Spelthorne adopted its Local Plan on 17 March 2026 after three and a half years. It makes room for 9,900 homes against a requirement of 10,726, and a review is due by 2028.
Spelthorne finally has an adopted Local Plan. It took three and a half years to get through examination, it makes room for 9,900 homes, and it is 826 homes short of what the same document says the borough needs. That gap is why a review is already scheduled before the plan is four years old.
The Local Plan was adopted on 17 March 2026
The Spelthorne Local Plan 2024-2039/40 was adopted unanimously at an extraordinary meeting of Full Council on 17 March 2026. It replaces the previous Core Strategy and Policies development plan document, whose housing requirement was still based on the revoked South East Plan.
The route there was long even by local plan standards:
- November 2022: the plan was submitted for examination.
- May 2023: the first hearing sessions were held, after which the examination paused.
- January to February 2025: hearings resumed and concluded.
- Spring 2025: consultation on the Inspectors’ proposed main modifications.
- 22 November 2025 to 4 January 2026: a further consultation, on removing one Green Belt housing allocation from the plan.
- 4 March 2026: the Inspector’s report was received, finding the plan sound and legally compliant subject to the main modifications.
- 17 March 2026: adoption, with all main modifications included.
Two supplementary planning documents were adopted alongside it: the Spelthorne Design Code and the Managing HMO SPD.
The housing numbers, and the gap in them
Policy ST2 of the adopted plan sets the borough’s housing requirement at 631 dwellings a year over the plan period, calculated using the government’s standard method. A 20% buffer is added to the first five years, which brings the total requirement over the plan period to 10,726 homes.
Against that, the plan says provision has been made for at least 9,900 new homes, an average of 619 a year.
That is a shortfall of 826 homes, and it is stated in the plan’s own table rather than hidden in an appendix. It is the arithmetic consequence of a borough that is almost entirely built up, sits inside a bend of the Thames with reservoirs and floodplain across much of what is left, and is ringed by Green Belt.
Here is where the 9,900 is supposed to come from.
The borough has not been building enough, and it shows
The Housing Delivery Test measures what a council actually delivered against what it needed, over three years. Spelthorne’s 2023 measurement, published on 12 December 2024, was 68%.
That is below the 75% threshold in the National Planning Policy Framework, and it has two consequences that matter to anyone objecting to a planning application here:
- The presumption in favour of sustainable development is engaged. Applications are judged against a national tilt towards approval rather than only against the local plan.
- A 20% buffer is added to the five-year land supply requirement.
Nor is 68% a blip. The council’s own statement records 69% in 2021 and 50% in 2020, covering delivery over the financial years 2020/21, 2021/22 and 2022/23.
But the five-year supply passes, just
Councils have to show five years of deliverable housing sites at all times, or lose more control over where development goes. Spelthorne’s Statement of Housing Land Supply (March 2026) works it out like this for the period 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2030:
| Item | Dwellings |
|---|---|
| Annual requirement (standard method) | 631 |
| Five-year requirement | 3,155 |
| 20% buffer | 631 |
| Total requirement | 3,786 |
| Deliverable supply | 4,007 |
| Surplus | +221 |
| Supply in years | 5.3 |
A margin of 221 homes on a requirement of 3,786 is 5.8%. One large scheme slipping out of the five-year window would take the borough below five years, and with the presumption already engaged there is not much cushion under it.
The supply itself is made up of 1,346 dwellings under construction, 670 on sites with permission but not started after a 5% non-implementation discount, 1,745 on allocated sites without permission after the same discount, 16 on brownfield tier 2 sites and a 230-home small-site windfall allowance.
The schemes actually being built
These are the largest sites recorded as under construction in the council’s March 2026 statement, with the total scheme size and how much of it was still to finish at 1 April 2025:
| Site | Where | Homes | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Renshaw Industrial Estate, Mill Mead | Staines | 391 | All 391 still under construction; 40 affordable |
| Brooklands College, Church Road | Ashford | 357 | 284 of them affordable; 250 complete by April 2025 |
| Eden Grove, 17-51 London Road | Staines | 489 | Across two permissions, 313 and 176; 197 complete |
| Old Telephone Exchange and Masonic Hall, Elmsleigh Road | Staines | 206 | All private; none complete at April 2025 |
| Tesco car park, Town Lane | Stanwell | 127 | 22 affordable |
Two things stand out. The first is that Staines town centre is carrying the borough’s housebuilding: Mill Mead, Eden Grove and Elmsleigh Road are all within a mile of the station and together account for 1,086 homes. The second is that Brooklands College in Ashford is the affordable housing programme almost by itself, with 284 affordable homes out of a borough-wide total that is otherwise made up of tens at a time.
