Local plan scoping consultation

Comment

Representation ID: 5963

Received: 01/09/2026

Respondent: Persimmon Homes North West

Agent: Asteer Planning

Persimmon considers that the proposed Local Plan period to March 2045 should be extended to 2050. While acknowledging that the proposed 15-year period meets minimum national policy requirements, they argue that a longer timeframe would provide greater flexibility for delays in plan preparation and support major strategic development and infrastructure with longer lead-in times. An extended plan period would also help maintain a sufficient and resilient supply of deliverable housing and employment sites, reduce the risk of land supply shortfalls and provide greater long-term certainty for communities, landowners, developers and infrastructure providers.

Comment

Representation ID: 5964

Received: 01/09/2026

Respondent: Persimmon Homes North West

Agent: Asteer Planning

Persimmon considers that the Local Plan should establish an ambitious, proactive and delivery-focused framework for sustainable growth that meets Cheshire East’s identified development needs. They argue that the Plan should complement the emerging Cheshire and Warrington Spatial Development Strategy while also identifying opportunities within Cheshire East capable of contributing to both local and wider development requirements. The respondent considers that the Plan’s vision and objectives should respond positively to the anticipated scale of growth, support development during and beyond the plan period and maximise the opportunities arising from future housing, employment and infrastructure needs.

Comment

Representation ID: 5965

Received: 01/09/2026

Respondent: Persimmon Homes North West

Agent: Asteer Planning

Persimmon supports a comprehensive and transparent assessment of potential development sites to ensure sufficient land is identified to meet Cheshire East’s housing and employment needs. It argues that the site selection process should remain flexible and avoid overly prescriptive criteria that could prematurely exclude development opportunities. The land availability assessment should consider site suitability, availability and deliverability, alongside each site’s contribution to the wider spatial strategy and sustainability objectives. Persimmon considers that these principles should underpin the assessment methodology and subsequent selection of sites for development.

Comment

Representation ID: 5966

Received: 01/09/2026

Respondent: Persimmon Homes North West

Agent: Asteer Planning

Where sites are located within the Green Belt, the assessment should be undertaken in accordance with the NPPF (Policies GB1 to GB8 and Annex E) and in particular, should clearly identify land that falls within the definition of Grey Belt to ensure that such land is properly considered through the wider site selection process. Given the scale of CEC’s housing requirement and current housing land supply position, it is considered that a significant quantum of grey belt land will need to be identified.

Comment

Representation ID: 5967

Received: 01/09/2026

Respondent: Persimmon Homes North West

Agent: Asteer Planning

The location of a site should be a fundamental consideration, with greater weight given to sites that are well related to existing settlements, particularly those that can form logical extensions to established urban areas and benefit from existing services, facilities, employment opportunities and infrastructure. This should be underpinned by a balanced spatial approach to growth across the Borough, that does not concentrate development in limited locations, and which supports growth in principal settlements in both the north and south of the Borough; as well as in smaller settlements where proportionate growth is required to support future vitality.

Comment

Representation ID: 5968

Received: 01/09/2026

Respondent: Persimmon Homes North West

Agent: Asteer Planning

Persimmon supports a flexible and transparent site assessment methodology considering accessibility, services, employment, infrastructure, ownership, market attractiveness, constraints and delivery timescales. They argue that strategic sites with longer lead-in times can contribute to longer-term needs and that sites should be compared on their overall merits rather than through rigid scoring. Professional judgement and evidence from site promoters should inform assessments. The methodology should ensure a continuous supply of land for short-, medium- and long-term growth. Persimmon also supports opportunities to submit or update sites and calls for a published methodology enabling promoters to understand assessments and address identified constraints.

Comment

Representation ID: 5969

Received: 01/09/2026

Respondent: Persimmon Homes North West

Agent: Asteer Planning

Persimmon welcomes CEC’s intention to undertake a comprehensive review of the Green Belt across the Borough. Given the level of development that the new Local Plan will need to accommodate, it is essential that the assessment provides a robust and impartial understanding of the role and function of Green Belt land, including the identification of areas that meet the NPPF definition of Grey Belt (Annex 2).
The outcomes of the Green Belt review should be considered alongside the Council’s housing and employment needs, the emerging spatial strategy and the sustainability and deliverability of individual sites. This should include consideration of the relationship between potential Green Belt release and existing settlements, accessibility to services and facilities, transport connections and opportunities to create sustainable patterns of development.

Comment

Representation ID: 5970

Received: 01/09/2026

Respondent: Persimmon Homes North West

Agent: Asteer Planning

Persimmon considers that the assessment of Strategic Green Gap should focus on the actual function and contribution of individual sites to maintaining settlement separation and identity. Land that makes little or no meaningful contribution to these purposes should not be treated as presenting the same level of constraint as land that is critical to preventing settlements from coalescing.
The emerging Local Plan should therefore adopt a proportionate and site-specific approach, distinguishing between land that is important to the purpose of the Strategic Green Gap and areas where the designation provides limited strategic benefit. Where land makes no contribution to maintaining settlement separation, Persimmon considers that its removal from the designation should be considered through the plan-making process.

Comment

Representation ID: 5971

Received: 01/09/2026

Respondent: Persimmon Homes North West

Agent: Asteer Planning

Persimmon supports an updated settlement hierarchy and considers that most growth should continue to be directed towards Principal Towns and Key Service Centres due to their services, accessibility and capacity for sustainable development. However, they argue that Local Service Centres should also accommodate meaningful, proportionate growth where development is sustainably located, well related to existing settlements and able to use existing infrastructure and services. Persimmon considers that a balanced spatial strategy would support local communities and facilities, provide greater flexibility in meeting housing needs and distribute the benefits of growth more widely across Cheshire East.

Comment

Representation ID: 5972

Received: 01/09/2026

Respondent: Persimmon Homes North West

Agent: Asteer Planning

Persimmon supports a balanced spatial strategy informed by housing and employment needs, infrastructure, accessibility, commuting patterns and settlement sustainability. They argue that growth should recognise the economic and functional links between northern Cheshire East and Greater Manchester and reflect existing commuting patterns. Edge-of-settlement development and strategic urban extensions could support existing communities while delivering infrastructure, affordable housing, sustainable transport, green space and biodiversity improvements. Persimmon considers that growth should be directed towards locations with sustainable access to employment, services and infrastructure, with proportionate development across Principal Towns, Key Service Centres and Local Service Centres, including settlements in the north of the Borough.