YORK’S Local Plan - which outlines where housing developments will be built in the city - has been hit by fresh delays.

Inspectors say the City of York Council must launch a new public consultation on the scheme, giving residents six weeks to have their say on changes.

In March the council removed the Queen Elizabeth Barracks and Towthorpe Lines site in Strensall from the Local Plan after Natural England raised concerns about the impact of 550 new homes on neighbouring wildlife reserve Strensall Common.

The number of houses that need to be built each year has also been reduced from 867 to 790.

Inspectors have told the council to hold a consultation on the changes and in a letter they criticised the local authority for labelling the alterations as "minor".

The letter says: “The proposed deletion of the aforementioned sites and the alterations to the Green Belt boundary amount to potential proposed main modifications – they cannot be considered as ‘minor’ modifications to the submitted Local Plan, as the council appears to suggest.

“As a result, we would advise that these suggested changes should not be referred to, or labelled as, ‘minor’ modifications.

“Much of this new evidence is fundamental to the soundness of the Local Plan.”

In December the council announced that hearings were due to take place on the Local Plan as early as February.

But they will now not be able to happen until the end of a six-week consultation, which is expected to be launched in June.

Neil Ferris, director of economy at the council, said: “The council submitted the amendments for the inspectors to consider following Executive’s consideration of new evidence that became available since the plan was submitted.

“The inspectors have determined the amendments to be major and instructed us to consult on just those changes, not the entire plan.

“This is a significant plan which will impact on the city for decades to come, so it is important that this is a robust and transparent process that the public have the opportunity to engage with.

“This process is currently being led by the inspectors, and the council fully supports any steps which bring the adoption of the Local Plan closer. This additional six-week consultation will mean that the public hearings can take place very soon afterwards.”

The sites in Strensall were removed from the Local Plan after Natural England said the development would have an “adverse impact”on Strensall Common nature reserve.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said it was “disappointed” that the council wanted to remove the development at Strensall barracks from York’s Local Plan. It said the housing plans were a key part of the defence land disposal programme and significant resources had already been put into the scheme.

The sale of Strensall Barracks and Towthorpe Lines have now been delayed by the MoD until 2024.

The inspectors have urged the council to work with the MoD and Natural England on the plans.

The entire Local Plan will be examined during the hearing sessions.