Local plan scoping consultation

Thank you for consulting United Utilities Water Limited (UUW) on the Cheshire East Local Plan
Scoping Consultation. UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage with Cheshire East Council at this
early stage of plan preparation and looks forward to working positively with the Council throughout
the development of the new Local Plan. UUW wishes to build a strong partnership with the Council
to support the preparation of a sound, sustainable and deliverable Local Plan. Early and ongoing
engagement between local planning authorities and infrastructure providers is important to ensure
that growth and infrastructure planning are appropriately aligned and that future development can
be supported in a sustainable manner.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider social, environmental and economic objectives. Whilst
infrastructure constraints are generally expected to arise by exception rather than as a widespread
issue, there may be circumstances where growth and infrastructure investment need to be
coordinated to support sustainable and deliverable outcomes.
The Local Plan also presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy whilst supporting the
protection of water quality, water resources and essential utility infrastructure.
Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, environmental assets and varied urban and rural
communities mean that the sustainable management of water should be a key consideration in the
preparation of the Local Plan. The Plan presents an important opportunity to align future growth with
the delivery of water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure; improve water quality; support the
removal of surface water from the sewer network where opportunities arise; increase resilience to
flood risk and climate change; and protect and enhance the borough's wider blue-green
infrastructure network.
We encourage the Council to direct developers to our pre-application service to discuss proposals
and identify any potential constraints at an early stage by contacting:
Website (including ‘Live Chat’): Building & Developing - United Utilities
Telephone (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm): 0345 072 6067
Email:
WATER (water mains, supply and metering): DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
WASTEWATER (public sewers and drainage): SewerAdoptions@uuplc.co.uk
SLUDGE PIPELINES: DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
To supplement this response, we have enclosed an Appendix providing supporting information and
example policy wording for consideration during the preparation of the new Local Plan. Please note
that we are in the process of updating this supporting document to reflect the latest changes to the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Please ensure that regard is had to both the main body of this letter and the associated supporting
information, which includes recommended policy approaches, and supporting water efficiency
evidence.
Scope of the New Local Plan
UUW supports the broad scope proposed for the new Local Plan. The emerging Plan should
recognise the fundamental role that water and wastewater infrastructure plays in facilitating
sustainable development and supporting healthy, resilient communities. Infrastructure
considerations should be integrated throughout plan preparation, including the development of the
spatial strategy, site allocation process, infrastructure planning, climate resilience policies and
delivery framework.
The evidence base supporting the Local Plan should include appropriate engagement with
infrastructure providers from the earliest stages of plan preparation to ensure that infrastructure
requirements, constraints and opportunities are properly understood.
Vision and Strategic Objectives
UUW supports the inclusion of strategic objectives relating to sustainable growth, climate
resilience, environmental protection and infrastructure delivery.
We recommend that the Vision and Strategic Objectives recognise:
• the role of infrastructure in supporting sustainable growth;
• climate resilient communities;
• sustainable water management;
• water efficiency;
• resilience to flooding and drought;
• protection of water resources and water quality;
• support for investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure;
• multifunctional blue-green infrastructure;
• improved water quality across local catchments;
• resilience to all forms of flood risk; and
• protection and enhancement of river catchments.
The Council should also consider including a specific objective relating to infrastructure planning
and delivery to ensure that growth aspirations are supported by a robust understanding of
infrastructure requirements throughout the plan period.
Suggested Vision Wording
‘Cheshire East will be a climate resilient borough where sustainable growth is supported by high
quality infrastructure, efficient use of natural resources, resilient water supplies and sustainable
wastewater services. The borough's environmental assets will be protected and enhanced through
integrated water management, biodiversity enhancement and the delivery of multifunctional blue
green infrastructure. Future development will be designed to support resilience to flooding, drought
and climate change whilst making efficient use of water resources and contributing towards
improvements in environmental quality and public wellbeing. The borough will positively support
investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to facilitate sustainable
development and improve environmental outcomes throughout the plan period.’
Spatial Strategy
UUW considers that the spatial strategy will be one of the most important elements of the new Local
Plan. Cheshire East contains a diverse range of settlements, including market towns, service
centres, villages and rural communities. Decisions regarding the distribution of development will
therefore have significant implications for infrastructure planning and service provision.
UUW supports a plan-led approach that directs development towards sustainable locations whilst
taking account of infrastructure considerations alongside economic, social and environmental
factors.
Infrastructure should not be considered in isolation and should not determine the spatial strategy.
However, infrastructure requirements, opportunities and delivery implications represent important
evidence that should inform decisions regarding the location and distribution of growth.
The Council should ensure that spatial strategy options are assessed against infrastructure
evidence to understand their respective implications for water and wastewater service provision.
Particular consideration should be given to:
• the cumulative effects of growth;
• the relative sustainability of different growth options;
• infrastructure delivery requirements;
• long-term service resilience; and
• the ability to coordinate development and infrastructure investment.
Given the extensive rural nature of parts of Cheshire East, growth distribution decisions may have
differing infrastructure implications than comparable growth within the Borough's larger urban
areas. The Local Plan should therefore be informed by a realistic understanding of infrastructure
requirements and deliverability.
Housing Growth and Site Allocations
UUW supports the allocation of sufficient land to meet identified development needs through a
clear and robust development strategy.
The Plan should seek to provide certainty regarding the location and scale of future growth. This
assists infrastructure providers in planning future investment requirements and enables potential
infrastructure needs to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Allocated sites generally provide significantly greater certainty than reliance upon unplanned
development opportunities. This supports:
• effective infrastructure planning;
• timely investment decisions;
• identification of network reinforcement requirements;
• coordination of infrastructure delivery; and
• consideration of sustainable water management measures from the outset.
The allocation process should therefore be supported by infrastructure evidence to ensure that
sites remain deliverable throughout the plan period. Where significant strategic allocations are
proposed, infrastructure requirements should be considered as part of the site's overall
development strategy.
The Council should recognise that fragmented land ownership can, in some circumstances, create
challenges for the coordinated delivery of development and supporting infrastructure. Where
multiple land interests are involved, there can be additional complexity in securing comprehensive
masterplanning, infrastructure corridors, surface water management measures and the timely
provision of utility infrastructure. As part of the site assessment and allocation process, the Council
should therefore have regard to the extent to which sites can be brought forward in a coordinated
and deliverable manner, supported by the infrastructure necessary to achieve sustainable
development.
The Local Plan should make use of site-specific allocation policies where appropriate to identify the
key requirements associated with the development of individual sites. Site-specific policies provide
an opportunity to clearly set out infrastructure, environmental and delivery expectations from the
outset and can help ensure that development is brought forward in a coordinated and
comprehensive manner. This may include requirements relating to water and wastewater
infrastructure, sustainable drainage, flood risk, water efficiency, green and blue infrastructure,
environmental mitigation and other measures necessary to support sustainable development. By
providing greater certainty regarding the requirements for development, site-specific policies can
help support effective infrastructure planning, improve deliverability and assist in securing
sustainable development outcomes throughout the Plan period.
Infrastructure Planning and Delivery
UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage at this early stage of plan preparation and would highlight
recent changes to national planning policy relating to water and wastewater infrastructure. The
National Planning Policy Framework places increased emphasis on the importance of
infrastructure planning and investment in supporting sustainable development. In particular,
national policy recognises the critical role of water and wastewater infrastructure in facilitating
growth and supporting the delivery of homes, employment and wider economic development.
The Council should have regard to the changes introduced through the revised National Planning
Policy Framework which require substantial weight to be given to the benefits associated with
proposals involving water supply and wastewater infrastructure. This reflects the essential role
such infrastructure plays in supporting sustainable development, environmental improvement,
public health and economic growth.
A clear and robust allocation strategy will also assist infrastructure planning by providing greater
certainty regarding the location, scale and timing of future development. Planned growth enables
infrastructure requirements to be understood at an earlier stage and supports more effective
coordination between development and infrastructure delivery than growth arising through
unplanned or speculative development opportunities.
Given the significant increase in housing need identified for Cheshire East, it will be important that
the Local Plan is supported by early and ongoing engagement with infrastructure providers,
including UUW, to ensure that infrastructure requirements are properly understood and reflected
throughout the plan-making process. The Local Plan should recognise that the timely delivery of
water and wastewater infrastructure is an important component of sustainable growth and that
investment may be required to facilitate development, support environmental improvements and
maintain resilient services. Infrastructure planning should therefore be integrated throughout plan
preparation to ensure that development aspirations and infrastructure delivery can be appropriately
coordinated.
Once site-specific requirements and delivery trajectories become clearer, there may be
circumstances where development and infrastructure delivery need to be coordinated to ensure
that appropriate infrastructure is available to serve growth.
The Council should also have regard to recent changes to national Green Belt policy. National
planning policy now provides greater recognition of the role of essential infrastructure in the Green
Belt, including water and wastewater infrastructure. The revised Framework confirms that certain
forms of engineering and other operations, together with infrastructure required for water and
wastewater purposes, may not be inappropriate development in the Green Belt provided they
preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it. The Local
Plan should therefore ensure that locally-specific Green Belt policies do not create unnecessary
barriers to the delivery, maintenance, upgrading or expansion of essential water and wastewater
infrastructure where such development is required.
Investment in water and wastewater infrastructure should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for
accommodating growth. Infrastructure investment can also support wider environmental
objectives through improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, network resilience,
sustainable drainage initiatives and partnership-led integrated water management projects. Such
measures can contribute towards reducing surface water inflows to wastewater systems, improving
climate resilience, enhancing water quality and supporting wider objectives to reduce storm
overflow operation and sewer spills in accordance with the Environment Act 2021.
