Wirral Council at its meeting on 31st March 2025 formally resolved to adopt the Wirral Local Plan. The relevant documents can be viewed at Agenda for Council on Monday, 31st March 2025, 6.00 p.m. | Wirral Council
The Local Plan written statement, as adopted at the Council meeting, is Appendix 3 on the agenda and can be found under the 'Additional Documents' heading.
The Local Plan now forms part of the statutory development plan for Wirral, alongside the Joint Waste Development Plan for Merseyside and Halton and the Neighbourhood Development Plans for Devonshire Park and for Hoylake.
View the Council's Local Plan Adoption Statement
The Council is preparing the final printed version of the Local Plan, which will appear on this website once it has been prepared.
View the adopted Local Plan online Policies Map
If you require any further information, please contact the Council’s Forward Planning Team by email at localplan@wirral.gov.uk or by telephone on 0151 691 8235. Please do not use this telephone number or email address for queries relating to planning applications or the need for planning permission, please email planningapplications@wirral.gov.uk
Publication of Inspectors Report
The report of the Planning Inspectors appointed to undertake the independent examination of the Local Plan can be viewed below:
Wirral Local Plan - Consultation on Main Modifications
Further to the examination hearing sessions held between April and November 2023, the council invited comments on the Main Modifications considered necessary to make the submitted Wirral Local Plan 2021 to 2037 sound and/or legally compliant.
The representations that were received on the proposed modifications to the submission draft Local Plan can be viewed on the Local Plan Examination webpage:
View the Consultation Responses to Wirral Local Plan Main Modifications webpage
The representations have been passed to the Inspectors who will take them into consideration when preparing their report.
The documents that were published for consultation can be viewed below:
Proposed Changes to the Policies Map
Please also see our guide to the modifications to the Local Plan: View the guide to the modifications to the Local Plan
Further information about the submitted Local Plan, the examination and the examination hearings can also be viewed at https://www.wirral.gov.uk/planning-and-building/local-plan-examination
Local Plan Submission and Independent Examination
The Wirral Local Plan 2021 to 2037 Submission Draft was submitted to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities for independent examination on 26 October 2022.
For further information on previous stages please visit the page on the publication of the Submission Draft Local Plan for representations which took place in May 2022.
Consultation on the Submission Draft Local Plan
Documents published for representations
In May 2022 the council published the following documents for representations to be made:
- View the Local Plan Submission Draft document (PDF)
- View the Submission Draft Policies Maps
- View SD2 - Sustainability Appraisal (SA) (PDF)
- View SD2.1-Sustainability Appraisal Non-Technical Summary (PDF)
- View SD3-Habitat Regulations Assessment (HRA) (PDF)
- View SD4-Wirral Local Plan Equalities Impact Assessment (PDF)
A range of other supporting documents, background papers and evidence studies which have informed or explain the council’s approach to preparing various parts of the Plan were also available.
View the current Wirral Local Plan evidence base
Masterplans
Policies WS6, RA1, RA3, RA4, RA5, RA6, RA7, RA9, RA10, RA11, WP4 and WP6 of the Local Plan Submission Draft set out requirements for development within a series of areas to conform with masterplans which have been endorsed by the council.
The preparation of masterplans for these areas is key to regeneration, place making, and ensuring comprehensive development. Further details of these masterplan areas can be viewed here