Call for sites for Gosport's Local Plan

Gosport Borough Council is calling for help to identify sites that might be suitable for development as it continues to work on a Gosport Borough Local Plan.

The local plan identifies sites for housing, employment and other land uses as well as protecting the borough's important open space, nature conservation and heritage features. It also helps offer protection for land and areas not suitable for building on.

Local plans also consider ways to adapt and deal with the impacts of climate change. Once adopted, the new local plan will be used for determining future planning applications. The plan would last until 2040, and a final round of consultation is planned in the next 12 months.

The Council has launched a call for sites and is inviting organisations and individuals to put forward sites which may be suitable for development or that should be retained as their current use.

Councillor Peter Chegwyn, Leader of Gosport Borough Council, said: "We want to ensure all available sites are considered, including those that people think should be kept as they are, used for open spaces or nature conservation. The Council's policy is that we do not want to see any development on existing green field sites.

"It will not be possible to achieve the Government's requirement of 442 homes per year in Gosport, especially without the provision of extra doctors, dentists and school places, plus improvements to our transport infrastructure.  

"However, the Council is making every effort to provide new homes and business premises in the borough, where appropriate, and the call for sites provides a further opportunity for interested parties to put forward sites for consideration."

Putting a site forward does not automatically mean it will be included in the plan. Nominated sites will be assessed through the local plan process and subject to public consultation.

The Council undertook previous calls for sites in 2019 and 2023, and a consultation on the draft local plan took place in 2021.

The Government published a new National Planning Policy Framework in December 2024 which increased Gosport's housing requirement from 339 to 442 homes per year. The Council's current local plan sets out to deliver 170 homes per year and the draft local plan considers a similar number.

The call for sites closes on Friday 9 May 2025. For further information and to nominate a site, please go to: www.gosport.gov.uk/gblp2040/callforsites

Released: 7 March 2025