The Local Plan should provide an appropriate framework for coordinating growth and infrastructure
provision. The Plan should therefore recognise that:
• infrastructure requirements may vary between locations;
• infrastructure improvements may be required to support development in some
circumstances;
• infrastructure providers should be engaged throughout plan preparation; and
• development and infrastructure delivery may need to be coordinated where necessary.
This would assist in ensuring that growth remains sustainable and deliverable throughout the Plan
period.
Water Supply and Water Efficiency
The Local Plan should seek to promote the efficient use of water resources. UUW supports the
inclusion of policy requirements that seek to achieve high standards of water efficiency in new
development.
The Council should have regard to the evidence contained within UUW's latest Water Resources
Management Plan (WRMP24), which identifies water efficiency and demand reduction as key
components of a long-term, sustainable approach to water resource management across the
Strategic Resource Zone, UUW's principal water supply area serving the vast majority of customers
across the North West of England. WRMP24 supports reductions in water consumption to 110 litres
per person per day by 2050 as part of a wider package of measures aimed at improving the resilience
and sustainability of water supplies.
In accordance with the evidence contained within WRMP24 and wider regional and national water
resource planning objectives, UUW considers it appropriate for the Local Plan to require a water
efficiency standard of 110 litres per person per day for all new residential development across
Cheshire East. The Council should also support opportunities for water reuse through measures
such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling where appropriate. In addition to reducing
potable water demand, these measures can form part of an integrated approach to sustainable
water management by helping to manage surface water close to where it falls, consistent with the
surface water hierarchy and the principles underpinning the latest Non-Statutory Technical
Standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems.
Improving water efficiency will contribute towards the sustainable management of water resources,
support wider climate resilience objectives and help reduce water consumption and customer
water bills. It also assists in reducing future demand for water resources and the scale of investment
that may otherwise be required to maintain long-term water supply resilience.
Sustainable Water Management and Flood Risk
UUW strongly supports a coordinated and integrated water management approach through the
Local Plan. Water supply, wastewater infrastructure, drainage, flood risk management, green
infrastructure and environmental outcomes are closely interrelated and should be planned in a
coordinated manner.
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. This has the
potential to increase the volume and rate of surface water entering drainage systems, placing
additional pressure on wastewater networks and increasing flood risk. The Local Plan can help
address these challenges through policies that support sustainable drainage systems, blue-green
infrastructure, natural flood management, watercourse restoration and opportunities to manage
surface water above ground wherever appropriate.
The Local Plan has an important role to play in supporting these outcomes. Through effective place
making, development design and strategic infrastructure planning, new development should seek
to manage surface water sustainably and minimise unnecessary connections to the wastewater
network. An integrated water management approach can contribute to reducing flows within sewer
systems and support wider partnership objectives to reduce storm overflow operation and sewer
spills in accordance with the objectives established through the Environment Act 2021 and related
regulatory requirements.
The Council should consider how planning policy can support integrated water management
outcomes through requirements for sustainable drainage, multifunctional green infrastructure,
surface water separation where feasible, catchment-based approaches and early engagement
between developers, the Council, Lead Local Flood Authority and United Utilities. Such measures
can help ensure that growth is delivered in a manner that supports both environmental
improvement and the long-term resilience of water infrastructure.
The Local Plan should support the application of the drainage hierarchy and encourage sustainable
drainage solutions that manage surface water as close to source as possible. This should include
the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), multi-functional blue-green infrastructure,
surface water attenuation and water quality improvements, alongside measures that support
climate resilience and foul-only drainage approaches wherever practicable. Sustainable drainage
should be considered at the earliest stages of development design to maximise environmental and
infrastructure benefits.
Climate Change and Resilience
UUW supports the inclusion of strong climate adaptation and resilience policies within the new
Local Plan.
The effects of climate change will increasingly influence how places are planned and developed.
The Local Plan should therefore encourage development that is resilient to future climate
conditions and incorporates appropriate adaptation measures from the outset.
Water management has an important role to play in supporting climate resilience through:
• water efficiency;
• drought resilience;
• protection and enhancement of the water environment;
• resilient water and wastewater infrastructure; and
• sustainable design measures that support adaptation to changing climatic conditions.
The Local Plan should support development that contributes towards the long-term resilience of
communities, infrastructure and the environment whilst recognising the role that effective water
management can play in achieving these outcomes.
Evidence Base
The evidence base should support an understanding of how water and wastewater infrastructure
considerations interact with growth options, site allocations, delivery assumptions and
infrastructure investment planning to inform the development of a sound, deliverable and
sustainable spatial strategy.
UUW welcomes the opportunity to assist Cheshire East Council in developing the evidence base
supporting the Local Plan. The evidence base should support an understanding of how
infrastructure considerations interact with growth options, site allocations and delivery
assumptions to inform the development of a sound and deliverable spatial strategy.
The Council should engage directly with UUW regarding water and wastewater matters to ensure
that the evidence base reflects the latest available information relating to:
• water supply and wastewater infrastructure;
• sewer and reservoir flood risk, which should inform future Strategic Flood Risk Assessment
work; and
• the latest evidence contained within the Water Resources Management Plan 2024 and any
subsequent updates.
The Council should also engage with UUW when considering the implications of planned growth for
water and wastewater infrastructure, including any requirements arising from the Local Plan
strategy and the potential need for future infrastructure investment.
As statutory water and wastewater undertaker, UUW is best placed to provide advice on existing
infrastructure, network and treatment capacity, growth implications, infrastructure planning and
investment requirements. The preparation of water and wastewater evidence should therefore be
undertaken in consultation with UUW rather than relying solely on third-party assessments or
assumptions regarding infrastructure capacity.
Early and ongoing engagement will help ensure that infrastructure considerations are accurately
understood and appropriately reflected within the evidence base, site assessment process, spatial
strategy and wider plan-making decisions.
Safeguarding Infrastructure Assets
The Local Plan should contain an appropriate policy framework to safeguard existing water and
wastewater infrastructure. Development proposals should take account of operational assets and
ensure that appropriate access, easements and protection measures are maintained.
Where diversion of infrastructure is proposed, this should be addressed through early engagement
with UUW and considered as part of site deliverability and design processes. UUW does not object
in principle to infrastructure diversion where appropriate engineering solutions can be identified
and operational requirements can continue to be met.
Summary
UUW supports the preparation of a new Local Plan that promotes sustainable, deliverable and
resilient growth across Cheshire East. In particular, the emerging Plan should:
• adopt a clear and robust plan-led strategy for growth;
• ensure that infrastructure planning and delivery considerations inform spatial strategy
decisions;
• support allocation-led growth that provides certainty for infrastructure planning;
• facilitate coordinated infrastructure delivery where necessary;
• promote sustainable water management and SuDS;
• require high standards of water efficiency, including a residential water consumption
standard of 110 litres per person per day;
• support climate resilience and environmental protection;
• safeguard existing infrastructure assets; and
• engage directly with UUW in the preparation of the evidence base.
The new Local Plan presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy. This is particularly
important given Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, varied urban and rural communities,
and the increasing challenges associated with climate change, water quality, water resource
management and flood risk from all sources.
Climate adaptation should be treated as a golden thread running throughout the Plan and supported
by robust application of the drainage hierarchy, multifunctional sustainable drainage systems,
blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and effective management of water resources.
These measures can help deliver multiple benefits including improved flood resilience, enhanced
biodiversity, improved water quality and increased community wellbeing.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider environmental, social and economic objectives. The timely
provision of water and wastewater infrastructure can play a critical role in facilitating growth,
supporting environmental improvements and maintaining resilient services. Development can
generally be accommodated most effectively where existing infrastructure has available capacity
or where infrastructure improvements can be planned and delivered in a coordinated manner.
The Plan should recognise the strategic importance of water resources, water quality, essential
utility infrastructure and coordinated infrastructure planning whilst supporting investment required
to improve environmental outcomes, enhance resilience, protect public health and facilitate
sustainable development.
The Council's emerging Local Plan presents an opportunity to align future growth with wider
objectives around integrated water management, climate resilience and environmental
improvement. Through ongoing collaboration between the Council, UUW and other stakeholders,
new development can contribute towards reducing surface water inputs to wastewater networks,
supporting future investment strategies, improving resilience and helping to deliver the
environmental outcomes sought through the Environment Act and related regulatory programmes.
This will help ensure that growth is supported by resilient infrastructure whilst delivering wider
benefits for communities and the environment.
The Council is invited to have regard to the detailed recommendations contained within the
enclosed ‘Supporting Information and Recommended Policies for Local Plan Preparation’, and
UUW would welcome the opportunity for continued engagement as the Local Plan progresses.
UUW looks forward to continuing to work with the Council throughout preparation of the Local Plan
and supporting evidence base.

Thank you for consulting United Utilities Water Limited (UUW) on the Cheshire East Local Plan
Scoping Consultation. UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage with Cheshire East Council at this
early stage of plan preparation and looks forward to working positively with the Council throughout
the development of the new Local Plan. UUW wishes to build a strong partnership with the Council
to support the preparation of a sound, sustainable and deliverable Local Plan. Early and ongoing
engagement between local planning authorities and infrastructure providers is important to ensure
that growth and infrastructure planning are appropriately aligned and that future development can
be supported in a sustainable manner.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider social, environmental and economic objectives. Whilst
infrastructure constraints are generally expected to arise by exception rather than as a widespread
issue, there may be circumstances where growth and infrastructure investment need to be
coordinated to support sustainable and deliverable outcomes.
The Local Plan also presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy whilst supporting the
protection of water quality, water resources and essential utility infrastructure.
Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, environmental assets and varied urban and rural
communities mean that the sustainable management of water should be a key consideration in the
preparation of the Local Plan. The Plan presents an important opportunity to align future growth with
the delivery of water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure; improve water quality; support the
removal of surface water from the sewer network where opportunities arise; increase resilience to
flood risk and climate change; and protect and enhance the borough's wider blue-green
infrastructure network.
We encourage the Council to direct developers to our pre-application service to discuss proposals
and identify any potential constraints at an early stage by contacting:
Website (including ‘Live Chat’): Building & Developing - United Utilities
Telephone (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm): 0345 072 6067
Email:
WATER (water mains, supply and metering): DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
WASTEWATER (public sewers and drainage): SewerAdoptions@uuplc.co.uk
SLUDGE PIPELINES: DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
To supplement this response, we have enclosed an Appendix providing supporting information and
example policy wording for consideration during the preparation of the new Local Plan. Please note
that we are in the process of updating this supporting document to reflect the latest changes to the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Please ensure that regard is had to both the main body of this letter and the associated supporting
information, which includes recommended policy approaches, and supporting water efficiency
evidence.
Scope of the New Local Plan
UUW supports the broad scope proposed for the new Local Plan. The emerging Plan should
recognise the fundamental role that water and wastewater infrastructure plays in facilitating
sustainable development and supporting healthy, resilient communities. Infrastructure
considerations should be integrated throughout plan preparation, including the development of the
spatial strategy, site allocation process, infrastructure planning, climate resilience policies and
delivery framework.
The evidence base supporting the Local Plan should include appropriate engagement with
infrastructure providers from the earliest stages of plan preparation to ensure that infrastructure
requirements, constraints and opportunities are properly understood.
Vision and Strategic Objectives
UUW supports the inclusion of strategic objectives relating to sustainable growth, climate
resilience, environmental protection and infrastructure delivery.
We recommend that the Vision and Strategic Objectives recognise:
• the role of infrastructure in supporting sustainable growth;
• climate resilient communities;
• sustainable water management;
• water efficiency;
• resilience to flooding and drought;
• protection of water resources and water quality;
• support for investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure;
• multifunctional blue-green infrastructure;
• improved water quality across local catchments;
• resilience to all forms of flood risk; and
• protection and enhancement of river catchments.
The Council should also consider including a specific objective relating to infrastructure planning
and delivery to ensure that growth aspirations are supported by a robust understanding of
infrastructure requirements throughout the plan period.
Suggested Vision Wording
‘Cheshire East will be a climate resilient borough where sustainable growth is supported by high
quality infrastructure, efficient use of natural resources, resilient water supplies and sustainable
wastewater services. The borough's environmental assets will be protected and enhanced through
integrated water management, biodiversity enhancement and the delivery of multifunctional blue
green infrastructure. Future development will be designed to support resilience to flooding, drought
and climate change whilst making efficient use of water resources and contributing towards
improvements in environmental quality and public wellbeing. The borough will positively support
investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to facilitate sustainable
development and improve environmental outcomes throughout the plan period.’
Spatial Strategy
UUW considers that the spatial strategy will be one of the most important elements of the new Local
Plan. Cheshire East contains a diverse range of settlements, including market towns, service
centres, villages and rural communities. Decisions regarding the distribution of development will
therefore have significant implications for infrastructure planning and service provision.
UUW supports a plan-led approach that directs development towards sustainable locations whilst
taking account of infrastructure considerations alongside economic, social and environmental
factors.
Infrastructure should not be considered in isolation and should not determine the spatial strategy.
However, infrastructure requirements, opportunities and delivery implications represent important
evidence that should inform decisions regarding the location and distribution of growth.
The Council should ensure that spatial strategy options are assessed against infrastructure
evidence to understand their respective implications for water and wastewater service provision.
Particular consideration should be given to:
• the cumulative effects of growth;
• the relative sustainability of different growth options;
• infrastructure delivery requirements;
• long-term service resilience; and
• the ability to coordinate development and infrastructure investment.
Given the extensive rural nature of parts of Cheshire East, growth distribution decisions may have
differing infrastructure implications than comparable growth within the Borough's larger urban
areas. The Local Plan should therefore be informed by a realistic understanding of infrastructure
requirements and deliverability.
Housing Growth and Site Allocations
UUW supports the allocation of sufficient land to meet identified development needs through a
clear and robust development strategy.
The Plan should seek to provide certainty regarding the location and scale of future growth. This
assists infrastructure providers in planning future investment requirements and enables potential
infrastructure needs to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Allocated sites generally provide significantly greater certainty than reliance upon unplanned
development opportunities. This supports:
• effective infrastructure planning;
• timely investment decisions;
• identification of network reinforcement requirements;
• coordination of infrastructure delivery; and
• consideration of sustainable water management measures from the outset.
The allocation process should therefore be supported by infrastructure evidence to ensure that
sites remain deliverable throughout the plan period. Where significant strategic allocations are
proposed, infrastructure requirements should be considered as part of the site's overall
development strategy.
The Council should recognise that fragmented land ownership can, in some circumstances, create
challenges for the coordinated delivery of development and supporting infrastructure. Where
multiple land interests are involved, there can be additional complexity in securing comprehensive
masterplanning, infrastructure corridors, surface water management measures and the timely
provision of utility infrastructure. As part of the site assessment and allocation process, the Council
should therefore have regard to the extent to which sites can be brought forward in a coordinated
and deliverable manner, supported by the infrastructure necessary to achieve sustainable
development.
The Local Plan should make use of site-specific allocation policies where appropriate to identify the
key requirements associated with the development of individual sites. Site-specific policies provide
an opportunity to clearly set out infrastructure, environmental and delivery expectations from the
outset and can help ensure that development is brought forward in a coordinated and
comprehensive manner. This may include requirements relating to water and wastewater
infrastructure, sustainable drainage, flood risk, water efficiency, green and blue infrastructure,
environmental mitigation and other measures necessary to support sustainable development. By
providing greater certainty regarding the requirements for development, site-specific policies can
help support effective infrastructure planning, improve deliverability and assist in securing
sustainable development outcomes throughout the Plan period.
Infrastructure Planning and Delivery
UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage at this early stage of plan preparation and would highlight
recent changes to national planning policy relating to water and wastewater infrastructure. The
National Planning Policy Framework places increased emphasis on the importance of
infrastructure planning and investment in supporting sustainable development. In particular,
national policy recognises the critical role of water and wastewater infrastructure in facilitating
growth and supporting the delivery of homes, employment and wider economic development.
The Council should have regard to the changes introduced through the revised National Planning
Policy Framework which require substantial weight to be given to the benefits associated with
proposals involving water supply and wastewater infrastructure. This reflects the essential role
such infrastructure plays in supporting sustainable development, environmental improvement,
public health and economic growth.
A clear and robust allocation strategy will also assist infrastructure planning by providing greater
certainty regarding the location, scale and timing of future development. Planned growth enables
infrastructure requirements to be understood at an earlier stage and supports more effective
coordination between development and infrastructure delivery than growth arising through
unplanned or speculative development opportunities.
Given the significant increase in housing need identified for Cheshire East, it will be important that
the Local Plan is supported by early and ongoing engagement with infrastructure providers,
including UUW, to ensure that infrastructure requirements are properly understood and reflected
throughout the plan-making process. The Local Plan should recognise that the timely delivery of
water and wastewater infrastructure is an important component of sustainable growth and that
investment may be required to facilitate development, support environmental improvements and
maintain resilient services. Infrastructure planning should therefore be integrated throughout plan
preparation to ensure that development aspirations and infrastructure delivery can be appropriately
coordinated.
Once site-specific requirements and delivery trajectories become clearer, there may be
circumstances where development and infrastructure delivery need to be coordinated to ensure
that appropriate infrastructure is available to serve growth.
The Council should also have regard to recent changes to national Green Belt policy. National
planning policy now provides greater recognition of the role of essential infrastructure in the Green
Belt, including water and wastewater infrastructure. The revised Framework confirms that certain
forms of engineering and other operations, together with infrastructure required for water and
wastewater purposes, may not be inappropriate development in the Green Belt provided they
preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it. The Local
Plan should therefore ensure that locally-specific Green Belt policies do not create unnecessary
barriers to the delivery, maintenance, upgrading or expansion of essential water and wastewater
infrastructure where such development is required.
Investment in water and wastewater infrastructure should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for
accommodating growth. Infrastructure investment can also support wider environmental
objectives through improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, network resilience,
sustainable drainage initiatives and partnership-led integrated water management projects. Such
measures can contribute towards reducing surface water inflows to wastewater systems, improving
climate resilience, enhancing water quality and supporting wider objectives to reduce storm
overflow operation and sewer spills in accordance with the Environment Act 2021.
The Local Plan should provide an appropriate framework for coordinating growth and infrastructure
provision. The Plan should therefore recognise that:
• infrastructure requirements may vary between locations;
• infrastructure improvements may be required to support development in some
circumstances;
• infrastructure providers should be engaged throughout plan preparation; and
• development and infrastructure delivery may need to be coordinated where necessary.
This would assist in ensuring that growth remains sustainable and deliverable throughout the Plan
period.
Water Supply and Water Efficiency
The Local Plan should seek to promote the efficient use of water resources. UUW supports the
inclusion of policy requirements that seek to achieve high standards of water efficiency in new
development.
The Council should have regard to the evidence contained within UUW's latest Water Resources
Management Plan (WRMP24), which identifies water efficiency and demand reduction as key
components of a long-term, sustainable approach to water resource management across the
Strategic Resource Zone, UUW's principal water supply area serving the vast majority of customers
across the North West of England. WRMP24 supports reductions in water consumption to 110 litres
per person per day by 2050 as part of a wider package of measures aimed at improving the resilience
and sustainability of water supplies.
