A blueprint to meet future housing needs in the Yorkshire Dales National Park is set to go before a planning inspector next year.

Members of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority (YDNPA) yesterday (Tues) agreed a draft Housing Development Plan that includes proposals to substantially increase affordable housing.

The YDNPA’s Chief Executive David Butterworth, said: “The draft Housing Development Plan approved yesterday by the Authority’s planning committee is the latest step in an attempt to increase the supply of affordable housing for local need in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

“A public consultation period during the summer generated more than 400 letters and emails setting out objections, comments and supporting statements about the policies and proposed sites for new housing contained in the plan.

“We have listened to what people have said and, as a result, changes have been made to the plan. The meeting yesterday marks the transition between consultation and the start of formal submission to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government”.

“Now that Authority members have agreed changes, a revised plan will be published in the new year. This will be the subject of further public comment but from here only minor changes can be made which do not go to the heart of the plan’s strategy”

“An independent planning inspector will then hold an ‘examination in public’ to test whether the plan is fit for purpose or not. If the inspector approves it, it will be adopted and used as the policy basis for deciding planning applications for housing over the next 15 years.

Yvonne Peacock, the YDNPA’s Member Champion for Forward Planning and the Housing Working Group Chairman, said: “It is unusual for the YDNPA to allocate land for housing, but affordable housing is the biggest concern residents have and unfortunately we have had to break some eggs to release land to meet this need in the National Park.

“The decision taken yesterday means we are one step nearer being able to deliver more affordable housing in the National Park – and that can only be good news.”

Information about the Housing Development Plan and the summer consultation can be found at http://www.yorkshiredales.org.uk/hdp.htm