District set for 7,000 new homes - on top of 12,900 to be built by 2029

As Coventry City Council cannot accommodate its share of housing numbers set by the Government, the shortfall must be shared between Warwickshire’s councils.

Warwick district will take on the biggest chunk of the numbers, meaning that on top of the 12,900 proposed as part of the Local Plan by 2029 the council must find space for an extra 7,008 houses by 2031.

This number could even rise again as Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council has so far refused to sign up for its share of over 5,700 houses in the redistribution package.

The change was agreed at a meeting of leaders from the county’s five district and borough councils on Tuesday.

And while the decision for Warwick district will have to be agreed by full council in October, leader Andrew Mobbs said that it was simply not possible to refuse the extras.

He said: “If we do not accept these numbers then our Local Plan will be rejected and that will set us back two or three years. It is crucial that this goes ahead and we hope members see that.”

Sites for the 932 builds a year will not be discussed until after full council approval is given next month.

Warwick District Council (WDC) had its Local Plan rejected by a planning inspectorate for falling short on housing numbers and with an order that the shortfall across Warwickshire and Coventry be addressed jointly.

WDC chief executive, Chris Elliott, said there were now difficult decisions to be made. He said: “As the housing need is unable to be met within Coventry, Warwick district has ended up with a large chunk. But we have to chose to make a difficult decision now, or an even more difficult one later.

“None of us will be able to progress our Local Plans if we do not reach an agreement on redistributing these houses.

“The number will only go up the longer we leave this.”

Nuneaton and Bedworth council was the only to refuse the agreement after leader Dennis Harvey said they simply could not take on another dramatic housing rise.

It is not yet known if refusal would affect numbers for the remaining four councils.