In accordance with the evidence contained within WRMP24 and wider regional and national water
resource planning objectives, UUW considers it appropriate for the Local Plan to require a water
efficiency standard of 110 litres per person per day for all new residential development across
Cheshire East. The Council should also support opportunities for water reuse through measures
such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling where appropriate. In addition to reducing
potable water demand, these measures can form part of an integrated approach to sustainable
water management by helping to manage surface water close to where it falls, consistent with the
surface water hierarchy and the principles underpinning the latest Non-Statutory Technical
Standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems.
Improving water efficiency will contribute towards the sustainable management of water resources,
support wider climate resilience objectives and help reduce water consumption and customer
water bills. It also assists in reducing future demand for water resources and the scale of investment
that may otherwise be required to maintain long-term water supply resilience.
Sustainable Water Management and Flood Risk
UUW strongly supports a coordinated and integrated water management approach through the
Local Plan. Water supply, wastewater infrastructure, drainage, flood risk management, green
infrastructure and environmental outcomes are closely interrelated and should be planned in a
coordinated manner.
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. This has the
potential to increase the volume and rate of surface water entering drainage systems, placing
additional pressure on wastewater networks and increasing flood risk. The Local Plan can help
address these challenges through policies that support sustainable drainage systems, blue-green
infrastructure, natural flood management, watercourse restoration and opportunities to manage
surface water above ground wherever appropriate.
The Local Plan has an important role to play in supporting these outcomes. Through effective place
making, development design and strategic infrastructure planning, new development should seek
to manage surface water sustainably and minimise unnecessary connections to the wastewater
network. An integrated water management approach can contribute to reducing flows within sewer
systems and support wider partnership objectives to reduce storm overflow operation and sewer
spills in accordance with the objectives established through the Environment Act 2021 and related
regulatory requirements.
The Council should consider how planning policy can support integrated water management
outcomes through requirements for sustainable drainage, multifunctional green infrastructure,
surface water separation where feasible, catchment-based approaches and early engagement
between developers, the Council, Lead Local Flood Authority and United Utilities. Such measures
can help ensure that growth is delivered in a manner that supports both environmental
improvement and the long-term resilience of water infrastructure.
The Local Plan should support the application of the drainage hierarchy and encourage sustainable
drainage solutions that manage surface water as close to source as possible. This should include
the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), multi-functional blue-green infrastructure,
surface water attenuation and water quality improvements, alongside measures that support
climate resilience and foul-only drainage approaches wherever practicable. Sustainable drainage
should be considered at the earliest stages of development design to maximise environmental and
infrastructure benefits.
Climate Change and Resilience
UUW supports the inclusion of strong climate adaptation and resilience policies within the new
Local Plan.
The effects of climate change will increasingly influence how places are planned and developed.
The Local Plan should therefore encourage development that is resilient to future climate
conditions and incorporates appropriate adaptation measures from the outset.
Water management has an important role to play in supporting climate resilience through:
• water efficiency;
• drought resilience;
• protection and enhancement of the water environment;
• resilient water and wastewater infrastructure; and
• sustainable design measures that support adaptation to changing climatic conditions.
The Local Plan should support development that contributes towards the long-term resilience of
communities, infrastructure and the environment whilst recognising the role that effective water
management can play in achieving these outcomes.
Evidence Base
The evidence base should support an understanding of how water and wastewater infrastructure
considerations interact with growth options, site allocations, delivery assumptions and
infrastructure investment planning to inform the development of a sound, deliverable and
sustainable spatial strategy.
UUW welcomes the opportunity to assist Cheshire East Council in developing the evidence base
supporting the Local Plan. The evidence base should support an understanding of how
infrastructure considerations interact with growth options, site allocations and delivery
assumptions to inform the development of a sound and deliverable spatial strategy.
The Council should engage directly with UUW regarding water and wastewater matters to ensure
that the evidence base reflects the latest available information relating to:
• water supply and wastewater infrastructure;
• sewer and reservoir flood risk, which should inform future Strategic Flood Risk Assessment
work; and
• the latest evidence contained within the Water Resources Management Plan 2024 and any
subsequent updates.
The Council should also engage with UUW when considering the implications of planned growth for
water and wastewater infrastructure, including any requirements arising from the Local Plan
strategy and the potential need for future infrastructure investment.
As statutory water and wastewater undertaker, UUW is best placed to provide advice on existing
infrastructure, network and treatment capacity, growth implications, infrastructure planning and
investment requirements. The preparation of water and wastewater evidence should therefore be
undertaken in consultation with UUW rather than relying solely on third-party assessments or
assumptions regarding infrastructure capacity.
Early and ongoing engagement will help ensure that infrastructure considerations are accurately
understood and appropriately reflected within the evidence base, site assessment process, spatial
strategy and wider plan-making decisions.
Safeguarding Infrastructure Assets
The Local Plan should contain an appropriate policy framework to safeguard existing water and
wastewater infrastructure. Development proposals should take account of operational assets and
ensure that appropriate access, easements and protection measures are maintained.
Where diversion of infrastructure is proposed, this should be addressed through early engagement
with UUW and considered as part of site deliverability and design processes. UUW does not object
in principle to infrastructure diversion where appropriate engineering solutions can be identified
and operational requirements can continue to be met.
Summary
UUW supports the preparation of a new Local Plan that promotes sustainable, deliverable and
resilient growth across Cheshire East. In particular, the emerging Plan should:
• adopt a clear and robust plan-led strategy for growth;
• ensure that infrastructure planning and delivery considerations inform spatial strategy
decisions;
• support allocation-led growth that provides certainty for infrastructure planning;
• facilitate coordinated infrastructure delivery where necessary;
• promote sustainable water management and SuDS;
• require high standards of water efficiency, including a residential water consumption
standard of 110 litres per person per day;
• support climate resilience and environmental protection;
• safeguard existing infrastructure assets; and
• engage directly with UUW in the preparation of the evidence base.
The new Local Plan presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy. This is particularly
important given Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, varied urban and rural communities,
and the increasing challenges associated with climate change, water quality, water resource
management and flood risk from all sources.
Climate adaptation should be treated as a golden thread running throughout the Plan and supported
by robust application of the drainage hierarchy, multifunctional sustainable drainage systems,
blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and effective management of water resources.
These measures can help deliver multiple benefits including improved flood resilience, enhanced
biodiversity, improved water quality and increased community wellbeing.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider environmental, social and economic objectives. The timely
provision of water and wastewater infrastructure can play a critical role in facilitating growth,
supporting environmental improvements and maintaining resilient services. Development can
generally be accommodated most effectively where existing infrastructure has available capacity
or where infrastructure improvements can be planned and delivered in a coordinated manner.
The Plan should recognise the strategic importance of water resources, water quality, essential
utility infrastructure and coordinated infrastructure planning whilst supporting investment required
to improve environmental outcomes, enhance resilience, protect public health and facilitate
sustainable development.
The Council's emerging Local Plan presents an opportunity to align future growth with wider
objectives around integrated water management, climate resilience and environmental
improvement. Through ongoing collaboration between the Council, UUW and other stakeholders,
new development can contribute towards reducing surface water inputs to wastewater networks,
supporting future investment strategies, improving resilience and helping to deliver the
environmental outcomes sought through the Environment Act and related regulatory programmes.
This will help ensure that growth is supported by resilient infrastructure whilst delivering wider
benefits for communities and the environment.
The Council is invited to have regard to the detailed recommendations contained within the
enclosed ‘Supporting Information and Recommended Policies for Local Plan Preparation’, and
UUW would welcome the opportunity for continued engagement as the Local Plan progresses.
UUW looks forward to continuing to work with the Council throughout preparation of the Local Plan
and supporting evidence base.

Thank you for consulting United Utilities Water Limited (UUW) on the Cheshire East Local Plan
Scoping Consultation. UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage with Cheshire East Council at this
early stage of plan preparation and looks forward to working positively with the Council throughout
the development of the new Local Plan. UUW wishes to build a strong partnership with the Council
to support the preparation of a sound, sustainable and deliverable Local Plan. Early and ongoing
engagement between local planning authorities and infrastructure providers is important to ensure
that growth and infrastructure planning are appropriately aligned and that future development can
be supported in a sustainable manner.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider social, environmental and economic objectives. Whilst
infrastructure constraints are generally expected to arise by exception rather than as a widespread
issue, there may be circumstances where growth and infrastructure investment need to be
coordinated to support sustainable and deliverable outcomes.
The Local Plan also presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy whilst supporting the
protection of water quality, water resources and essential utility infrastructure.
Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, environmental assets and varied urban and rural
communities mean that the sustainable management of water should be a key consideration in the
preparation of the Local Plan. The Plan presents an important opportunity to align future growth with
the delivery of water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure; improve water quality; support the
removal of surface water from the sewer network where opportunities arise; increase resilience to
flood risk and climate change; and protect and enhance the borough's wider blue-green
infrastructure network.
We encourage the Council to direct developers to our pre-application service to discuss proposals
and identify any potential constraints at an early stage by contacting:
Website (including ‘Live Chat’): Building & Developing - United Utilities
Telephone (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm): 0345 072 6067
Email:
WATER (water mains, supply and metering): DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
WASTEWATER (public sewers and drainage): SewerAdoptions@uuplc.co.uk
SLUDGE PIPELINES: DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
To supplement this response, we have enclosed an Appendix providing supporting information and
example policy wording for consideration during the preparation of the new Local Plan. Please note
that we are in the process of updating this supporting document to reflect the latest changes to the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Please ensure that regard is had to both the main body of this letter and the associated supporting
information, which includes recommended policy approaches, and supporting water efficiency
evidence.
