| West Oxfordshire District Council has launched a 7-week public consultation to help shape how future growth is planned across West Oxfordshire as part of the new Local Plan 2043.
The Preferred Spatial Options Consultation runs from 3 November to 22 December 2025 and seeks public feedback on four key areas:
- Extending the Plan period: Whether to move the end date from 2041 to 2043 to ensure a 15-year period post-adoption in line with national policy. This would increase the housing requirement to around 16,290 homes, with an overall supply target of approximately 18,000 to provide flexibility.
- Revised settlement hierarchy: Following feedback from earlier consultations, we’re proposing a clearer grouping of towns and villages that better reflects their size, character and capacity to accommodate growth. We’re asking for views on how much growth should be planned for at each level of the hierarchy.
- Previously allocated sites: How to refresh and update existing allocations that have yet to be delivered — including Salt Cross Garden Village, West Eynsham, and sites at Witney, Carterton and Chipping Norton — to reflect current circumstances since the last Local Plan was adopted in 2018.
- New potential development areas: Initial options for future housing and employment growth, focusing on larger strategic-scale locations at Carterton and Witney, alongside smaller opportunities at places like Long Hanborough, Bampton, Standlake, Burford, Charlbury and Tackley. This forms part of a wider spatial strategy to ensure sustainable, well-planned growth supported by the right infrastructure from the outset.
This is an important opportunity for residents, businesses and community organisations to help shape where and how development might take place before any final decisions are made.
To make responses easier to analyse, we encourage all stakeholders to respond through our online consultation platform:
👉 www.westoxon.gov.uk/localplan2043
Alternatively, written comments can be submitted via:
- Post: Planning Policy Team, Council Offices, Woodgreen, Witney, OX28 1NB
To support the consultation, the Council will be hosting a series of in-person drop-in events across the district. Details are as follows:
| Date |
Venue |
Time |
| Tuesday 11 November |
Chipping Norton (Glyme Hall) |
4-7pm |
| Thursday 13 November |
Tackley (Village Memorial Hall) |
6-9pm |
| Tuesday 18 November |
Witney (Corn Exchange) |
5-8pm |
| Thursday 20 November |
Long Hanborough (Recreation Hall) |
4-7pm |
| Tuesday 25 November |
Brize Norton (Elderbank Hall extension) |
4-7pm |
| Wednesday 26 November |
Bampton (Village Hall) |
4-7pm |
| Tuesday 2 December |
Milton Under Wychwood (Village Hall) |
4.30-7.30pm |
| Tuesday 9 December |
Standlake (Village Hall) |
4-7pm |
If you have any questions about the consultation, please contact the Planning Policy Team at planning.consultation@westoxon.gov.uk.
Thank you for your continued support in helping shape a sustainable future for West Oxfordshire. |
