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Local Plan for Warwick and Stratford Districts Draws 21,000 Comments

More than 4,800 people and groups responded to the South Warwickshire Local Plan. Councillors vote on submitting it on 14 December, with only minor changes possible now.

By Alex Harrington 2 min read Source: Warwick District Council
Leamington Spa Town Hall's red-brick clock tower and the Parade under a blue sky, with Queen Victoria's statue in front
Leamington Town Hall and the Parade. Photo: Robin Stott, CC BY-SA 2.0

The South Warwickshire Local Plan, which will set where new homes, jobs and infrastructure go across Warwick district and Stratford-on-Avon district, drew around 21,000 individual comments from more than 4,800 respondents in its latest consultation, Warwick District Council said on 12 November.

On this page
  1. Will the plan change?
  2. Key dates
  3. What it means in Warwick

The comments came in during the Regulation 19 stage, the last formal consultation before the plan goes to an independent Planning Inspector. The two councils say their job now is mainly to record every representation and send them all to the Inspector, who will hold the Examination in Public.

Will the plan change?

Only a little, if at all, at this stage. The councils say they can’t answer every comment, but officers will try to deal with the main themes and concerns. They will also consider proposing some “non-material” changes to the Inspector, while making clear this is not a chance to make major alterations to the plan. Larger objections are for the Inspector to weigh at the examination.

Key dates

  • Thursday 10 December 2026: the South Warwickshire Local Plan Joint Committee considers a report asking for approval to submit the plan.
  • Monday 14 December 2026: the report goes to full council meetings at Warwick District Council and Stratford-on-Avon District Council.
  • Early 2027: the plan is submitted for examination, using the Government’s extension to its original December deadline.

What it means in Warwick

Once adopted, the new plan is expected to replace the strategic policies in the current Warwick District Local Plan, which the council adopted on 20 September 2017, according to the council’s local plan page. Until then, planning applications in and around Warwick, such as the Leamington FC stadium and flats at Fusiliers Way, are still decided under the 2017 plan.

In a joint statement, Councillor Ian Davison, named in the release as leader of Warwick District Council, and Councillor George Cowcher, Stratford-on-Avon District Council’s portfolio holder for planning, thanked everyone who took part and said the response showed “the strong interest people have in the future of South Warwickshire”. Councillor Davison took on planning himself in the council’s new, smaller Cabinet.

The councils haven’t said yet what the main themes of the comments were. We’ll report them when the December committee papers are published. The total was also reported by the Leamington Observer.

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Alex Harrington