Scope of the New Local Plan
UUW supports the broad scope proposed for the new Local Plan. The emerging Plan should
recognise the fundamental role that water and wastewater infrastructure plays in facilitating
sustainable development and supporting healthy, resilient communities. Infrastructure
considerations should be integrated throughout plan preparation, including the development of the
spatial strategy, site allocation process, infrastructure planning, climate resilience policies and
delivery framework.
The evidence base supporting the Local Plan should include appropriate engagement with
infrastructure providers from the earliest stages of plan preparation to ensure that infrastructure
requirements, constraints and opportunities are properly understood.
Vision and Strategic Objectives
UUW supports the inclusion of strategic objectives relating to sustainable growth, climate
resilience, environmental protection and infrastructure delivery.
We recommend that the Vision and Strategic Objectives recognise:
• the role of infrastructure in supporting sustainable growth;
• climate resilient communities;
• sustainable water management;
• water efficiency;
• resilience to flooding and drought;
• protection of water resources and water quality;
• support for investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure;
• multifunctional blue-green infrastructure;
• improved water quality across local catchments;
• resilience to all forms of flood risk; and
• protection and enhancement of river catchments.
The Council should also consider including a specific objective relating to infrastructure planning
and delivery to ensure that growth aspirations are supported by a robust understanding of
infrastructure requirements throughout the plan period.
Suggested Vision Wording
‘Cheshire East will be a climate resilient borough where sustainable growth is supported by high
quality infrastructure, efficient use of natural resources, resilient water supplies and sustainable
wastewater services. The borough's environmental assets will be protected and enhanced through
integrated water management, biodiversity enhancement and the delivery of multifunctional blue
green infrastructure. Future development will be designed to support resilience to flooding, drought
and climate change whilst making efficient use of water resources and contributing towards
improvements in environmental quality and public wellbeing. The borough will positively support
investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to facilitate sustainable
development and improve environmental outcomes throughout the plan period.’
Spatial Strategy
UUW considers that the spatial strategy will be one of the most important elements of the new Local
Plan. Cheshire East contains a diverse range of settlements, including market towns, service
centres, villages and rural communities. Decisions regarding the distribution of development will
therefore have significant implications for infrastructure planning and service provision.
UUW supports a plan-led approach that directs development towards sustainable locations whilst
taking account of infrastructure considerations alongside economic, social and environmental
factors.
Infrastructure should not be considered in isolation and should not determine the spatial strategy.
However, infrastructure requirements, opportunities and delivery implications represent important
evidence that should inform decisions regarding the location and distribution of growth.
The Council should ensure that spatial strategy options are assessed against infrastructure
evidence to understand their respective implications for water and wastewater service provision.
Particular consideration should be given to:
• the cumulative effects of growth;
• the relative sustainability of different growth options;
• infrastructure delivery requirements;
• long-term service resilience; and
• the ability to coordinate development and infrastructure investment.
Given the extensive rural nature of parts of Cheshire East, growth distribution decisions may have
differing infrastructure implications than comparable growth within the Borough's larger urban
areas. The Local Plan should therefore be informed by a realistic understanding of infrastructure
requirements and deliverability.
Housing Growth and Site Allocations
UUW supports the allocation of sufficient land to meet identified development needs through a
clear and robust development strategy.
The Plan should seek to provide certainty regarding the location and scale of future growth. This
assists infrastructure providers in planning future investment requirements and enables potential
infrastructure needs to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Allocated sites generally provide significantly greater certainty than reliance upon unplanned
development opportunities. This supports:
• effective infrastructure planning;
• timely investment decisions;
• identification of network reinforcement requirements;
• coordination of infrastructure delivery; and
• consideration of sustainable water management measures from the outset.
The allocation process should therefore be supported by infrastructure evidence to ensure that
sites remain deliverable throughout the plan period. Where significant strategic allocations are
proposed, infrastructure requirements should be considered as part of the site's overall
development strategy.
The Council should recognise that fragmented land ownership can, in some circumstances, create
challenges for the coordinated delivery of development and supporting infrastructure. Where
multiple land interests are involved, there can be additional complexity in securing comprehensive
masterplanning, infrastructure corridors, surface water management measures and the timely
provision of utility infrastructure. As part of the site assessment and allocation process, the Council
should therefore have regard to the extent to which sites can be brought forward in a coordinated
and deliverable manner, supported by the infrastructure necessary to achieve sustainable
development.
The Local Plan should make use of site-specific allocation policies where appropriate to identify the
key requirements associated with the development of individual sites. Site-specific policies provide
an opportunity to clearly set out infrastructure, environmental and delivery expectations from the
outset and can help ensure that development is brought forward in a coordinated and
comprehensive manner. This may include requirements relating to water and wastewater
infrastructure, sustainable drainage, flood risk, water efficiency, green and blue infrastructure,
environmental mitigation and other measures necessary to support sustainable development. By
providing greater certainty regarding the requirements for development, site-specific policies can
help support effective infrastructure planning, improve deliverability and assist in securing
sustainable development outcomes throughout the Plan period.
Infrastructure Planning and Delivery
UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage at this early stage of plan preparation and would highlight
recent changes to national planning policy relating to water and wastewater infrastructure. The
National Planning Policy Framework places increased emphasis on the importance of
infrastructure planning and investment in supporting sustainable development. In particular,
national policy recognises the critical role of water and wastewater infrastructure in facilitating
growth and supporting the delivery of homes, employment and wider economic development.
The Council should have regard to the changes introduced through the revised National Planning
Policy Framework which require substantial weight to be given to the benefits associated with
proposals involving water supply and wastewater infrastructure. This reflects the essential role
such infrastructure plays in supporting sustainable development, environmental improvement,
public health and economic growth.
A clear and robust allocation strategy will also assist infrastructure planning by providing greater
certainty regarding the location, scale and timing of future development. Planned growth enables
infrastructure requirements to be understood at an earlier stage and supports more effective
coordination between development and infrastructure delivery than growth arising through
unplanned or speculative development opportunities.
Given the significant increase in housing need identified for Cheshire East, it will be important that
the Local Plan is supported by early and ongoing engagement with infrastructure providers,
including UUW, to ensure that infrastructure requirements are properly understood and reflected
throughout the plan-making process. The Local Plan should recognise that the timely delivery of
water and wastewater infrastructure is an important component of sustainable growth and that
investment may be required to facilitate development, support environmental improvements and
maintain resilient services. Infrastructure planning should therefore be integrated throughout plan
preparation to ensure that development aspirations and infrastructure delivery can be appropriately
coordinated.
Once site-specific requirements and delivery trajectories become clearer, there may be
circumstances where development and infrastructure delivery need to be coordinated to ensure
that appropriate infrastructure is available to serve growth.
The Council should also have regard to recent changes to national Green Belt policy. National
planning policy now provides greater recognition of the role of essential infrastructure in the Green
Belt, including water and wastewater infrastructure. The revised Framework confirms that certain
forms of engineering and other operations, together with infrastructure required for water and
wastewater purposes, may not be inappropriate development in the Green Belt provided they
preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it. The Local
Plan should therefore ensure that locally-specific Green Belt policies do not create unnecessary
barriers to the delivery, maintenance, upgrading or expansion of essential water and wastewater
infrastructure where such development is required.
Investment in water and wastewater infrastructure should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for
accommodating growth. Infrastructure investment can also support wider environmental
objectives through improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, network resilience,
sustainable drainage initiatives and partnership-led integrated water management projects. Such
measures can contribute towards reducing surface water inflows to wastewater systems, improving
climate resilience, enhancing water quality and supporting wider objectives to reduce storm
overflow operation and sewer spills in accordance with the Environment Act 2021.
The Local Plan should provide an appropriate framework for coordinating growth and infrastructure
provision. The Plan should therefore recognise that:
• infrastructure requirements may vary between locations;
• infrastructure improvements may be required to support development in some
circumstances;
• infrastructure providers should be engaged throughout plan preparation; and
• development and infrastructure delivery may need to be coordinated where necessary.
This would assist in ensuring that growth remains sustainable and deliverable throughout the Plan
period.
Water Supply and Water Efficiency
The Local Plan should seek to promote the efficient use of water resources. UUW supports the
inclusion of policy requirements that seek to achieve high standards of water efficiency in new
development.
The Council should have regard to the evidence contained within UUW's latest Water Resources
Management Plan (WRMP24), which identifies water efficiency and demand reduction as key
components of a long-term, sustainable approach to water resource management across the
Strategic Resource Zone, UUW's principal water supply area serving the vast majority of customers
across the North West of England. WRMP24 supports reductions in water consumption to 110 litres
per person per day by 2050 as part of a wider package of measures aimed at improving the resilience
and sustainability of water supplies.
In accordance with the evidence contained within WRMP24 and wider regional and national water
resource planning objectives, UUW considers it appropriate for the Local Plan to require a water
efficiency standard of 110 litres per person per day for all new residential development across
Cheshire East. The Council should also support opportunities for water reuse through measures
such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling where appropriate. In addition to reducing
potable water demand, these measures can form part of an integrated approach to sustainable
water management by helping to manage surface water close to where it falls, consistent with the
surface water hierarchy and the principles underpinning the latest Non-Statutory Technical
Standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems.
Improving water efficiency will contribute towards the sustainable management of water resources,
support wider climate resilience objectives and help reduce water consumption and customer
water bills. It also assists in reducing future demand for water resources and the scale of investment
that may otherwise be required to maintain long-term water supply resilience.
Sustainable Water Management and Flood Risk
UUW strongly supports a coordinated and integrated water management approach through the
Local Plan. Water supply, wastewater infrastructure, drainage, flood risk management, green
infrastructure and environmental outcomes are closely interrelated and should be planned in a
coordinated manner.
