Proposed Submission Local Plan Consultation (Regulation 19) 

Help us update your Local Plan

The Local Plan sets out planning policies and proposals for new development to make sure the Rugby Borough is a great place to live, work and do business.

It is prepared in consultation with residents, businesses and other stakeholders.

Councils must review their Local Plan every five years. Rugby borough’s current plan was approved in 2019.

The Local Plan defines many things, including:
  • where housing can be built.
  • which land can be used to provide employment.
  • how vital infrastructure needs can be met, such as schools, green spaces, health care facilities and transport links.
  • how the borough will mitigate and adapt to climate change.

What is the Preferred Option?

The Preferred Option Consultation Document sets out a proposed development strategy for the borough for the period 2024-2045. This identifies what development and land use should go where. It also includes draft development management policies to be used for determining planning applications, including policies to tackle issues we identified in the ‘Issues and Options’ consultation in October 2023.  

This Preferred Option Consultation Document has been shaped by:
  • your feedback to the ‘Issues and Options’ consultation (Oct 23- Feb 24).
  • land submitted to us through the call for sites (Oct 23-Feb 24) or identified from other sources.
  • changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), the latest being December 2024.
  • new technical evidence on a range of topics.
View the preferred options consultation document
Documents informing the Preferred Options consultation document
The borough's current Local Plan
Information on the Issues and Options consultation

What is the Proposed Submission Local Plan?

The Proposed Submission Local Plan is the document which the Council intends to submit to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government for examination by the Planning Inspectorate.

The documents that we intend to submit for examination are:

Hard copies of the Proposed Submission Local Plan and the supporting evidence documents with the proposed submission documents are also available to view within normal opening hours at:

  • Rugby Borough Council’s offices, Town Hall, Evreux Way, Rugby, CV12 2RR
  • Rugby Library and Information Centre, Little Elborow Street, Rugby, CV21 3BZ
  • Dunchurch Community Library, The Green, Dunchurch, Rugby, CV22 6PA
  • Wolston Library & Information Centre, Manor Estate, Wolston, CV8 3GX

Quick links

What has changed since the Preferred Option consultation? 

We’ve made changes to the Local Plan based on the feedback received in response to the Preferred Option consultation held in Spring 2025, and based on the latest evidence. 

The main changes include: 

  •  Addition of several brownfield sites in Rugby town centre for housing
  • Addition of a further housing site at Long Lawford which will support a new walking route to schools in Bilton and Cawston
  • Addition of a further housing site at Wolston for specialist housing for older persons to meet local need 
  • Addition of a new housing site at Binley Woods in Brandon Parish 
  • Removal of housing sites in the Rainsbrook Valley at Hillmorton and inclusion of a new policy regarding the Rainsbrook Valley landscape
  • Removal of housing sites around Dunchurch 
  • Reduction in the number of houses allocated at Brinklow, Wolvey and Stretton-on-Dunsmore 
  • Removal of the employment allocation at Ryton-on-Dunsmore. This is replaced by an alternative employment site at Walsgrave Hill which includes a blue-light route for ambulances to University Hospital Coventry

The video below provides a summary of some of the key changes and points in the Proposed Submission Local Plan. 

How to have your say

Rugby Borough Council is consulting on the Proposed Submission Local Plan from Friday 30 January to 5:00pm Friday 13 March 2026.   

A Statement of Representation Procedure has been prepared, which sets out further detail on how to respond to the consultation.  

The consultation at this stage is different to the previous consultations and has a narrower focus. All responses should be made using the Representation Form, which is based on a template from the Planning Inspectorate. Please also refer to the Planning Inspectorate’s guidance note on submitting representations  before submitting your representation. Paragraph 5.3 of the Planning Inspectorate guidance, highlights that it is helpful for groups or individuals who share views to submit a single representation rather than lots of individual responses making the same points. Such representations should state how many people it represents and how the representation has been authorised.

The Representation Form asks respondents three key questions: 

  • Is the plan legally compliant? Does it comply with relevant legislation and regulations in the way it has been prepared and in its content? 
  • Is the plan ‘sound’? Has the plan been ‘positively prepared’? Is it robustly justified and evidence-led? Will it be effective in what it sets out to achieve? Is it consistent with the latest regional and national planning policy? 
  • Does the plan comply with the ‘Duty to Cooperate’? Has the Council engaged constructively, actively and on an ongoing basis with neighbouring authorities and other prescribed bodies during the preparation of the plan? 

Please submit your completed Representation Form: 

  1. By email to localplan@rugby.gov.uk with ‘Proposed Submission Consultation’ in the subject line, or
  2. By post to:
    Proposed Submission Consultation,
    Development Strategy Team,
    Town Hall,
    Evreux Way,
    Rugby,
    CV21 2RR

Please make sure you include your full name and address as part of your form. We cannot accept anonymous responses to the consultation. 

Consultation responses will be made available to the public and to the Planning Inspector as part of the examination process. This will include your full name, but not your address or any other personal details. They will be processed in line with the council’s privacy notice.

Everyone who submits a response to this consultation has the right to speak during one of the hearing sessions held as part of the examination process, see Statement of Representation Procedure. Please indicate on your form if you would like to be invited by the Planning Inspector to speak at a hearing session. These are likely to take place in late 2026. 

How to find out more

As part of the consultation, a number of in-person events will be held around the borough as outlined below. The events will comprise a short introduction, followed by a question and answer session.

These events are now available to book for free through Eventbrite. The booking system is being used to ensure the capacity of the venues is not exceeded, and tickets are available on a first come first served basis.

Sessions will last approximately one hour. Two sessions are taking place at Brinklow due to venue capacity constraints. 

Event
Date/Time
Location
Thursday 5 February 6pm
Rugby Free Primary School 1 Bailey Rd, Rugby CV23 0PD

Friday 6 February 7pm

 

Friday 6 February 8:15pm  

Brinklow Community Hall, Broad Street, Brinklow, CV23 0LS
Tuesday 10 February 6pm
Wolvey Village Hall, The Square, Wolvey, Hinckley LE10 3LJ
Thursday 12 February 6pm
Houlton School Auditorium, Signal Drive, Houlton Way, Clifton upon Dunsmore, Rugby CV23 1ED
Tuesday 24 February 6pm 
Lawford Lighthouse, School St, Long Lawford, Rugby CV23 9AT
Wednesday 25 February 6pm
Wolston Leisure and Community Centre, Old School Fields, Manor View, Manor Estate, Coventry CV8 3PD
Wednesday 4 March 6pm 
Rokeby Room at The Benn Hall¸ Newbold Rd, Rugby CV21 2LN