Council publishes ambitious direction for the future of West Oxfordshire ahead of next Local Plan public consultation in June

Cllr Hugo Ashton, Executive Member for Planning, said: 

“Our new Local Plan will be a significant improvement on our previous plan, and we are pleased to be publishing our Preferred Policy Options Report that we will consult residents on at the end of June. This document sets out our current thinking which will be adjusted to reflect consultation responses and the results of ongoing research we are undertaking. 

“This emerging plan will directly respond to the challenges our communities face, from housing affordability and infrastructure, climate change, and the future of local jobs and services. 

“Recent national policy changes have greatly increased the number of new homes we need to accommodate. Our plan will have to meet this challenge or else we will have no control over the location of new housing. The Preferred Policy Options Report sets out our preferred strategy for meeting these targets in a way that works for our communities.  

"Through two previous rounds of consultation, residents have made it clear they want to see more genuinely affordable homes across the district, and many have given suggestions on where those homes could go. The policies we are proposing, have been developed from what residents told us they want to see. 

“That’s why the emerging plan isn’t just for the Council, it’s for the people who live here. They’re about delivering the homes, infrastructure and services that residents have told us they need, in the places they’re needed most. We’ll be inviting feedback on all aspects of the document when the consultation launches soon.” 

The Preferred Policy Options Report sets out a clearer and more ambitious approach across key areas, compared to the previous Local Plan, adopted in 2018. The policies include a stronger focus on genuinely affordable, energy-efficient housing; a more sustainable pattern of growth based on well-connected towns and strategic transport corridors, a commitment to achieving net zero through zero-carbon construction, renewable energy, and climate resilience. 

It also aims to reduce car dependency through better public transport, active travel routes, and by safeguarding land for a potential future rail link between Carterton and Oxford. Alongside this, it proposes stronger infrastructure delivery, covering schools, health services, water, digital connectivity, and green spaces, while supporting local jobs, small businesses and green industries. Protections for West Oxfordshire’s historic landscape, biodiversity and natural assets have also been strengthened. 

These were all key issues raised by local residents in the previous two rounds of consultation. 

Under the Government’s new standard method for assessing housing need, West Oxfordshire is required to provide around 905 new homes each year. From April 2025 to March 2041, this equates to 14,480 new homes. 

To ensure this target is met and in the event that some selected sites are delayed or fail to come forward, the Council is proposing to add an extra 10% buffer to the overall supply, increasing it to 16,000. This reduces the risk that the Council falls short of generating the 5-year housing land supply that is required to give the Plan full weight in planning decisions. 

Whilst this is a large number of homes to plan for, a significant proportion is already identified through existing planning permissions and previous local plan allocations that are still coming forward. We are also able to count a reasonable ‘windfall’ allowance from future speculative planning applications, particularly on smaller sites. 

This leaves around 6,500 new homes to find from allocated sites in the new Local Plan. The preferred policy options report outlines in broad terms where this is expected to take place, with Carterton and Witney expected to be a key focus, supported by proportionate growth at key service centres and larger villages.  

Building on this, later in the year, we will carry out a focused consultation, seeking views on preferred development areas to help inform the final draft version of the plan.  

Identifying new sites as part of local plan making is often controversial and the approach we are taking is the right one – allowing people to have their initial say on the overall strategy before looking in more detail at specific locations later this year. 

Councillors will consider the Preferred Policy Options Report over the coming weeks. If approved the Council will launch a consultation with the public for their feedback, likely towards the end of June.