The Green Belt question, and the site that came back out
The plan releases enough Green Belt land for 770 homes, against 4,902 in the urban area. That is a small proportion, but in a borough where Green Belt is most of the undeveloped land it was the most contested part of the examination.
One allocation did not survive it. Between 22 November 2025 and 4 January 2026 the council consulted on removing site AS1/011, land at the former Bulldog Nurseries on Town Lane, Ashford, from the plan and keeping it in the Green Belt. The consultation ran after the main modifications had already been consulted on, which is why adoption slipped into March.
A review is already due
The plan is not the end of it. Policy ST3 commits the council to review the Local Plan “immediately following the adoption of this Plan”, with an updated or replacement plan submitted for examination no later than two years from the date of adoption, which means by 17 March 2028.
The review covers every policy except development management, and the plan names what it is really for: a housing requirement “based on the most up-to-date national guidance”, monitoring of whether the allocated sites actually get built, an updated employment requirement, and a refreshed Gypsy and Traveller accommodation assessment.
Work has already started. On 18 June 2026 the council’s Environment and Sustainability Committee approved all nine recommendations put to it on the review, including publishing the Local Plan Immediate Review timetable, a statutory Notice of Intention to Commence Plan-making, and a statutory scoping consultation under Regulation 20 of the 2026 local planning regulations.
The housing land supply statement is blunt about the reason. The standard method figure of 631 a year “does not represent a target because it is based on unconstrained need”, and through the review “the Council will explore further options for meeting identified housing needs”, reassessing the land supply position in full. In plain terms, the 826-home gap has been parked, not closed.
Where to check an application
Spelthorne runs an Idox Public Access planning register with a weekly list of newly validated applications. Search it at publicaccess.spelthorne.gov.uk. Committee agendas, reports and decisions are published on the council’s democratic services site.
Frequently asked questions
Has Spelthorne adopted its Local Plan?
Yes. The Spelthorne Local Plan 2024-2039/40 was adopted unanimously at an extraordinary Full Council meeting on 17 March 2026, after the Inspector’s report of 4 March 2026 found it sound subject to main modifications.
How many homes does the Spelthorne Local Plan allow?
Provision is made for at least 9,900 homes over the period to 2039/40, an average of 619 a year. The requirement set by Policy ST2 is 631 a year, or 10,726 in total including the buffer, so the plan falls 826 homes short.
Does Spelthorne have a five-year housing land supply?
Yes, but narrowly. The council demonstrates 4,007 deliverable homes against a requirement of 3,786, a surplus of 221 and a supply of 5.3 years.
Why is the presumption in favour of development engaged in Spelthorne?
Because the borough’s Housing Delivery Test score is 68%, below the 75% threshold in national policy. That also forces a 20% buffer onto the five-year land supply calculation. Earlier scores were 69% in 2021 and 50% in 2020.
How much Green Belt land is being built on in Spelthorne?
The plan allocates land for 770 homes in the Green Belt and 4,902 in the urban area. One Green Belt allocation, the former Bulldog Nurseries on Town Lane in Ashford, was consulted on for removal from the plan and retention in the Green Belt over the winter of 2025 and 2026.
When will the Local Plan be reviewed?
Policy ST3 requires an updated or replacement plan to be submitted for examination no later than two years after adoption, so by 17 March 2028. The council’s Environment and Sustainability Committee approved the review timetable and a statutory scoping consultation on 18 June 2026.
Related
- Staines house prices: what the existing housing stock sells for, ward by ward.
- Staines roadworks and parking: the A308 scheme that serves the growth.
- Staines train times to London.
- Things to do in Staines-upon-Thames.
Sources
- Spelthorne Local Plan 2024-2039/40 (adopted March 2026) for Policy ST2, the 631-a-year requirement, the 10,726 total, the 9,900 provision and the table of supply sources.
- Spelthorne Borough Council, Statement of Housing Land Supply (March 2026) for the Housing Delivery Test scores, the five-year requirement and supply, and the schedule of sites under construction.
- Spelthorne Borough Council, Local Plan March 2026 and the adoption news release for the adoption date, the examination timetable and the two supplementary planning documents.
- Adoption Statement, Spelthorne Local Plan 2024-2039/40 for the examination hearing dates and the modifications process.
- Inspector’s report on the Spelthorne Local Plan.
- Spelthorne Takes Shape, news and updates for the 18 June 2026 Environment and Sustainability Committee decisions on the Local Plan Immediate Review.
Planning positions change with every committee. Check the council’s own register before relying on anything here.
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