Statement of Representations Procedure

This statement has been prepared by Wirral Borough Council (the Council) pursuant to the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 (regulations 19, 20 and 35) as amended.

View the legislation

Document title

Wirral Local Plan 2021 to 2037 Submission Draft (Regulation 19 Stage) May 2022.

Subject matter and area covered

The council has prepared a Local Plan Submission Draft document which it intends to submit for independent Examination. The Local Plan provides an overall vision for the Borough, strategic objectives, strategic policies and detailed policies to explain how the vision and objectives will be achieved, together with a Policies Map which shows where policies apply. 

The Local Plan Submission Draft includes proposed land allocations and policies to meet the Borough’s objectively assessed development and infrastructure needs and also identifies sites which are proposed to be protected as Local Green Space.

Once adopted, the Wirral Local Plan, along with 'made' Neighbourhood Plans and the Joint Waste Plan for Merseyside and Halton (2013), will form the overall statutory development plan for the Borough against which all planning applications will be determined. The Wirral Local Plan will replace all of the ‘saved’ policies of the Unitary Development Plan (2000).

Period for submission of Representations

Representations are invited to be made on the Local plan Submission Draft from 9am on 9 May to 5pm on Monday 25 July 2022. Representations received after this time will not be accepted.

(Please note: The original deadline for representations was 24 June 2022. Please see the Council's Notice of Extension for further information)

• View the Notice of Extension to the Consultation Period

How to view the Local Plan and supporting documents:

1. On the Council’s website:

Copies of the Local Plan Submission Draft, supporting documents and representation forms are available to view and download on the New Local Plan page:

View the Local Plan Submission Draft and Supporting Documents

2. At the Council’s deposit points

Hard copies of the Local Plan, Policies Maps, supporting documents and evidence studies will be available for inspection at the Council’s Principal Office, which for the purposes of the Local Plan Publication is:

Birkenhead Central Library,
Borough Road,
Birkenhead,
Wirral,
CH41 2XB

Hard copies of the Local Plan, Sustainability Appraisal and Habitats Regulations Assessment will be available at all other libraries in the Borough and access to library computers will be available to inspect all other proposed submission documents and evidence studies online. Please speak to a Library member of staff for assistance.

Please view all library branches opening times and addresses

3. Walk-in events

Walk-in events where members of the public can find out more information about the Local Plan and how to make representations will be held in the following locations:

* Please note - access will be available for the event but the library will not be open after normal closing times. 

4. Request a copy of the Local Plan or discuss access to the Local Plan

If you wish to request a hard copy of the Local Plan or supporting documents, or if you require assistance with an accessible format of the Local Plan, you can contact the Council using the following contact details:

• email: localplan@wirral.gov.uk
• telephone: 0151 691 8235

Please note that copies of relevant documentation will be subject to a reasonable charge to cover the costs for printing and postage.

How to submit a representation

Those wishing to make a representation should first read the guidance note available to view and download from the council’s Local Plan webpage here: www.wirral.gov.uk/newlocalplan and available at all libraries.

All representations should clearly specify in what respect(s) the Local Plan is considered to be unsound, and what change(s) would need to be made to make it sound. The Sustainability Appraisal and Habitat Regulations Assessment are also the subject of publication.

All valid representations received will be submitted to the Secretary of State and considered as part of an Examination by [an] independent Planning Inspector[s] and will be made available for the public to view (including your name, but will not include personal addresses or signatures).  Anonymous representations cannot be accepted and representations cannot be treated as confidential. View the council’s Privacy Notice.

To submit your representation online

Representations should be made electronically where possible, via the forms included within the online Local Plan Submission Draft Document.   You can do this by registering or logging into the council’s online consultation portal

Visit the Council's Online Consultation Portal

A Guidance note explaining how to make a representation via the online consultation can be viewed and downloaded on the Council's New Local Plan Page:

View the Guidance Note on How to Make A Representation

To submit your representation by email or post

You should use the Representation Form to submit your representations.

View and Download the Representation Form

The form can also be collected from any of the libraries listed in the table above.

Completed forms can be returned by:

• email: localplan@wirral.gov.uk; or
   
• by post (addressed to):  
  Local Plan, Wirral Council,
  PO Box 290,
  Brighton Street,
  Wallasey,
  CH27 9FQ

All representations must set out clearly why, and how, it is considered that the Draft Local Plan (in whole or in part) is: 

• legally compliant or non-compliant;
• compliant or non-compliant with the Duty to Cooperate; and/or, 
• sound or unsound.

Please attach to your email or send by post a completed Part A form and as many completed Part B forms as relevant. If you need to send your representations across multiple emails, please contact the council in advance to ensure no representations are missed.

Please note, that all duly-made representations received by email and post will be entered into the council’s online consultation portal. Therefore, you may receive an acknowledgement via your preferred contact method once your representation has been processed onto the portal.

We strongly recommend that all representations are made using the standard representation form provided, whether you complete it online, download and complete it on a computer and submit by email or post, or print it off to provide a handwritten response and post it to us. This helps to ensure that all comments received are relevant and that the correct information is collected to allow representations to be considered fully by the Planning Inspector. If all required questions are not answered, your representation may be invalid and may not be considered by the Inspector.

Notification of next stages in Wirral’s Local Plan preparation

When making your representation you will also have the option to request to be notified of the following stages of the Local Plan process:

1. the submission of the Local Plan for independent examination; 
2. the publication of the Inspector’s recommendations following independent examination of the Local Plan; and, 
3. the adoption of the Local Plan. 

You can also request to be added to our consultation database, to be notified of future consultations on Wirral’s planning-related documents by emailing localplan@wirral.gov.uk  

You can request to be removed from any, or all, of the above databases at any time.

Contacting the Planning Policy Team at the council

If you do not have access to the internet* you can contact us by telephone on the number below to make factual enquiries about the Local Plan Submission Draft and supporting documents.

*This Statement of Representations Procedure is available in hard copy at local libraries.

If you require any further information or assistance, please contact the planning policy team using the details below:

• email: localplan@wirral.gov.uk
• telephone: 0151 691 8235