Salford City Council is proposing a citywide licensing scheme for certain Section 257 HMOs following inspections that found widespread non-compliance with expected standards. The council says the measure would improve oversight and drive compliance with building safety requirements, while landlord consultation responses were largely opposed.
Bentry Capital is aiming to begin construction on the first phase of its revived Abbey Row scheme in Liverpool in Q4 2026, subject to final Gateway 2 approval from the Building Safety Regulator. The project, previously stalled under earlier ownership, has been redesigned and reduced from 419 to 367 apartments, with the first phase set to deliver 241 homes.
Henley Investment Management’s proposed 78-storey redevelopment at Regent Retail Park in Salford is set to return to the planning committee after a procedural complaint raised concerns about a potential conflict of interest in the original approval process. The scheme, which includes 3,300 homes and 660 social rent units, remains under consideration while the council addresses the issue.
The Planning Inspectorate has overturned Cheshire East Council’s refusal of Bloor Homes’ outline application for up to 200 homes off Prestbury Road in Macclesfield. The inspector gave significant weight to the council’s shortfall in five-year housing land supply, accepted the site as Grey Belt, and found only minor landscape harm with no highway safety objection upheld.
X1 Media City Limited, the special purpose vehicle behind a four-tower scheme at Salford Quays, has entered administration with one tower still unbuilt. The administrators report says the company owed more than £20m to investors who had paid deposits, alongside £2.4m to contractor Vermont Construction, and the site is now being marketed for sale to recover funds for creditors.
An outline planning application has been submitted for 180 homes at North Lumb Farm near Woodhouses, Oldham, with the applicant arguing the site qualifies as Grey Belt and should be approved in light of local housing need and a shortfall in deliverable supply. The scheme includes 63 affordable homes and areas of green/open space, and is being promoted as compliant with the NPPF Golden Rules.
Persimmon Homes and WCK Farming have submitted outline plans for a 300-home residential scheme on Green Belt land in Aughton, West Lancashire, including 150 affordable homes and areas of retained green space. The article notes that the council’s inability to demonstrate a five-year housing land supply may strengthen the prospects of approval and make refusal harder to defend at appeal.
Muller Property Group has submitted a hybrid planning application for the second phase of its Sandbach South masterplan in Cheshire East, proposing up to 452 homes alongside local centre uses, sports facilities, public open space and supporting infrastructure. The scheme builds on an approved first phase already being delivered by Anwyl Homes and is being advanced against the backdrop of a constrained local housing land supply position.
Russell LDP and Harworth Group have progressed plans for Simister Bowlee, a 242-acre residential allocation in Greater Manchester, by submitting an EIA Scoping Opinion to inform a future planning application. The scheme could deliver up to 1,550 homes alongside a primary school, local centre, transport improvements, sustainable drainage, and open space, with construction potentially starting in 2029.
Financial close has been reached on a £530m redevelopment of the University of Manchester’s Fallowfield student campus, backed by Rothesay as majority funder. The phased project will deliver 3,300 student bedspaces, extensive amenity space and a major sustainability-led build, with Gateway 2 approvals already secured for the first higher-risk buildings.
Liverpool City Council has approved plans to convert the former HMRC office block at Imperial Court into 95 apartments, allowing the scheme to move toward a Gateway 2 submission to the Building Safety Regulator. The revised proposal includes changes to windows and cladding, with the ground floor retained for potential commercial uses and the scheme located within the Castle Street conservation area.
Construction has started on Tatton Services, a £65m motorway services scheme on the M56 between Junctions 7 and 8, with opening targeted for spring 2028. The development, led by Westmorland in joint venture with Tatton Estate, includes a farm shop, food hall, hotel, filling station and EV charging, and was approved after a planning call-in and inspector decision on grey belt status.