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. This has the
potential to increase the volume and rate of surface water entering drainage systems, placing
additional pressure on wastewater networks and increasing flood risk. The Local Plan can help
address these challenges through policies that support sustainable drainage systems, blue-green
infrastructure, natural flood management, watercourse restoration and opportunities to manage
surface water above ground wherever appropriate.
The Local Plan has an important role to play in supporting these outcomes. Through effective place
making, development design and strategic infrastructure planning, new development should seek
to manage surface water sustainably and minimise unnecessary connections to the wastewater
network. An integrated water management approach can contribute to reducing flows within sewer
systems and support wider partnership objectives to reduce storm overflow operation and sewer
spills in accordance with the objectives established through the Environment Act 2021 and related
regulatory requirements.
The Council should consider how planning policy can support integrated water management
outcomes through requirements for sustainable drainage, multifunctional green infrastructure,
surface water separation where feasible, catchment-based approaches and early engagement
between developers, the Council, Lead Local Flood Authority and United Utilities. Such measures
can help ensure that growth is delivered in a manner that supports both environmental
improvement and the long-term resilience of water infrastructure.
The Local Plan should support the application of the drainage hierarchy and encourage sustainable
drainage solutions that manage surface water as close to source as possible. This should include
the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), multi-functional blue-green infrastructure,
surface water attenuation and water quality improvements, alongside measures that support
climate resilience and foul-only drainage approaches wherever practicable. Sustainable drainage
should be considered at the earliest stages of development design to maximise environmental and
infrastructure benefits.
Climate Change and Resilience
UUW supports the inclusion of strong climate adaptation and resilience policies within the new
Local Plan.
The effects of climate change will increasingly influence how places are planned and developed.
The Local Plan should therefore encourage development that is resilient to future climate
conditions and incorporates appropriate adaptation measures from the outset.
Water management has an important role to play in supporting climate resilience through:
• water efficiency;
• drought resilience;
• protection and enhancement of the water environment;
• resilient water and wastewater infrastructure; and
• sustainable design measures that support adaptation to changing climatic conditions.
The Local Plan should support development that contributes towards the long-term resilience of
communities, infrastructure and the environment whilst recognising the role that effective water
management can play in achieving these outcomes.
Evidence Base
The evidence base should support an understanding of how water and wastewater infrastructure
considerations interact with growth options, site allocations, delivery assumptions and
infrastructure investment planning to inform the development of a sound, deliverable and
sustainable spatial strategy.
UUW welcomes the opportunity to assist Cheshire East Council in developing the evidence base
supporting the Local Plan. The evidence base should support an understanding of how
infrastructure considerations interact with growth options, site allocations and delivery
assumptions to inform the development of a sound and deliverable spatial strategy.
The Council should engage directly with UUW regarding water and wastewater matters to ensure
that the evidence base reflects the latest available information relating to:
• water supply and wastewater infrastructure;
• sewer and reservoir flood risk, which should inform future Strategic Flood Risk Assessment
work; and
• the latest evidence contained within the Water Resources Management Plan 2024 and any
subsequent updates.
The Council should also engage with UUW when considering the implications of planned growth for
water and wastewater infrastructure, including any requirements arising from the Local Plan
strategy and the potential need for future infrastructure investment.
As statutory water and wastewater undertaker, UUW is best placed to provide advice on existing
infrastructure, network and treatment capacity, growth implications, infrastructure planning and
investment requirements. The preparation of water and wastewater evidence should therefore be
undertaken in consultation with UUW rather than relying solely on third-party assessments or
assumptions regarding infrastructure capacity.
Early and ongoing engagement will help ensure that infrastructure considerations are accurately
understood and appropriately reflected within the evidence base, site assessment process, spatial
strategy and wider plan-making decisions.
Safeguarding Infrastructure Assets
The Local Plan should contain an appropriate policy framework to safeguard existing water and
wastewater infrastructure. Development proposals should take account of operational assets and
ensure that appropriate access, easements and protection measures are maintained.
Where diversion of infrastructure is proposed, this should be addressed through early engagement
with UUW and considered as part of site deliverability and design processes. UUW does not object
in principle to infrastructure diversion where appropriate engineering solutions can be identified
and operational requirements can continue to be met.
Summary
UUW supports the preparation of a new Local Plan that promotes sustainable, deliverable and
resilient growth across Cheshire East. In particular, the emerging Plan should:
• adopt a clear and robust plan-led strategy for growth;
• ensure that infrastructure planning and delivery considerations inform spatial strategy
decisions;
• support allocation-led growth that provides certainty for infrastructure planning;
• facilitate coordinated infrastructure delivery where necessary;
• promote sustainable water management and SuDS;
• require high standards of water efficiency, including a residential water consumption
standard of 110 litres per person per day;
• support climate resilience and environmental protection;
• safeguard existing infrastructure assets; and
• engage directly with UUW in the preparation of the evidence base.
The new Local Plan presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy. This is particularly
important given Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, varied urban and rural communities,
and the increasing challenges associated with climate change, water quality, water resource
management and flood risk from all sources.
Climate adaptation should be treated as a golden thread running throughout the Plan and supported
by robust application of the drainage hierarchy, multifunctional sustainable drainage systems,
blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and effective management of water resources.
These measures can help deliver multiple benefits including improved flood resilience, enhanced
biodiversity, improved water quality and increased community wellbeing.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider environmental, social and economic objectives. The timely
provision of water and wastewater infrastructure can play a critical role in facilitating growth,
supporting environmental improvements and maintaining resilient services. Development can
generally be accommodated most effectively where existing infrastructure has available capacity
or where infrastructure improvements can be planned and delivered in a coordinated manner.
The Plan should recognise the strategic importance of water resources, water quality, essential
utility infrastructure and coordinated infrastructure planning whilst supporting investment required
to improve environmental outcomes, enhance resilience, protect public health and facilitate
sustainable development.
The Council's emerging Local Plan presents an opportunity to align future growth with wider
objectives around integrated water management, climate resilience and environmental
improvement. Through ongoing collaboration between the Council, UUW and other stakeholders,
new development can contribute towards reducing surface water inputs to wastewater networks,
supporting future investment strategies, improving resilience and helping to deliver the
environmental outcomes sought through the Environment Act and related regulatory programmes.
This will help ensure that growth is supported by resilient infrastructure whilst delivering wider
benefits for communities and the environment.
The Council is invited to have regard to the detailed recommendations contained within the
enclosed ‘Supporting Information and Recommended Policies for Local Plan Preparation’, and
UUW would welcome the opportunity for continued engagement as the Local Plan progresses.
UUW looks forward to continuing to work with the Council throughout preparation of the Local Plan
and supporting evidence base.

Thank you for consulting United Utilities Water Limited (UUW) on the Cheshire East Local Plan
Scoping Consultation. UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage with Cheshire East Council at this
early stage of plan preparation and looks forward to working positively with the Council throughout
the development of the new Local Plan. UUW wishes to build a strong partnership with the Council
to support the preparation of a sound, sustainable and deliverable Local Plan. Early and ongoing
engagement between local planning authorities and infrastructure providers is important to ensure
that growth and infrastructure planning are appropriately aligned and that future development can
be supported in a sustainable manner.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider social, environmental and economic objectives. Whilst
infrastructure constraints are generally expected to arise by exception rather than as a widespread
issue, there may be circumstances where growth and infrastructure investment need to be
coordinated to support sustainable and deliverable outcomes.
The Local Plan also presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy whilst supporting the
protection of water quality, water resources and essential utility infrastructure.
Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, environmental assets and varied urban and rural
communities mean that the sustainable management of water should be a key consideration in the
preparation of the Local Plan. The Plan presents an important opportunity to align future growth with
the delivery of water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure; improve water quality; support the
removal of surface water from the sewer network where opportunities arise; increase resilience to
flood risk and climate change; and protect and enhance the borough's wider blue-green
infrastructure network.
We encourage the Council to direct developers to our pre-application service to discuss proposals
and identify any potential constraints at an early stage by contacting:
Website (including ‘Live Chat’): Building & Developing - United Utilities
Telephone (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm): 0345 072 6067
Email:
WATER (water mains, supply and metering): DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
WASTEWATER (public sewers and drainage): SewerAdoptions@uuplc.co.uk
SLUDGE PIPELINES: DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
To supplement this response, we have enclosed an Appendix providing supporting information and
example policy wording for consideration during the preparation of the new Local Plan. Please note
that we are in the process of updating this supporting document to reflect the latest changes to the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Please ensure that regard is had to both the main body of this letter and the associated supporting
information, which includes recommended policy approaches, and supporting water efficiency
evidence.
Scope of the New Local Plan
UUW supports the broad scope proposed for the new Local Plan. The emerging Plan should
recognise the fundamental role that water and wastewater infrastructure plays in facilitating
sustainable development and supporting healthy, resilient communities. Infrastructure
considerations should be integrated throughout plan preparation, including the development of the
spatial strategy, site allocation process, infrastructure planning, climate resilience policies and
delivery framework.
The evidence base supporting the Local Plan should include appropriate engagement with
infrastructure providers from the earliest stages of plan preparation to ensure that infrastructure
requirements, constraints and opportunities are properly understood.
Vision and Strategic Objectives
UUW supports the inclusion of strategic objectives relating to sustainable growth, climate
resilience, environmental protection and infrastructure delivery.
We recommend that the Vision and Strategic Objectives recognise:
• the role of infrastructure in supporting sustainable growth;
• climate resilient communities;
• sustainable water management;
• water efficiency;
• resilience to flooding and drought;
• protection of water resources and water quality;
• support for investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure;
• multifunctional blue-green infrastructure;
• improved water quality across local catchments;
• resilience to all forms of flood risk; and
• protection and enhancement of river catchments.
