Report from Full Council Meeting

Sheffield City Council held a Full Council meeting on 5 November 2025.

It brought together all 84 elected councillors at the Town Hall to debate motions, receive public questions and petitions, and consider formal written answers from council leaders.

The meeting covered a wide range of local issues - but much of the public focus centred on the city’s Local Plan, the blueprint that will guide where new homes, jobs and infrastructure are built across Sheffield over the next 15 years.

🌳 Extra Consultation Announced

In written answers published for the meeting, Council Leader Tom Hunt confirmed that there will be an extra consultation on certain Examination documents submitted on or after 12 September 2025.

The additional round is being held because many documents were provided late to the Examination, after the main consultation had closed.

Since then, more than 50 new evidence papers have been added - some commissioned or uploaded only hours before the relevant hearing sessions.

The Council said the original six-week consultation (May-July 2025) remains valid, but this new one will allow public comment on recently added material.

Everyone who took part in earlier consultations, along with others on the Council’s mailing list, will be invited to comment.

The Council expects to contact participants during the week beginning 10 November, allowing three weeks for responses.

• "We will be inviting comments on other documents that were submitted to the Examination on or after 12 September 2025... This extra consultation is a result of information being provided late to Examination and the main consultation earlier in the year remains valid."
  
  - Cllr Tom Hunt, Leader of Sheffield City Council
  
  (Written response, Full Council meeting, 5 November 2025)

🌳 Concerns Over Process and Transparency

The announcement came in response to a written question from Michael Parkin, who criticised what he described as serious procedural and transparency failings in the Local Plan process.

Parkin noted that dozens of new documents had been added after public consultation closed, arguing that this prevented meaningful scrutiny and left residents at a disadvantage.

He also quoted the independent Programme Administrator, who described Sheffield’s hearings process as “certainly not typical” compared with other local authorities.

In reply, the Council said that not all the new documents were produced by the Council - some came from site promoters or objectors - and that the extra consultation had been agreed with the Inspectors to ensure fairness.

🌳 Local Plan Hearings and Progress

The Local Plan hearings remain ongoing, with the Planning Inspectors due to consider housing need and land supply later in November.

Council Leader Tom Hunt reiterated that the process is still open and that final conclusions will depend on the Inspectors’ recommendations. He acknowledged that while the consultation met statutory requirements, many residents had found the process difficult to access, and said the Council would learn from that feedback in future engagement exercises.

🌳 Costs and Risks

Responding to questions from councillors, Hunt revealed that preparing the Local Plan has cost £5.05 million since 2019, covering staff time, consultations, consultants and legal fees.

He also warned that if the Plan were rejected and had to be rewritten under current government rules, the city’s annual housing target could rise from 2,236 to 2,389 homes per year, likely requiring further Green Belt release.

🌳 Green Belt and Brownfield Debate

Much of the public interest focused on the balance between protecting Green Belt land and meeting housing needs.

Residents and campaigners questioned why the Council was proposing new development sites on the Green Belt in areas such as Handsworth, Chapeltown, Ecclesfield and Grenoside, when brownfield alternatives might be available.

The Council responded that the Inspectors have already considered Sheffield’s urban land supply and concluded that there is insufficient brownfield and non-Green Belt land to meet projected housing demand up to 2039.

However, any new suitable brownfield sites identified through public submissions will be added to the city’s “windfall” housing supply - the term used for unallocated sites that come forward for development over time.

🌳 Environmental and Infrastructure Concerns

Residents also raised detailed concerns about flood risk, drainage and traffic impacts from proposed Green Belt allocations.

The Council stated that it has already published a Level 2 Strategic Flood Risk Assessment for all additional Green Belt sites (May 2025), and that each developer will later need to produce its own Flood Risk Assessment and Transport Assessment before planning permission is considered.

It also confirmed that agencies such as the Environment Agency, Yorkshire Water, and Severn Trent Water are being consulted as part of this process.

🌳 Affordable Housing Promises

The Council was questioned on whether its commitment to 30% affordable housing on Green Belt release sites could be undermined by viability tests and developer negotiations.

Hunt said the Council’s most recent Whole Plan Viability Appraisal (May 2025) found this target achievable, and that the authority intends to adopt a "Policy Plus" approach on Council-owned land to deliver higher levels where possible.

🌳 Next Steps

The Planning Inspectors’ recommendations following the hearings are expected in early 2026.

After that, all Sheffield councillors will be asked to vote on whether to adopt the Local Plan - a decision that will shape the city’s development, housing, and environmental strategy for years to come.

In the meantime, community groups and residents across the city are preparing responses to the new consultation - a final opportunity to influence Sheffield’s most significant planning document in a generation.