and other commercial buildings.

Uttoxeter is also capable of accommodating some additional development growth relative to its size and function and the growth of both towns will help to maintain the existing town centres and existing facilities and their viability. Where necessary, additional services and facilities will be provided such as new schools, doctors surgeries and community centres and this is set out in the adopted Local Plan (2012-2031) and accompanying evidence base.

East Staffordshire Borough has been successful in developing brownfield sites in the few years which is evident in the housing completions stated in Annual Monitoring Reports. Although there are some large brownfield sites in East Staffordshire that may still come forward for development, there is not an unlimited supply of brownfield land. Therefore, while some new homes will be built on brownfield sites (where possible and if they are viable), there is a need to develop greenfield land.

The Green Belt land is a specific designation in planning that refers to land designated around towns to prevent urban sprawl. East Staffordshire Borough has a very small area of green belt on the eastern edge of Burton upon Trent, inherited from South Derbyshire District through boundary changes, though this forms part of a larger area of greenbelt between Burton upon Trent and Swadlincote. Greenfield land is land that has not been previously developed and can be found both within and outside development boundaries, including back gardens. As part of the adopted Local Plan, the council have allocated Strategic Green Gaps which are areas of development restraint and aim to prevent coalescence of the towns of Burton upon Trent and Uttoxeter and surrounding villages from merging into each other.