Local development plans: Conwy

The overall plan

• The plan's vision is that by 2022 Conwy's communities will be more sustainable, offer a higher quality of life and be supported by a more balanced age structure. Page 31
• The plan aims to deliver approximately 6,520 new homes between 2007 and 2022. Policy HOU/1, page 87
• About 85% of these new homes (5,542 homes) are to be located in the Urban Development Strategy Area, the main urban part of the plan area. Policy HOU/1, page 87
• The plan's strategy is a 'hybrid' one: it directs development to accessible urban areas and places needing regeneration, while helping rural communities keep local jobs and services. Page 39

Homes

• The plan expects about 1,000 new-build affordable homes to be provided over the plan period. Affordable housing means homes for people who cannot afford market prices. Page 84
• The plan asks developers to include affordable homes for local people on site in all housing developments within the larger settlements. The share varies by area, and the Council will negotiate it with developers. Policy HOU/2, page 100
• The plan says the Council will identify and seek planning permission for Gypsy and Traveller sites, based on a need for 3 residential pitches in Conwy by 2016. A pitch is a plot for a caravan home. Policy HOU/9, page 121

Jobs and the economy

• The plan says about 15 hectares of employment land will be made available in Llandudno Junction, Llandudno and Conwy over the plan period, from land already built or with permission and from new sites. Page 49
• The plan says new-build holiday accommodation that is not serviced, meaning without services provided on the site, will not be allowed in the open countryside. This is to protect the area from private holiday homes being built across the plan area. Page 156

Town centres and shops

• The plan says that when new retail development is proposed, the first preference is for sites within existing sub-regional and town centres. Page 168
• The plan says the town centre of Llandudno will not take any further major convenience or comparison retail up to 2012, but it will be protected and, where possible, enhanced. Page 49
• The plan says a shop in the primary shopping areas of Llandudno and Colwyn Bay can only change to another use if it has been marketed at a reasonable price for at least six months without success, and the change does not harm the area's retail role. Policy CFS/3, page 169
• The plan says a shop in one of its designated shopping zones can only change to another use if this maintains or improves the vitality, attractiveness and viability of the centre. Policy CFS/4, page 170

Countryside, nature and heritage

• The plan designates green wedges, which are open areas kept to stop neighbouring settlements from running together. They are shown on the proposals map. Policy NTE/2, page 190
• The plan says the Council will refuse proposals that would harm European sites or protected or priority species or habitats. Policy NTE/3, page 192
• The plan says development in Special Landscape Areas will only be permitted if it can be satisfactorily integrated into the landscape. Policy NTE/4, page 195
• The plan says development affecting a heritage asset, or its setting, must preserve or, where appropriate, enhance that asset. Heritage assets include conservation areas and listed buildings. Policy CTH/2, page 217

Climate, energy and flooding

• The plan says there is a need to stop inappropriate development in areas at risk of flooding. Much of the coastal area, especially in the Urban Development Strategy Area, is at risk, and climate change and rising sea levels are likely to make this worse. Policy DP/6, page 185
• The plan says that extending the holiday season at caravan and chalet parks that are very exposed to flooding, such as those in the Towyn and Kinmel Bay area, will be resisted to keep people safe and limit overall risk. Policy DP/6, page 161
• The plan says sustainable drainage systems, which help manage rainwater and reduce flood risk, must be used wherever reasonably practicable. Developers must show that better drainage options are not feasible before proposing less sustainable ones. Policy NTE/8, page 210
• The plan says larger wind farms should be concentrated in the Clocaenog Strategic Search Area, which straddles the boundary between Conwy and Denbighshire. Policy NTE/7, page 208

Transport

• The plan says new car parking should follow the council's maximum standards, which aim to reduce dependence on the car. Policy STR/2, page 233
• The plan says larger developments, or those likely to have significant transport effects, must submit a Transport Assessment and a Travel Plan with their planning application. These reports look at a development's traffic impact and how people could travel more sustainably. Policy STR/3, page 234
• The plan says all new developments must provide good walking and cycling facilities, and contribute to sustainable improvements in the surrounding community where appropriate. Page 231
• The plan promotes a new link road between Parc Hanes and Ogwen Avenue in Kinmel Bay to improve access in the area. Policy STR/5, page 236

The Welsh language

• The plan says development must support and sustain the long term well-being of the Welsh language, and the council will resist development that would significantly harm the character and linguistic balance of a community. Policy CTH/5, page 223
• Housing applications on unallocated sites of ten units or more in the Urban Development Strategy Area, or five units or more in the Rural Development Strategy Area, must include a Community and Linguistic Statement. Policy CTH/5, page 223
• Larger housing applications on windfall sites of 20 units or more in the Urban Development Strategy Area, or ten units or more in the Rural Development Strategy Area, must be accompanied by a more detailed Community and Linguistic Impact Assessment. Page 224
• Housing allocations in Abergele and Llanrwst, and the mixed use site in Dolgarrog, need a Mitigation Statement, which is the way developers must show how they will reduce any harm to the Welsh language. Policy CTH/5, page 223

Where it stands

Draft plan published Reached in January 2026.

The full draft plan, with its policies and the sites chosen for building, has been published for formal consultation. Comments made now go to the inspector.

What happens next

Sending the plan for examination, expected 2026

The stages of a new plan

1. 1. Reviewing the current plan
2. 2. Setting a timetable
3. 3. Sites put forward
4. 4. Preferred strategy
5. 5. Draft plan published
6. 6. Sent for examination
7. 7. Being examined
8. 8. Adopted