Nine of Greater Manchester’s ten councils will have their say on plans to bring forward a ‘Places for Everyone’ joint development strategy for the city-region later this week.
Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Tameside, Trafford and Wigan councils will consider a report on Friday 12 February on whether to form a joint committee to develop a long-term plan for jobs, new homes and sustainable growth across the boroughs.
The proposal follows the decision of Stockport Council in December 2020 to withdraw from the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework, which would have saw a blueprint put in place for nearly 180,000 new homes in the region.
The nine councils will continue to work closely with Stockport Council, which will now prepare its own local plan, to deliver on shared objectives and strategies, including the Local Industrial Strategy, the Five-Year Environment Plan and the 2040 Transport Strategy.
Places for Everyone would underpin an ambitious vision for Greater Manchester, setting out the steps that can be taken to strengthen the region’s society, economy and environment, as well as building resilience in communities against future challenges.
The plan would build on the evidence base already collected, minimising time and cost in developing a new document.
It would also map out where inclusive development can take place in areas connected by sustainable transport links, creating new homes and jobs for people across the city-region and lay the foundations for new investment and innovation.
Also, it would be a key tool in meeting Greater Manchester’s ambition to become carbon neutral by 2038.
Commenting, Paul Dennett, City Mayor of Salford and Lead for Housing, Planning and Homelessness on the Greater Manchester Combined Authority said proposals are a “positive step forward” and hopes that they will “give people further confidence and clarity on our plans”.
He added: “The need to map out sustainable growth and protect against unplanned development hasn’t gone away. In the midst of a public health crisis that has struck hardest in the most disadvantaged places, having a positive and ambitious vision for our city-region is more important than it’s ever been.
“The best way to do that is with a plan that sets out clearly where good homes and jobs will be created, secures our most important natural assets and supports our goal of a carbon neutral future.
“We know that we have to deliver genuinely affordable and good-quality housing across Greater Manchester, bring in new investment and ensure that people here have access to good jobs in well-connected villages, towns and cities.
“The extensive work already carried out means that we won’t be starting from scratch, and together our nine councils can get on with bringing forward a new plan that maximises brownfield development and protects green belt as much as is possible.”
Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham added: “We want our councils to produce a credible plan that accommodates growth in the most sustainable way possible.
“While this is a plan that nine of our councils would be developing, every borough in Greater Manchester will continue working together to meet the big challenges we all face – building back better and fairer, tackling inequalities and decarbonising our economy.”
