Trafford Council has finalised the latest draft of its local plan and will consult on its legal soundness before submitting it to government in December. The plan sets out where major housing, office and employment development should be delivered across the borough up to 2039, alongside policies on viability, carbon reduction, biodiversity and infrastructure contributions.
Liverpool City Council is set to reconsider Liverpool FC’s request to make the closure of part of Anfield Road to vehicles permanent, following earlier committee discussion and additional safety and security information. The same committee agenda also includes several residential schemes in Liverpool, including a care home, a social-rent apartment redevelopment, and a mixed apartment proposal on brownfield land.
Warrington Council is seeking approval to commission AECOM to advance three active travel schemes funded through the Local Regeneration Fund, with the aim of making them planning-ready and ready for delivery in 2027/28. The projects cover Burtonwood, Winwick and Culcheth, and include route improvements, community building upgrades and associated land, ecology and planning work.
The article gathers priorities from senior figures in the built environment, local government and housing sectors for the incoming Prime Minister, with recurring calls for greater devolution, longer-term funding certainty and faster housing delivery. Contributors argue that stable, place-based policy and reduced bureaucracy are needed to unlock regeneration, infrastructure and new homes.
The article argues that Manchester’s build-to-rent market has been highly successful in delivering large numbers of city-centre apartments, but that the next phase of rental growth needs to focus more on family housing in suburban locations. It highlights that private landlords are constrained by higher borrowing costs, SDLT on additional properties and future energy-efficiency upgrade costs, creating space for institutional capital to deliver single-family rental homes at scale.
Ribble Valley Council’s planning committee has been warned that repeated appeal losses could trigger government intervention and potentially remove some local planning autonomy. The warning comes as members prepare to determine two housing applications totalling 165 homes, including one recommended for refusal despite the council’s recent appeal setbacks.
This article is a satirical roundup of several North West property and local government stories, including a rejected housing scheme in Sandbach, a commercial launch at a Manchester resi scheme, and ongoing political deadlock at Oldham Council. It also briefly notes a new wellbeing-focused gym opening at Manchester’s Treehouse hotel.
Westmorland Farmshop & Co has secured funding from HSBC UK to support the £65m Tatton Services scheme on the M56 in Cheshire. The development, which includes a large amenity building, hotel and fuel station, was approved after a planning inquiry that considered Green Belt and grey belt issues.
The article examines how Andy Burnham’s housing approach, shaped by his record in Greater Manchester, may not translate well nationally. It argues that while planning reform, council housebuilding and devolved delivery could support supply, SME housebuilders are already under pressure from weak market conditions, viability constraints and planning delays.
Cheshire East Council’s planning department has recommended approval for 168 homes in Wilmslow, despite the scheme conflicting with local plan policy on safeguarded land. The recommendation is driven in part by the council’s inability to demonstrate a statutory five-year housing land supply, which weakens the authority’s position if the application is refused.
Cumberland has approved plans to convert Victory House and Caledonian Mill near Carlisle’s Victoria Viaduct into a 95-bed managed student living scheme. The proposal includes the sensitive reuse of heritage buildings, retention of some commercial space, and mitigation measures to address nutrient neutrality constraints affecting the River Eden SAC catchment.
The Planning Inspectorate has allowed Bloor Homes’ appeal for a 325-home scheme in Sandbach, overturning Cheshire East Council’s refusal. The inspector found that the housing and affordable housing benefits outweighed less than substantial heritage harm, while also noting moderate harm to the character of the area and limited loss of good quality agricultural land.
