Link to West Suffolk Council’s Annual Report for 2025–2026 – Thriving West Suffolk Annual Report 2025 to 2026

This represents a year of delivery, ambition, and real impact for the people, communities, and businesses of West Suffolk. It reflects the council’s commitment to deliver a Thriving West Suffolk - setting out key achievements and meaningful progress made during the past year.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank yourselves. Much of what is achieved is in partnership with local councillors, parish councils, and town councils as well as community groups and public bodies. The achievements in this report demonstrate how partnership working is crucial to deliver shared local aims and ambitions to drive improvements and better outcomes.

In the coming weeks and months, we will be continuing to share information about what we have delivered and our future ambitions for each area. We’ll also be helping residents find out about where they live and how we are supporting a Thriving West Suffolk.

Suffolk Police and Crime Panel 2025/26 Annual Report

West Suffolk Local Plan ‘Call for Sites’ Update

West Suffolk is at an early stage in preparing a new local plan for the area. First steps in this process have included publication of a local plan timetable and scoping consultation in June of this year. A ‘call for sites’ consultation has also been undertaken to inform preparation of the new local plan. Sites have been submitted by landowners and developers for consideration for a range of uses including housing, employment, infrastructure, and green infrastructure.

In total we have had 328 sites submitted by developers and landowners, some of whom have decided to carry out their own public engagement about their sites.

Each site is now being assessed by West Suffolk Council in accordance with government guidance to understand if it is potentially suitable, available, and deliverable. We are working to publish a map including details of all 328 sites next month, and then our initial assessment of them in the autumn. This initial site assessment process does not make decisions about the allocation of sites in the Local Plan.

The outcomes of the scoping consultation and site assessments will inform the next stage of consultation on the local plan in 2027 which will seek the views of local communities on how new housing growth is to be distributed across the district over the plan period. There will also be a further public consultation scheduled for 2028 on a draft Local Plan for West Suffolk.

Key Points are....

• This is an early stage in the preparation of the new West Suffolk Local Plan.
• No decisions have been made on the sites submitted to West Suffolk Council.
• West Suffolk Council is assessing over 300 sites.
• West Suffolk is listening to the concerns of local residents.
• West Suffolk Council will publish details later in the year including of those that meet the first cut (are deemed available, suitable, and deliverable).
• There will then be further work on the plan.
• There will a public consultation in 2027 seeking views on spatial strategy options and the distribution of housing. No decisions will be made on the allocation of sites at this stage.
• A further stage of public consultation will be undertaken in 2028 on a full draft local plan which will include proposed allocations.
• Local residents can register on our local plan consultation system on https://westsuffolk.inconsult.uk/system/register