National and Regional planning guidance emphasises the need to promote more sustainable patterns of development by focusing additional housing in existing towns and cities and by making better use of previously developed land.  Planning Policy Guidance Note 3 – Housing (PPG3) requires local planning authorities to assess the capacity of their urban areas to accommodate additional housing.

In accordance with this guidance, the Council has undertaken an Urban Potential Study (UPS) of Wakefield District. The Council has not formally adopted the Study but has published it as a background document to the preparation of the Local Development Framework. It is a technical reference document which provides an assessment of the potential scale of additional housing that could be accommodated, mainly on brownfield land, in the District’s urban areas up to 2016.

Survey work for the study was originally carried out at the end of 2001. Following analysis of the data, an interim version of the study was produced for consultation with the House Builders’ Federation and its members. The aim was to incorporate the views of the development industry to ensure that the assessment of potential was soundly based. The study has now been updated to include the comments of the building industry and to take account of planning permissions and completions since 2001. The base date for the published study is now 31st March 2004.

The results of the Wakefield UPS 2004 indicate that approximately 10,200 dwellings could be accommodated within the urban areas of Wakefield district up to 2016. Approximately 90% of this potential could be provided from brownfield sources.

A copy of the study can be purchased at a cost of £10.00. Cheques should be made payable to ‘Wakefield MDC’ and sent with orders to the address on the ‘Contact the Spatial Policy Group’ page (see 'Also In').

An Appendix giving details of the major sites included in the study is also available on request.