The Council should also consider including a specific objective relating to infrastructure planning
and delivery to ensure that growth aspirations are supported by a robust understanding of
infrastructure requirements throughout the plan period.
Suggested Vision Wording
‘Cheshire East will be a climate resilient borough where sustainable growth is supported by high
quality infrastructure, efficient use of natural resources, resilient water supplies and sustainable
wastewater services. The borough's environmental assets will be protected and enhanced through
integrated water management, biodiversity enhancement and the delivery of multifunctional blue
green infrastructure. Future development will be designed to support resilience to flooding, drought
and climate change whilst making efficient use of water resources and contributing towards
improvements in environmental quality and public wellbeing. The borough will positively support
investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to facilitate sustainable
development and improve environmental outcomes throughout the plan period.’
Spatial Strategy
UUW considers that the spatial strategy will be one of the most important elements of the new Local
Plan. Cheshire East contains a diverse range of settlements, including market towns, service
centres, villages and rural communities. Decisions regarding the distribution of development will
therefore have significant implications for infrastructure planning and service provision.
UUW supports a plan-led approach that directs development towards sustainable locations whilst
taking account of infrastructure considerations alongside economic, social and environmental
factors.
Infrastructure should not be considered in isolation and should not determine the spatial strategy.
However, infrastructure requirements, opportunities and delivery implications represent important
evidence that should inform decisions regarding the location and distribution of growth.
The Council should ensure that spatial strategy options are assessed against infrastructure
evidence to understand their respective implications for water and wastewater service provision.
Particular consideration should be given to:
• the cumulative effects of growth;
• the relative sustainability of different growth options;
• infrastructure delivery requirements;
• long-term service resilience; and
• the ability to coordinate development and infrastructure investment.
Given the extensive rural nature of parts of Cheshire East, growth distribution decisions may have
differing infrastructure implications than comparable growth within the Borough's larger urban
areas. The Local Plan should therefore be informed by a realistic understanding of infrastructure
requirements and deliverability.
Housing Growth and Site Allocations
UUW supports the allocation of sufficient land to meet identified development needs through a
clear and robust development strategy.
The Plan should seek to provide certainty regarding the location and scale of future growth. This
assists infrastructure providers in planning future investment requirements and enables potential
infrastructure needs to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Allocated sites generally provide significantly greater certainty than reliance upon unplanned
development opportunities. This supports:
• effective infrastructure planning;
• timely investment decisions;
• identification of network reinforcement requirements;
• coordination of infrastructure delivery; and
• consideration of sustainable water management measures from the outset.
The allocation process should therefore be supported by infrastructure evidence to ensure that
sites remain deliverable throughout the plan period. Where significant strategic allocations are
proposed, infrastructure requirements should be considered as part of the site's overall
development strategy.
The Council should recognise that fragmented land ownership can, in some circumstances, create
challenges for the coordinated delivery of development and supporting infrastructure. Where
multiple land interests are involved, there can be additional complexity in securing comprehensive
masterplanning, infrastructure corridors, surface water management measures and the timely
provision of utility infrastructure. As part of the site assessment and allocation process, the Council
should therefore have regard to the extent to which sites can be brought forward in a coordinated
and deliverable manner, supported by the infrastructure necessary to achieve sustainable
development.
The Local Plan should make use of site-specific allocation policies where appropriate to identify the
key requirements associated with the development of individual sites. Site-specific policies provide
an opportunity to clearly set out infrastructure, environmental and delivery expectations from the
outset and can help ensure that development is brought forward in a coordinated and
comprehensive manner. This may include requirements relating to water and wastewater
infrastructure, sustainable drainage, flood risk, water efficiency, green and blue infrastructure,
environmental mitigation and other measures necessary to support sustainable development. By
providing greater certainty regarding the requirements for development, site-specific policies can
help support effective infrastructure planning, improve deliverability and assist in securing
sustainable development outcomes throughout the Plan period.
Infrastructure Planning and Delivery
UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage at this early stage of plan preparation and would highlight
recent changes to national planning policy relating to water and wastewater infrastructure. The
National Planning Policy Framework places increased emphasis on the importance of
infrastructure planning and investment in supporting sustainable development. In particular,
national policy recognises the critical role of water and wastewater infrastructure in facilitating
growth and supporting the delivery of homes, employment and wider economic development.
The Council should have regard to the changes introduced through the revised National Planning
Policy Framework which require substantial weight to be given to the benefits associated with
proposals involving water supply and wastewater infrastructure. This reflects the essential role
such infrastructure plays in supporting sustainable development, environmental improvement,
public health and economic growth.
A clear and robust allocation strategy will also assist infrastructure planning by providing greater
certainty regarding the location, scale and timing of future development. Planned growth enables
infrastructure requirements to be understood at an earlier stage and supports more effective
coordination between development and infrastructure delivery than growth arising through
unplanned or speculative development opportunities.
Given the significant increase in housing need identified for Cheshire East, it will be important that
the Local Plan is supported by early and ongoing engagement with infrastructure providers,
including UUW, to ensure that infrastructure requirements are properly understood and reflected
throughout the plan-making process. The Local Plan should recognise that the timely delivery of
water and wastewater infrastructure is an important component of sustainable growth and that
investment may be required to facilitate development, support environmental improvements and
maintain resilient services. Infrastructure planning should therefore be integrated throughout plan
preparation to ensure that development aspirations and infrastructure delivery can be appropriately
coordinated.
Once site-specific requirements and delivery trajectories become clearer, there may be
circumstances where development and infrastructure delivery need to be coordinated to ensure
that appropriate infrastructure is available to serve growth.
The Council should also have regard to recent changes to national Green Belt policy. National
planning policy now provides greater recognition of the role of essential infrastructure in the Green
Belt, including water and wastewater infrastructure. The revised Framework confirms that certain
forms of engineering and other operations, together with infrastructure required for water and
wastewater purposes, may not be inappropriate development in the Green Belt provided they
preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it. The Local
Plan should therefore ensure that locally-specific Green Belt policies do not create unnecessary
barriers to the delivery, maintenance, upgrading or expansion of essential water and wastewater
infrastructure where such development is required.
Investment in water and wastewater infrastructure should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for
accommodating growth. Infrastructure investment can also support wider environmental
objectives through improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, network resilience,
sustainable drainage initiatives and partnership-led integrated water management projects. Such
measures can contribute towards reducing surface water inflows to wastewater systems, improving
climate resilience, enhancing water quality and supporting wider objectives to reduce storm
overflow operation and sewer spills in accordance with the Environment Act 2021.
The Local Plan should provide an appropriate framework for coordinating growth and infrastructure
provision. The Plan should therefore recognise that:
• infrastructure requirements may vary between locations;
• infrastructure improvements may be required to support development in some
circumstances;
• infrastructure providers should be engaged throughout plan preparation; and
• development and infrastructure delivery may need to be coordinated where necessary.
This would assist in ensuring that growth remains sustainable and deliverable throughout the Plan
period.
Water Supply and Water Efficiency
The Local Plan should seek to promote the efficient use of water resources. UUW supports the
inclusion of policy requirements that seek to achieve high standards of water efficiency in new
development.
The Council should have regard to the evidence contained within UUW's latest Water Resources
Management Plan (WRMP24), which identifies water efficiency and demand reduction as key
components of a long-term, sustainable approach to water resource management across the
Strategic Resource Zone, UUW's principal water supply area serving the vast majority of customers
across the North West of England. WRMP24 supports reductions in water consumption to 110 litres
per person per day by 2050 as part of a wider package of measures aimed at improving the resilience
and sustainability of water supplies.
In accordance with the evidence contained within WRMP24 and wider regional and national water
resource planning objectives, UUW considers it appropriate for the Local Plan to require a water
efficiency standard of 110 litres per person per day for all new residential development across
Cheshire East. The Council should also support opportunities for water reuse through measures
such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling where appropriate. In addition to reducing
potable water demand, these measures can form part of an integrated approach to sustainable
water management by helping to manage surface water close to where it falls, consistent with the
surface water hierarchy and the principles underpinning the latest Non-Statutory Technical
Standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems.
Improving water efficiency will contribute towards the sustainable management of water resources,
support wider climate resilience objectives and help reduce water consumption and customer
water bills. It also assists in reducing future demand for water resources and the scale of investment
that may otherwise be required to maintain long-term water supply resilience.
Sustainable Water Management and Flood Risk
UUW strongly supports a coordinated and integrated water management approach through the
Local Plan. Water supply, wastewater infrastructure, drainage, flood risk management, green
infrastructure and environmental outcomes are closely interrelated and should be planned in a
coordinated manner.
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. This has the
potential to increase the volume and rate of surface water entering drainage systems, placing
additional pressure on wastewater networks and increasing flood risk. The Local Plan can help
address these challenges through policies that support sustainable drainage systems, blue-green
infrastructure, natural flood management, watercourse restoration and opportunities to manage
surface water above ground wherever appropriate.
The Local Plan has an important role to play in supporting these outcomes. Through effective place
making, development design and strategic infrastructure planning, new development should seek
to manage surface water sustainably and minimise unnecessary connections to the wastewater
network. An integrated water management approach can contribute to reducing flows within sewer
systems and support wider partnership objectives to reduce storm overflow operation and sewer
spills in accordance with the objectives established through the Environment Act 2021 and related
regulatory requirements.
