Local authorities are now required to carry out a Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA) to identify future sources of land for housing.

Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessments are a key component of the evidence base to support the delivery of sufficient land for housing to meet the community's need for more homes.

These assessments are required by national planning policy as set out in Planning Policy Statement 3: Housing (PPS3).

Strategic Planning Policy
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council
Spatial Planning
Development House
Lombard Street
West Bromwich
B70 8RU

Tel: 0121 569 4229
Fax: 0121 569 4082
Email: ldf_planning@sandwell.gov.uk
Opening Hours: Monday - Thursday 8.30am - 5.30pm. Friday 8.30am - 5.00pm

The primary role of the SHLAA is to:

• Identify sites with potential for housing
• Assess their housing potential
• Assess when they are likely to be developed

The assessment is a critical part of the evidence base for future development plan documents and will be annually updated to ensure there is a five-year supply of specific deliverable sites.

The SHLAA will also form a key component of the evidence base for the Local Development Framework, including the Black Country Core Strategy, and will be used to inform the allocation of sites in the council’s Local Development Documents.

SHLAAs do not represent policy and do not determine whether a site should be allocated or granted permission for development. The SHLAA provides a comprehensive evidence base for a future Site Allocations Document which will be subject to additional consultation and independent scrutiny.

We are currently carrying out a consultation on the Draft SHLAA report. It is available to download below.

However we are currently encountering difficulties getting the supporting appendices available online. We apologise for this but hope to have this resolved as soon as possible.

If you require a copy of the appendicies before it is available online, please get in touch with us (details provided below).

Any comments should be made by 15th January 2010. Please submit them to:

E-mail:patricia_mccullagh@sandwell.gov.uk
In writing: to the above address.

SHLAA Methodology

The draft methodology for the SHLAA was published for consultation in Spring 2009. A stakeholder panel has also made a contribution to the SHLAA in Sandwell.

Call For Sites

The ‘Call for Sites’ has now closed. However sites can still be submitted for assessment, but they will not be assessed until the start of the next financial year.

• SHLAA Methodology
• SHLAA Final Report
• SHLAA Final Report - Appendix 1: Sites with potential for residential development in Sandwell February 2010
• SHLAA Final Report site location maps by Wards
• Call for Sites Pro-forma (PDF format)
• Call for Sites Pro-forma (Word format)