Wolverhampton Plan sets out route for new homes

Wolverhampton’s next planning blueprint is moving towards a formal timetable, with councillors due to consider the start of a new process that will shape where homes, jobs, transport schemes and protected environmental areas sit up to 2045.

City of Wolverhampton Council’s Cabinet is expected to review the proposed Local Plan Timetable on Wednesday 10 June 2026. If approved, the council will publish a timetable and a notice of intention to begin preparing the new Wolverhampton Plan by 30 June 2026.

Cabinet decision starts the 34-month plan process

The decision is about the timetable, not the final list of development sites. The council says recent changes to national planning rules mean local authorities must begin work this year on plans built under the government’s new plan-making system.

For residents, landowners, businesses and community groups, the approval would start a statutory 34-month preparation period. That process is expected to set the scope for future planning policies, housing allocations, employment land and infrastructure requirements across the city.

The new Wolverhampton Plan will run alongside the current Wolverhampton Local Plan, which has already been submitted under the previous system and is awaiting the outcome of an independent examination by the Planning Inspectorate later in 2026.

Planning rules put a June deadline on the council

The council says it is legally required to publish its Local Plan Timetable and Notice of Intention to Commence Local Plan Preparation by 30 June 2026.

That does not mean planning decisions change overnight. It means the city must start a fresh plan-making route that fits the revised National Planning Policy Framework. The existing plan still matters while the new process begins, particularly for decisions made before the replacement plan is adopted.

Both plans are intended to guide how brownfield sites, local centres, the city centre, employment areas and transport schemes are handled. They also identify environmental areas that should be protected or enhanced.

Key dates for residents to watch

Summer consultation will test the scope of the plan

If Cabinet approves the timetable, the next step will be a Scoping Consultation during summer 2026. This is the stage where residents and organisations can respond to the proposed scope of the Wolverhampton Plan, what it may replace, what supporting evidence is needed and how the council should involve communities.

The consultation is likely to be the first practical point at which local views can shape the new plan process, before detailed policies and allocations are finalised.

Council Leader Stephen Simkins said a local plan was needed to provide certainty for communities and support regeneration and investment. He said both planning routes would help enable “new housing and employment opportunities on brownfield sites across the city”.

Source: City of Wolverhampton Council