LONG READ: Stone is likely to remain at the centre of Stafford Borough’s housing debate as the council prepares a new Local Plan and developers continue to bring forward sites around the town.
But the question for Stone is not simply whether more homes are needed.
A more useful question may be where they should go, what kind of homes should be built, and what roads, schools, health services, drainage, public transport and public spaces should be in place before growth is felt by residents.
Stafford Borough Council is preparing a new Local Plan for 2025 to 2045. The plan will eventually set the long term strategy for where housing, employment land, infrastructure and environmental protection should go across the borough.
That matters because Stone is one of the borough’s main settlements. It has schools, shops, public transport links, access to the A34, A51 and railway, and land around its edges that is attractive to developers.
Several housing schemes have already brought those pressures into public view, including proposals around Eccleshall Road, Walton, Marlborough Road and Uttoxeter Road.
Some residents will understandably see those applications first through the impact on roads, schools, GP appointments, dentists, drainage and the character of nearby areas. Others may look at the same proposals and ask whether the town is doing enough to provide homes for younger adults, families, local workers and older residents who want to stay in Stone.
Both questions matter.
Why housing pressure is growing
The national planning system has changed, and councils are under pressure to show they have enough land available for new homes.
Stafford Borough’s latest five year housing land supply statement says the borough now has a 3.37 year supply of deliverable housing land, rather than the five years normally expected.
That does not mean every planning application must be approved. It does mean the council is in a more difficult position when refusing housing proposals, especially while the new Local Plan is still being prepared.
The Local Plan should be the place where the bigger decisions are made. It should help decide where growth is best located, what infrastructure is needed, and how the needs of Stafford, Stone and surrounding villages fit together.
Until that plan is in place, there is a risk that major applications are considered one by one, rather than as part of a settled long term picture for Stone.
Stone will need homes
It would be too simple to frame the debate as housing against no housing.
Stone does need homes. Young adults who grew up locally may want to leave the family home without leaving the town altogether. Local workers, renters, first time buyers and families need realistic options at different price points.
New homes do not always mean entirely new people moving into Stone. Some demand comes from people already living locally, including adult children forming their own households, couples separating, families needing more space, or older residents looking for a more manageable home.
That still creates extra households, and extra households can still mean more cars, bins, school applications, GP appointments and demand on services. But it is not as simple as saying every new home equals a completely new set of people being added to the town.
A growing population can also support the local economy. More households can mean more customers for shops, cafés, pubs, takeaways, trades, childcare providers, gyms, community groups and local services.
For Stone High Street, new housing can be positive if residents are properly connected to the town centre by safe walking routes, cycling links, public transport and sensible road layouts.
The benefit is weaker if new estates are designed mainly around car travel, with residents pushed towards out of town shopping, online spending or commuter routes that bypass the town.
The right homes matter
Housing need is not just about numbers.
A development of larger market homes will not necessarily meet the same need as smaller homes, affordable rented homes, shared ownership, starter homes, accessible homes or retirement housing.
For younger adults, the issue is often whether they can afford to stay local at all. For older residents, it may be whether there is somewhere suitable to downsize into while remaining close to family, friends, shops, health services and familiar surroundings.
That is where the mix of housing becomes important.
Many people raise bungalows in this debate because they offer single storey living and can suit people who no longer want stairs or a large garden. But bungalows are now a small part of many new build schemes, partly because they use more land per home than two storey houses or flats.
The answer does not have to be bungalows alone. Smaller houses, accessible homes, apartments, retirement housing, extra care housing and well designed homes for later life could all help.
But if Stone is taking more housing, residents may reasonably ask whether the town is getting the homes it actually needs, rather than just more units on a site plan.
Where should Stone grow?
At the moment, much of the most visible pressure is east and west of Stone.
To the west, sites around Eccleshall Road, Walton and Marlborough Road have drawn significant public attention. To the east and south east, proposals around Uttoxeter Road raise different concerns, including existing traffic pressure, the railway level crossing and access towards the town.
That raises a wider question for the new Local Plan.
If Stone is expected to take further growth, should that growth continue mainly east and west, or should the borough look more closely at whether north and south growth linked more directly to the A34 would make better sense?
That is not a simple answer.
Better access to the A34 might reduce pressure on some existing local pinch points, including Walton Roundabout, Eccleshall Road, Uttoxeter Road and residential estate roads.
But it could also raise other issues, including junction capacity, flood risk, landscape impact, walking distances, public transport, access to the town centre, pressure for further development, and whether new neighbourhoods would feel connected to Stone or simply sit on its edge.
That is why the question belongs in the Local Plan process, not just in one planning application.
Does Stone need a wider transport plan?
Transport should not only mean making junctions larger.
If Stone is to grow, residents may want to ask whether the town needs a wider transport strategy, including possible strategic road links, safer walking and cycling routes, better access to the railway station, and proper public transport planning.
Should major new developments simply feed more traffic into existing pinch points, or should the Local Plan look at whether Stone needs new links to the A34 at the north and south of the town?
Should developers be required to fund improvements that help the wider network, rather than only the entrance to their own site?
Should bus stops, walking routes and cycling links be in place before homes are occupied?
And should sites that cannot offer realistic alternatives to the car be treated differently when the borough decides where future housing should go?
Relief roads or new distributor roads would not be simple. They would need land, funding, evidence, environmental assessment and a clear link to planned growth. They can also create new pressure for development along their route.
But if Stone is being asked to take more homes, it is reasonable to ask whether the infrastructure discussion should be bigger than individual junction improvements.
What infrastructure should come first?
Roads are only part of the picture.
Residents are also asking about school places, GP access, dentists, drainage, sewerage, public open space, play areas, public transport, walking routes, cycling routes and the impact on the town centre.
Some of those things can be influenced through planning conditions and legal agreements. Others, such as GP numbers, dentists and long term bus services, are harder to guarantee through planning alone.
That is why the timing matters.
If homes are approved first and infrastructure follows later, residents feel the pressure immediately. If infrastructure is built into the plan from the start, growth has a better chance of feeling planned rather than imposed.
The questions for Stone
The Local Plan consultation gives residents a chance to think beyond individual applications and ask what planned growth should look like.
If Stone has to take a fair share of Stafford Borough’s housing need, where should that growth go?
Should it be spread across several smaller sites, or concentrated in fewer larger sites that can fund bigger infrastructure?
Should growth continue east and west of the town, or should north and south options linked to the A34 be explored more fully?
What kind of homes does Stone need for young adults, families, local workers and older residents?
Should new developments include homes that help older residents downsize and stay local?
What road improvements, public transport, school places, health provision, drainage and public open space should be in place before homes are occupied?
And how can growth support Stone’s shops, services, schools, clubs and community life, rather than simply adding pressure?
What happens next
Stafford Borough Council’s new Local Plan will eventually shape where development should go across the borough. Stone residents can also comment on individual planning applications as they come forward.
The two things are linked, but they are not the same.
Individual applications decide whether specific sites should be approved. The Local Plan should decide the bigger question of what kind of growth the borough wants, and where it should happen.
For Stone, that bigger question is now difficult to avoid.
The town may need more homes, but it also needs a proper conversation about where they go, what type they are, and what infrastructure must come with them.
In the next part of this series, we will look at whether councils can make infrastructure come first, how planning conditions and legal agreements work, and whether development can be phased so that services are not left trying to catch up.
