Updated Thursday 18th July 2002
Hertfordshire Structure Plan:
Council Defers Decision

Hertfordshire County Council have adopted a wait-and-see policy to housing development in the county for the next five years.

The authority is facing the dilemma of releasing greenbelt land to the west of Stevenage or promoting cramming on brownfield sites within towns.

A recent study by The County Council sparked outrage when it identified car parks and back gardens as suitable sites for the development of 45,000 new homes in the county. District Councils countered by saying that only 35,800 could be accomodated - a shortfall of nearly 10,000.

At a meeting in May, councillors decided to adopt a "plan, monitor and manage" approach to housebuilding. Any policy decision would be postponed until 2006.

Over the last five years, an average of 3200 new homes per year have been built in the county.

Continued uncertainty over government policy also came to bear on the council's decision.

Background

The Hertfordshire Structure Plan covers a 15 year period and includes plans on housebuilding in the county.

In October 2001, the County Council issued a new draft 15-year plan for 2001-2016.

Hertfordshire County Council is a member of SERPLAN - South East Regional Planning Conference. SERPLAN is an organisation that represents local authorites in the South East, including Bedfordshire and Oxfordshire.