News Beat
Survey on Bolton local plan to shape development closes
This comes after a consultation Bolton Council had launched on the “direction of travel” on its local plan, which aims to shape developments across the borough for the next 15 years.
But environmental campaigners have raised concerns about the timing of the public consultation, which ran over Christmas and closed on Thursday, January 22 this year.
Bolton Green Party chair Alan Johnson said: “Many people will have been busy over Christmas, its often a very busy time for people.
“So we’re asking why the consultation was running over Christmas when so many people will be occupied with other things?”
“It seems like a very bad time frame for the public but a very good time for Bolton Council!”
Every council across the country is required to have a local plan in place, which in Bolton’s case needs to account for Greater Manchester’s aim to create at least 13,379 homes over 15 years.
The house building commitment was set out as part of the city region’s Places for Everyone blueprint, which aims to guide developments.
Bolton’s local plan is expected to be publish its local plan this summer.
The council says that there was a national requirement to hold a six-week consultation, but they extended it to eight weeks to take account of the Christmas period.
The consultation was designed to allow people across the borough to have their say.
A council spokesperson said: “All councils across England are required to develop a local plan, identifying how they will meet growing need for housing, employment space and public services.
“The process for developing a local plan includes multiple opportunities for residents, businesses and landowners to have their say and help shape the future of their area.
“Bolton’s Emerging Local Plan has so far included a Call for Sites from March 4 to April 15 last year, and an Issues and Options consultation, which ran from August 21 to September 2.
“The latest round of consultation opened on November 27 and closed on January 22, an eight-week period during which the consultation received significant media coverage and was promoted widely on social media, alongside a series of public drop-in sessions.
“This was extended from a planned six weeks to eight weeks in order to take the Christmas period into account, meeting and exceeding requirements for consultation.”
