A PLAN for where 10,000 new homes can be built in Oxford over the next 16 years has been signed off by Oxford City Council.

The council met earlier tonight and agreed that its new Local Plan 2036 should be adopted.

The plan was agreed by a majority of councillors at the meeting, following unanimous approval by the council's Labour-run cabinet earlier in the day.

The agreement follows news last month that the Local Plan had been proven legally sound by two government appointed planning inspectors, after they pored over planning documents and listened to three weeks of public testimony in December.

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Alex Hollingsworth, the city council cabinet member for planning and housing delivery described the Local Plan as a 'radical plan for the future of the city while recognising its historic past.'

He added that it was ' a plan for delivering housing, not just as bricks and mortar but as homes for people who need it.'

At the meeting, there were some suggestions that parts of the scheme designed to tackle climate change should go further.

Oxford Mail:

The meeting was held remotely via Zoom

Green councillor Dick Wolff said he was supportive of the plan, but added it was a 'launch pad for the next stage of the journey', to tackle climate change and 'not the final stage of it.'

An amendment he suggested to speed up environmental measures in the plan was voted down by majority, for fear it might jeopardise the whole of the scheme.

The city council's Lib Dem opposition leader Andrew Gant said the plan may have been found legally sound by inspectors, but added this did not mean it was right.

Among the Lib Dem leader's concerns were that there should be more encouragement for businesses at Oxford Science Park and other out of town office areas to move into vacant city centre properties and become less dependent on cars for commuting.

The new Local Plan is largely focussed on housebuilding to address the housing crisis in Oxford.

The council has made room to build 10,884 homes around the city by 2036.

The city is one of the most unaffordable places to live in the UK outside of London

As well as this, the city council will continue its policy of making all housing developers who want to build more than 10 homes on a site set aside half of them for affordable homes.

An old policy of making developers pay towards affordable housing if their sites have less than 10 homes has been axed due to a change in national planning rules.

Oxford Mail:

Oxford Town Hall where the council usually meets

While most councils are able to choose large, open sites as areas to build new homes, in Oxford easily accessible land is a rare commodity.

Because of this, the council has allocated small scraps of land throughout the city as sites where homes can be built, alongside some larger areas.

It will also build on some areas of Green Belt land within the city boundaries, including two fields to the northwest of Marston, within the ring road, and a field north of Cutteslowe.

A total of 724 homes are allocated to be built on Green Belt land within the city boundaries.

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The district councils which surround Oxford are also helping to build 14,300 homes to help meet the 'unmet need' of the city.

The different councils in Oxfordshire are all expected to adopt their most recent local plans so that these homes can be built.

The city council is also aiming for all houses built from the year 2030 will emit net zero emissions.

This is 20 years ahead of the UK government target of 2050.