The Core Strategy is the most important document in the LDF because it sets an overall strategy and vision, establishing the broad aims and objectives for the use of land in Stockport. It will embrace the priorities of the Stockport Sustainable Community Strategy, particularly where this involves the uses of land. The Core Strategy will outline how future strategic development needs including housing, employment, retail, education and healthcare will be met, providing the overall context for how policies and proposals will be used to promote positive change and guide planning and other policy decisions.
We are currently in a stage of the Core Strategy's development known as "Issues and Options" (or, more formally, the "Regulation 25 Stage"). A period of intensive stakeholder consultation was undertaken during the autumn of 2007 and the Council has now considered all the comments made as well as a lot of other evidence and decided which direction it considers the Core Strategy should take. This is now set out in a "Preferred Options" document which is subject to consultation for 6 weeks from 14th October 2009.
We would like your views on the Preferred Options and its various supporting appraisals and assessments so as to ensure that the Core Strategy is able to facilitate the sustainable development of Stockport, meeting a balanced need for providing new homes, securing new jobs, protecting open space, improving access to shops and services and developing a sustainable transport network. The consultation documents will be available to view and comment upon below from 14th October onwards. You are strongly encouraged to make your representations via the online version of the document. You can also view comments submitted by other consultees via the online version by clicking on "View Comments" wherever it appears in the text (please note that comments are moderated so as to ensure relevance and/or suitability prior to their being made available to view). A printable PDF version of each document is also available via the appropriate link below.
After the Preferred Options consultation there may be a need for further consultation to help develop the strategy into a final Core Strategy DPD which will then be submitted to the Government for consideration by an independent planning inspector.
As part of the consultation in 2007 the Council undertook a series of “State of the Area Debates” – one for each of the Borough’s 8 Area Committees. Overall these were well attended with several hundred people involved in total. A video has been compiled which summarises the discussion which took place at each debate; this is available to view to the right of this page.