Consultation on new planning guidance enters next phase

Residents, community groups and stakeholders are being invited to take part in the next phase of public consultation on new planning guidance that will help shape the quality of future development across the borough.

Earlier this year, the council consulted on the scope of five proposed Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) to support the Wirral Local Plan, adopted in March 2025. Building on the feedback received, the draft versions of two SPDs have now been prepared, which are being published for Phase 2 consultation.

These draft SPDs provide detailed guidance on how key Local Plan design policies should be applied in future planning decisions. This phase gives the public the opportunity to comment on the full documents before they are finalised.

The following draft SPDs are now available for public comment:

· Designing for Residential Development SPD – providing detailed design guidance for new housing development, including layout, building design, amenity standards, landscaping and affordable housing considerations.

· Householder Development SPD – setting out guidance for extensions, alterations and outbuildings to ensure proposals are high quality, neighbourly and respect local character.

The consultation on these draft SPDs will run from 16 March to 17 April 2026.

Feedback from this stage will inform any further refinements before the documents are presented to Wirral Council’s Economy, Regeneration and Housing Committee for consideration.

Following the Government’s publication of new regulations in March 2026, which begin the transition away from statutory SPDs under the new Local Plans system, the council is proposing to take forward the remaining three documents that were consulted on in January as Supplementary Planning Guidance (SPGs) rather than SPDs. These are:

· Recreation Management and Green Infrastructure SPG

· Biodiversity and Nature Recovery SPG

· Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) SPG

Taking these forward as SPGs will ensure the guidance can continue to be updated and used in the longer term to support the implementation of both the adopted Local Plan and future plans. Consultation for these SPGs will follow in the coming weeks.

The Phase 1 consultation on the scope of the five documents took place between 12 January and 9 February 2026. Consultation statements summarising the feedback

received during that phase, and how it has informed the draft SPDs/SPGs, will be published alongside the full draft documents.

To view the draft SPDs, consultation statements and take part in the Phase 2 consultation, visit: Supplementary Planning Documents | Have your say Wirral