Chester Planning News: 400 Northgate Homes & 2028 Plan

Planning in Cheshire West and Chester is living through an odd moment: the council has all but delivered the housing target in its adopted plan, yet on the government’s new arithmetic it can show less than two years of land supply, which hands developers real leverage until a replacement plan arrives in 2028. Meanwhile the biggest city-centre scheme in a generation, the next phase of Chester Northgate, is taking shape. Here is where each piece stands, from the council’s own documents.

The quick answer

Three things decide what gets built around Chester in 2026:

1. The adopted Local Plan (Part One), from 2015, plans for at least 22,000 homes between 2010 and 2030, 1,100 a year, and that target is nearly met.
2. The government’s standard method now assesses the borough’s need at 1,912 homes a year, and against that the council can show only a 1.89-year deliverable land supply at April 2025, far short of the five years required, which tilts decisions in developers’ favour.
3. A new Local Plan is under way on the government’s reformed system, with its first consultation running 7 to 28 September 2026 and adoption targeted for December 2028.

The plan that decides applications today

Applications across the borough are judged against the Local Plan (Part One) Strategic Policies, adopted by Full Council on 29 January 2015 and covering 2010 to 2030. Its headline commitment is land for at least 22,000 new dwellings, an average of 1,100 a year, plus 365 hectares of employment land. The detail, site allocations and development-management policies, sits in the Local Plan (Part Two), adopted on 18 July 2019.

On its own terms the plan has been a quiet success: 21,768 homes were completed between 2010 and 2025, leaving a remaining requirement of just 245 dwellings for 2025 to 2030 including the national buffer (Housing Land Monitor 2025).

The supply problem that tilts every decision

The catch is that the government no longer measures the borough against its own 2015 target. Under the standard method, Cheshire West’s assessed need is 1,912 net homes a year, which with the 5% buffer means a five-year requirement of 10,038 homes for 2025 to 2030. Against that, the council’s Housing Land Monitor could identify a deliverable supply of only 3,788 homes at 1 April 2025: a 1.89-year supply against the five years required. For scale, the borough built 1,202 net homes in 2024-25, well short of 1,912.

When supply falls that far short, national policy applies the tilted balance: schemes that conflict with the Local Plan can still be approved unless the harm significantly outweighs the benefit. In plain terms, speculative applications on unallocated land around Chester, Northwich and the villages are hard to refuse right now, and that stays true until the new plan lands with a supply the council can defend.

The new Local Plan: first consultation this September

The council consulted on Issues and Options in summer 2025, sketching a need for around 29,000 homes and 150 hectares of employment land over 15 years; more than 2,700 people and organisations responded (council news). It has since moved onto the government’s reformed 30-month plan-making system, with a formal notice of commencement effective 12 June 2026 and a published timetable (news release, 7 July 2026). The finished plan will run December 2028 to December 2043.

Northgate phase 2: 400 homes in the city centre

With phase one of Chester Northgate (the market and cinema quarter) open, the council signed a Pre-Development Agreement with VINCI UK Developments on 27 November 2025 for the scheme’s future phases: a residential-led development of more than 400 sustainable homes, including affordable housing, centred around Hamilton Place (council announcement). Early proposals, which also include a new cultural building at Town Hall Square, went on show at public drop-ins on 11 and 12 May 2026, with the first feedback round closing on 19 June (plans revealed, May 2026). No planning application date has been announced yet, so the formal consultation is still to come. For what 400 extra city-centre homes might meet, our house prices page has the market they would land in.

Ellesmere Port: the £13.4m town centre rebuild

The borough’s other big regeneration story is Ellesmere Port town centre, backed by a £13,378,478 government allocation. The £8 million market transformation is nearing completion, with full completion expected in autumn 2026, and January 2026 brought the active-travel package: a new Cromwell Road cycle route with a 20mph limit, a new roundabout at Cromwell Road and Wellington Road North, and a Whitby Road crossing. New homes are planned for Coronation Road and the former Civic Offices site (council update, January 2026).

What the Planning Committee is deciding

Recent business gives a flavour of the pipeline. The committee’s 4 August 2026 agenda included a ground-mounted solar farm and battery storage at Aston Grange, near Frodsham (ref 24/03807/FUL) and an outline application for up to 70 homes off London Road, Davenham, near Northwich (ref 25/01218/OUT) (agenda). The committee meets monthly at 4pm; the next meetings are 1 September and 6 October 2026 (committee calendar).

How to see and comment on applications

Every application in the borough is searchable on the council’s planning portal, including a weekly list of newly validated applications, and you can view documents and comment without visiting an office. Decisions on major or contested schemes are made in public at the Planning Committee; the rest are decided by officers under delegated powers.

Frequently asked questions

What is happening with Chester Northgate?

Phase one (the market quarter) is open. For the future phases the council signed a Pre-Development Agreement with VINCI UK Developments in November 2025 covering more than 400 homes around Hamilton Place plus a possible cultural building at Town Hall Square. Early proposals were shown in May 2026; a planning application is still to come.

How many houses is Cheshire West supposed to build?

The adopted Local Plan commits to at least 22,000 homes between 2010 and 2030, and 21,768 were built by 2025. But the government’s standard method now assesses need at 1,912 homes a year, roughly 600 more than the borough built in 2024-25, and the new Local Plan will have to plan for that scale.

Why do controversial schemes keep getting approved?

Because against the government’s assessed need the council can show only a 1.89-year deliverable housing land supply, far short of the required five years. That triggers the tilted balance, under which out-of-plan schemes must be approved unless the harm significantly outweighs the benefits.

When can I have a say on the new Local Plan?

The first formal consultation under the new system, on the plan’s scope, runs from 7 to 28 September 2026, with a fuller consultation on content and evidence from 23 November 2026 to 8 January 2027 and a full draft plan in autumn 2027. Adoption is targeted for December 2028.

Where can I see planning applications for Chester?

On the council’s portal at pa.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk, which carries every current application and a weekly list of new ones. Viewing and commenting are free and need no registration.

Sources

• Local Plan (Part One) Strategic Policies and the adopted Local Plan hub (adoption dates, housing and employment targets)
• Housing Land Monitor Summary Report 2025 via the housing monitoring page (1.89-year supply, 1,912-a-year need, completions)
• New Local Plan timetable and timetable news release, plus the 2025 Issues and Options consultation
• Chester Northgate Pre-Development Agreement and next-phase plans
• Ellesmere Port town centre update
• Planning Committee agenda, 4 August 2026 and meeting calendar
• Planning portal for applications and weekly lists

Planning positions move with every committee cycle and monitoring report. Details above were checked against the linked council documents on 8 August 2026; always confirm against the originals before acting on them.