A Local Plan is a legal requirement. It sets out how housing, employment and infrastructure needs will be met over at least 15 years. With clear policies and identified sites, it prevents ad-hoc development and gives the council more control over where growth should and should not occur.

Without one:

• Developers can build where they choose
• Decisions rely on national policy favouring development
• The council struggles to secure infrastructure (education, health, transport)

A Local Plan, whilst we may not agree with some of its proposals, offers far greater protection than having none.

All councils with planning responsibilities must adopt a legally sound plan. If local councillors refuse to adopt a Local Plan, the consequences are significant, with the council gradually losing control over planning decisions, and central government intervening to effectively take over.

Without a plan, the council has less control over development and infrastructure, and developers gain more freedom under national policy.

The plan is in the Draft Local Plan stage (Stage 2 of 7).

Sites around Heald Green were submitted by landowners at Stage 1 and assessed on their developability using national criteria as part of stage 2.

You can find the Heald Green Ratepayers Association responses to the consultation from both stages on our website.

There are 3 proposed locations:

Heald Green West – 750 new homes proposed on Nixons Farm (this is a reduction on the number proposed under GMSF)

Heald Green East – There is already a planning application in the system for 675 additional Bloor homes on the Seashell Trust land. Under this new plan, this allocation will extend northwards towards the end of Dawson Road and another 225 homes are proposed.

Off Bolshaw Road to the south – 70 homes are proposed, we understand that a developer has had an option on this land for some years.

The draft plan only zones land – it does not guarantee development will take place on the sites.  The draft plan is likely to take until winter 2027/28 to be adopted.  Planning applications would then be required to set out detailed proposals, via the usual process. Once adopted, the plan guides development through to 2042.

Up to 1,720 homes are included across three sites in the draft plan.

Yes. A Local Plan is the mechanism that secures both public and private (developer) investment in roads, schools, health facilities and transport. Without it, securing such improvements is far harder. Authorities without a defined and uptodate Local Plan are often less competitive and face higher scrutiny when bidding for many funding streams from Government Grant Funding pots.

It simply reflects suitable land availability, not political decisions. Heald Green and some neighbouring areas contain land that meets the required tests and can support additional infrastructure. Although supporting infrastructure must be secured as part of any planning applications, which is something the Councillors focus on in detail.

The council already prioritises brownfield development. The draft plan aims for 90% of new homes on brownfield sites, including 8,000 planned through the Mayoral Development Corporation in the town centre which has recently extended its boundaries.

No. There were only 263 empty homes in Stockport in 2024 – around 14% of one year’s housing target even if all were brought back into use; which is very unlikely.

This claim emerges each election cycle, that “Heald Green has more development because Councillors from other areas protect their wards, because they are in political parties and Heald Green has independent Councillors”.

This is an egregious claim, as it is illegal for councillors to influence the site selection and site assessment processes. It would be a serious governance and legal issue, and can result in Monitoring Officer investigation, Judicial Reviews and Government intervention and penalties.

If there was evidence that this was happening it should be reported to the authorities as soon as possible. We note that even though this claim is regularly repeated there is however no evidence whatsoever that the Stockport Planning Officers undertake anything but a transparent and thorough process, as they are bound by the RTPI code of conduct and employment laws.

Landowners put forward their sites, and they are independently assessed against a series of strict tests on deliverability, viability, access potential and ground conditions. Heald Green’s available sites scored well in this assessment likely due to motorway and airport access proximity and the availability of flat easy to build-on land. Other areas in Stockport such as Hazel Grove, High Lane, Bramhall and Woodford all have major proposed allocations equivalent to Heald Green. Other areas like Cheadle and Gatley do not have any Greenbelt remaining after development over many years.

Yes, there is a shortage of available housing.  This is identified in the Housing Needs Assessment, which feeds into the plan. National policy requires Stockport to meet its assessed housing need. If it cannot, the government can intervene. Notwithstanding this, in the Heald Green Ratepayers Association response to the draft plan consultation, we provided a thorough critique of the Housing Needs Assessment, which can be found on our website.