Coventry Society continues to take an active role in the City Council’s update of the local plan. Currently, the Council is responding to nearly 60 questions raised by the independent inspectors who will then decide whether the updated local plan can proceed to a public inquiry in spring 2026.
But there is now another plan being prepared that will involve Coventry and other local authorities. West Midlands Combined Authority is beginning the preparation of a Spatial Development Strategy (SDS) that will cover Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton. It is hoped to have an adopted plan within three years.
What is an SDS? It is prepared by a combined authority and provides strategic policies for the development and use of the land in the area they cover. These plans could potentially play a key role in, for example, achieving the government’s objective of boosting the delivery of new homes by identifying strategic sites for development
How to get involved? The first stage of the West Midlands SDS runs from summer 2025 through to spring 2026. It involves an initial stakeholder and public engagement with a consultation period running up to 12 December 2025.
There is a one-day drop-in event in Coventry all day on Saturday 6 December 2025 at Coventry Retail Market – see Keep in Touch with Latest News – West Midlands: Spatial Development Strategy – Commonplace.
As well as this in-person event, there is an online community questionnaire that can be completed – see Have Your Say Today – Community Questionnaire – West Midlands: Spatial Development Strategy.
What are the issues? West Midlands Combined Authority has highlighted what it calls eight guiding principles – see Have Your Say Today – Guiding Principles – West Midlands: Spatial Development Strategy. These include:
- Infrastructure first eg making sure that transport, schools, health facilities are put in place as development of new homes takes place
- Brownfield first eg making use of previously developed sites rather than encroaching on the green belt
- Enhancing green spaces.
Coventry Society’s initial view is that these all make sense. But they are already emphasised in Coventry City Council’s proposed update of its local plan. We, therefore, will be interested in finding out on 6 December how the SDS might help deliver the city’s policies.
Further details about the West Midlands SDS can be found at West Midlands Spatial Development Strategy.
