The blueprint for new development in Cheltenham, Gloucester and Tewkesbury over the next 20 years has opened for feedback.

A public consultation on the Strategic and Local Plan (SLP) launched this week and will run until March 12.

Residents and businesses are being asked to share their views online and at a series of events in January and February.

The SLP is a new approach to plan-making that has been drawn up by Cheltenham Borough Council, Gloucester City Council and Tewkesbury Borough Council.

Once agreed, it will set out a joined-up vision for where an estimated 35,700 new homes could be built over the next 20 years.

It also covers other cross- boundary issues such as employment, environmental and climate change action and the policies that will be needed to inform future planning proposals.

The three councils have worked together since 2008 on strategic planning and previously adopted the Joint Core Strategy (JCS) in 2017.

In the summer of 2023, they agreed to produce a single plan known as the SLP.

The consultation document said: "We are working together to make sure we are being as effective as we can in making sure the needs of the existing population as well as the growth needs of future generations are met."

Important revisions to national planning rules have also recently been published and the SLP consultation will be an opportunity to explore what they mean for the area.

The councils are particularly interested in responses to the following broad questions:

• What should the area be like as a place to live by the end of the plan period? What must we do to deliver this vision?
• What local issues and opportunities should the plan address?
• How much development is needed and are there any priority locations for growth? What should be the role of the Green Belt?
• How could development be delivered in a way that meets the vision for the area?
• How should the SLP respond to climate change and nature recovery, and how should this be balanced to ensure Cheltenham, Gloucester and Tewkesbury Borough thrive for our residents, businesses and visitors?

Alistair Cunningham, Tewkesbury Borough Council's chief executive and senior responsible officer for the SLP, said: "We want to hear from as many people as possible in this early planning stage, including young people, to shape future development of the places where they'll live and work, now and in the future."

Hard copies of the plan are available to view in the main receptions of each council.

Visit strategiclocalplan.org for more details or contact info@strategiclocalplan.org