Decision details

The Cabinet received a report of the Executive Director of Place/Deputy Chief Executive that sought approval for the publication of Oldham’s 2025 Brownfield Land Register.

The Town and Country Planning (Brownfield Land Register) Regulations 2017 requires that each local planning authority in England is to prepare, maintain and publish a register of previously developed (brownfield) land suitable for housing.  The government considers that the purpose of the register is to provide up-to-date and consistent information on sites that local authorities consider appropriate for residential development.

The Brownfield Register update for 2025 includes 190 sites. Further information on which sites are included within the Register were set out in the background to the submitted report.

A Brownfield Register comprised two parts, with Part 2 being a subset of Part 1:

·       Part 1 consists all brownfield sites that the Council has assessed as appropriate for residential development and could include sites with or without planning permission. 

·       Part 2 identifies sites that the local authority has decided should be granted (planning) permission in principle (PiP) for residential development.  PiP is an alternative route to obtaining planning permission which separates “in principle” matters, such as use and location, from technical details, which are left to be agreed later.  The theory is that this will provide greater certainty earlier on in the planning process, making it easier for developers to commit resources to a scheme in the knowledge that the principle of development has already been established and they only need to agree the details. 

As with previous updates of Oldham’s Brownfield Register, it was not proposed to include sites on Part 2 of the Register at this time. Further details regarding this position were provided in the background papers associated with the submitted report. The decision not to progress Part 2 would, however, be kept under review. This was particularly the case given that the Council may, in future, become obligated by the government to start granting PiP.

This was Oldham Council’s 9^th Brownfield Register.

Options/Alternatives considered:

Option 1 (preferred Option) - to approve and publish Part 1 of Oldham’s Brownfield Land Register 2025 in line with the Regulations. Part 2 is not proposed.

Option 2 - to not approve and publish an updated Brownfield Land Register as the 2025 SHLAA already contains all brownfield land considered suitable for housing development. This would not comply with the current Regulations.

Resolved:

1.    That the Cabinet approves and authorizes the publication of Part 1 of Oldham’s Brownfield Land Register 2025 in line with the Regulations.  

2.    That the Cabinet notes the approach to determining sites to include in Part 1 and 2 of the Brownfield Register: namely to approve a 2025 update of the Brownfield Land Register (Part 1 only) for publication; and to delegate authority to make minor amendments and updates to the register throughout the year, if required, to the Executive Director of Place/Deputy Chief Executive.