Thousands of new homes needed to keep up with demand

Another 2,778 homes could be built across Caerphilly County Borough to keep up with expected demand over the next decade.

Housebuilding sits at the heart of the county borough council’s Local Development Plan (LDP), which is being renewed.

LDPs are strategic blueprints which set out how local authorities intend to allocate land for various types of commercial, industrial and residential development.

Caerphilly County Borough Council is currently consulting on draft proposals for its replacement LDP, which covers the period 2020 to 2035.

Residents have one more week to have their say on the council’s vision.

Work on the replacement LDP has faced lengthy delays after the Welsh Government challenged its initial contents – and in the meantime, the council has had to continue using a previous version of the plan, which should have expired in 2021.

The proposals for the new LDP include finding enough land to accommodate a top estimate of 7,425 new homes by 2035.

Excluding developments already completed, under construction or for which planning permission has been granted, that leaves 2,778 homes left to be allocated.

The housebuilding target is based on research which forecasts the county borough’s population will increase by 11,603 people by 2035, including an increase of 3,005 in the working-age population.

A target of building at least 1,360 affordable homes by 2035 has also been set within that overall plan.

The council has proposed focusing new development and growth on the county borough’s “principal” settlements of Bargoed, Blackwood, Caerphilly, Risca and Pontymister, and Ystrad Mynach.

Smaller urban areas of Bedwas, Nelson, Newbridge and Rhymney would also be considered for development, but would sit lower down in a “settlement hierarchy”.

This would form what the council calls a “town centre first” approach to planning, with the “proximity to one of the centres being the principal consideration in allocating new development sites”.

The replacement LDP would also allocate land “aimed at maximising the benefits arising from the significant investment in the South-East Wales Metro”, according to the council’s draft proposals.

The move towards building near transport links and existing towns shows the council has pivoted away from a previous, controversial idea to allocate land at a “key strategic site” in Maesycwmmer for major redevelopment.

At a meeting in July 2024, councillors voiced concerns that the project was incompatible with the local transport infrastructure – and also heard the Welsh Government was unhappy with the proposal to build new roads on the site.

The latest proposals for the replacement LDP do not include the Maesycwmmer strategic site.

Visit the council’s website to find out more about the draft proposals for the replacement LDP, including maps of candidate sites for development – and to have your say.

The consultation closes on Wednesday February 26.