Bolton Council has adopted a new plan that will create jobs, provide much needed homes and deliver economic growth.
At last night’s meeting of Full Councill, members voted in favour of Places for Everyone, Greater Manchester’s long term development plan.
It has been developed by Greater Manchester Combined Authority with the councils in Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Tameside, Trafford, Salford and Wigan.
After multiple public consultations and rigorous assessment by planning experts, the next stage of adopting the plan requires each individual council to approve it.
In Bolton, the plan would see land allocated for employment space and economic growth at Bewshill Farm, Chequerbent North and west of Wingates.
Together, the sites provide land for around 500,000 sq metres of new industrial and warehousing floorspace within the Wigan-Bolton Growth Corridor.
This will build on the economic success seen at Logistics North, where new logistics and manufacturing opportunities have already created over 5,500 jobs.
The plan also sets out how the borough’s growing population will require an additional 787 homes annually until 2037, a target which Bolton is on track to achieve.
Places for Everyone will have real tangible benefits for the people of Bolton, creating jobs, driving growth and enhancing our planning requirements.
But under the proposals, no housing will be built on Green Belt land in Bolton thanks to a continued focus on residential developments in town centres, Rivington Chase and on other brown field sites.
The plan will also add some 8 hectares of open land into the Green Belt north of the former Horwich Golf Course to protect it from future development.
Adopting Places for Everyone also introduces enhanced planning criteria that will bring additional benefits for Bolton residents.
Future developments in the borough will now have to meet higher standards when it comes to space, accessibility, sustainability and electric vehicle charging points.
Bolton Council’s Deputy Leader, Cllr Akhtar Zaman, said:
“Places for Everyone will have real tangible benefits for the people of Bolton, creating jobs, driving growth and enhancing our planning requirements.
“We are especially pleased that our focus on redevelopment means no Green Belt land is being lost to housing, despite the expected growth in Bolton’s population.
“Together with the growing momentum behind our town and district centre regeneration, this an exciting time for Bolton with many more new developments to come in the future.”
More information on Places for Everyone is available on the Greater Manchester Combined Authority website.