The Council should consider how planning policy can support integrated water management
outcomes through requirements for sustainable drainage, multifunctional green infrastructure,
surface water separation where feasible, catchment-based approaches and early engagement
between developers, the Council, Lead Local Flood Authority and United Utilities. Such measures
can help ensure that growth is delivered in a manner that supports both environmental
improvement and the long-term resilience of water infrastructure.
The Local Plan should support the application of the drainage hierarchy and encourage sustainable
drainage solutions that manage surface water as close to source as possible. This should include
the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), multi-functional blue-green infrastructure,
surface water attenuation and water quality improvements, alongside measures that support
climate resilience and foul-only drainage approaches wherever practicable. Sustainable drainage
should be considered at the earliest stages of development design to maximise environmental and
infrastructure benefits.
Climate Change and Resilience
UUW supports the inclusion of strong climate adaptation and resilience policies within the new
Local Plan.
The effects of climate change will increasingly influence how places are planned and developed.
The Local Plan should therefore encourage development that is resilient to future climate
conditions and incorporates appropriate adaptation measures from the outset.
Water management has an important role to play in supporting climate resilience through:
• water efficiency;
• drought resilience;
• protection and enhancement of the water environment;
• resilient water and wastewater infrastructure; and
• sustainable design measures that support adaptation to changing climatic conditions.
The Local Plan should support development that contributes towards the long-term resilience of
communities, infrastructure and the environment whilst recognising the role that effective water
management can play in achieving these outcomes.
Evidence Base
The evidence base should support an understanding of how water and wastewater infrastructure
considerations interact with growth options, site allocations, delivery assumptions and
infrastructure investment planning to inform the development of a sound, deliverable and
sustainable spatial strategy.
UUW welcomes the opportunity to assist Cheshire East Council in developing the evidence base
supporting the Local Plan. The evidence base should support an understanding of how
infrastructure considerations interact with growth options, site allocations and delivery
assumptions to inform the development of a sound and deliverable spatial strategy.
The Council should engage directly with UUW regarding water and wastewater matters to ensure
that the evidence base reflects the latest available information relating to:
• water supply and wastewater infrastructure;
• sewer and reservoir flood risk, which should inform future Strategic Flood Risk Assessment
work; and
• the latest evidence contained within the Water Resources Management Plan 2024 and any
subsequent updates.
The Council should also engage with UUW when considering the implications of planned growth for
water and wastewater infrastructure, including any requirements arising from the Local Plan
strategy and the potential need for future infrastructure investment.
As statutory water and wastewater undertaker, UUW is best placed to provide advice on existing
infrastructure, network and treatment capacity, growth implications, infrastructure planning and
investment requirements. The preparation of water and wastewater evidence should therefore be
undertaken in consultation with UUW rather than relying solely on third-party assessments or
assumptions regarding infrastructure capacity.
Early and ongoing engagement will help ensure that infrastructure considerations are accurately
understood and appropriately reflected within the evidence base, site assessment process, spatial
strategy and wider plan-making decisions.
Safeguarding Infrastructure Assets
The Local Plan should contain an appropriate policy framework to safeguard existing water and
wastewater infrastructure. Development proposals should take account of operational assets and
ensure that appropriate access, easements and protection measures are maintained.
Where diversion of infrastructure is proposed, this should be addressed through early engagement
with UUW and considered as part of site deliverability and design processes. UUW does not object
in principle to infrastructure diversion where appropriate engineering solutions can be identified
and operational requirements can continue to be met.
Summary
UUW supports the preparation of a new Local Plan that promotes sustainable, deliverable and
resilient growth across Cheshire East. In particular, the emerging Plan should:
• adopt a clear and robust plan-led strategy for growth;
• ensure that infrastructure planning and delivery considerations inform spatial strategy
decisions;
• support allocation-led growth that provides certainty for infrastructure planning;
• facilitate coordinated infrastructure delivery where necessary;
• promote sustainable water management and SuDS;
• require high standards of water efficiency, including a residential water consumption
standard of 110 litres per person per day;
• support climate resilience and environmental protection;
• safeguard existing infrastructure assets; and
• engage directly with UUW in the preparation of the evidence base.
The new Local Plan presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy. This is particularly
important given Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, varied urban and rural communities,
and the increasing challenges associated with climate change, water quality, water resource
management and flood risk from all sources.
Climate adaptation should be treated as a golden thread running throughout the Plan and supported
by robust application of the drainage hierarchy, multifunctional sustainable drainage systems,
blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and effective management of water resources.
These measures can help deliver multiple benefits including improved flood resilience, enhanced
biodiversity, improved water quality and increased community wellbeing.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider environmental, social and economic objectives. The timely
provision of water and wastewater infrastructure can play a critical role in facilitating growth,
supporting environmental improvements and maintaining resilient services. Development can
generally be accommodated most effectively where existing infrastructure has available capacity
or where infrastructure improvements can be planned and delivered in a coordinated manner.
The Plan should recognise the strategic importance of water resources, water quality, essential
utility infrastructure and coordinated infrastructure planning whilst supporting investment required
to improve environmental outcomes, enhance resilience, protect public health and facilitate
sustainable development.
The Council's emerging Local Plan presents an opportunity to align future growth with wider
objectives around integrated water management, climate resilience and environmental
improvement. Through ongoing collaboration between the Council, UUW and other stakeholders,
new development can contribute towards reducing surface water inputs to wastewater networks,
supporting future investment strategies, improving resilience and helping to deliver the
environmental outcomes sought through the Environment Act and related regulatory programmes.
This will help ensure that growth is supported by resilient infrastructure whilst delivering wider
benefits for communities and the environment.
The Council is invited to have regard to the detailed recommendations contained within the
enclosed ‘Supporting Information and Recommended Policies for Local Plan Preparation’, and
UUW would welcome the opportunity for continued engagement as the Local Plan progresses.
UUW looks forward to continuing to work with the Council throughout preparation of the Local Plan
and supporting evidence base.

Thank you for consulting United Utilities Water Limited (UUW) on the Cheshire East Local Plan
Scoping Consultation. UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage with Cheshire East Council at this
early stage of plan preparation and looks forward to working positively with the Council throughout
the development of the new Local Plan. UUW wishes to build a strong partnership with the Council
to support the preparation of a sound, sustainable and deliverable Local Plan. Early and ongoing
engagement between local planning authorities and infrastructure providers is important to ensure
that growth and infrastructure planning are appropriately aligned and that future development can
be supported in a sustainable manner.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider social, environmental and economic objectives. Whilst
infrastructure constraints are generally expected to arise by exception rather than as a widespread
issue, there may be circumstances where growth and infrastructure investment need to be
coordinated to support sustainable and deliverable outcomes.
The Local Plan also presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy whilst supporting the
protection of water quality, water resources and essential utility infrastructure.
Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, environmental assets and varied urban and rural
communities mean that the sustainable management of water should be a key consideration in the
preparation of the Local Plan. The Plan presents an important opportunity to align future growth with
the delivery of water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure; improve water quality; support the
removal of surface water from the sewer network where opportunities arise; increase resilience to
flood risk and climate change; and protect and enhance the borough's wider blue-green
infrastructure network.
We encourage the Council to direct developers to our pre-application service to discuss proposals
and identify any potential constraints at an early stage by contacting:
Website (including ‘Live Chat’): Building & Developing - United Utilities
Telephone (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm): 0345 072 6067
Email:
WATER (water mains, supply and metering): DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
WASTEWATER (public sewers and drainage): SewerAdoptions@uuplc.co.uk
SLUDGE PIPELINES: DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
To supplement this response, we have enclosed an Appendix providing supporting information and
example policy wording for consideration during the preparation of the new Local Plan. Please note
that we are in the process of updating this supporting document to reflect the latest changes to the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Please ensure that regard is had to both the main body of this letter and the associated supporting
information, which includes recommended policy approaches, and supporting water efficiency
evidence.
Scope of the New Local Plan
UUW supports the broad scope proposed for the new Local Plan. The emerging Plan should
recognise the fundamental role that water and wastewater infrastructure plays in facilitating
sustainable development and supporting healthy, resilient communities. Infrastructure
considerations should be integrated throughout plan preparation, including the development of the
spatial strategy, site allocation process, infrastructure planning, climate resilience policies and
delivery framework.
The evidence base supporting the Local Plan should include appropriate engagement with
infrastructure providers from the earliest stages of plan preparation to ensure that infrastructure
requirements, constraints and opportunities are properly understood.
Vision and Strategic Objectives
UUW supports the inclusion of strategic objectives relating to sustainable growth, climate
resilience, environmental protection and infrastructure delivery.
We recommend that the Vision and Strategic Objectives recognise:
• the role of infrastructure in supporting sustainable growth;
• climate resilient communities;
• sustainable water management;
• water efficiency;
• resilience to flooding and drought;
• protection of water resources and water quality;
• support for investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure;
• multifunctional blue-green infrastructure;
• improved water quality across local catchments;
• resilience to all forms of flood risk; and
• protection and enhancement of river catchments.
The Council should also consider including a specific objective relating to infrastructure planning
and delivery to ensure that growth aspirations are supported by a robust understanding of
infrastructure requirements throughout the plan period.
Suggested Vision Wording
‘Cheshire East will be a climate resilient borough where sustainable growth is supported by high
quality infrastructure, efficient use of natural resources, resilient water supplies and sustainable
wastewater services. The borough's environmental assets will be protected and enhanced through
integrated water management, biodiversity enhancement and the delivery of multifunctional blue
green infrastructure. Future development will be designed to support resilience to flooding, drought
and climate change whilst making efficient use of water resources and contributing towards
improvements in environmental quality and public wellbeing. The borough will positively support
investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to facilitate sustainable
development and improve environmental outcomes throughout the plan period.’
Spatial Strategy
UUW considers that the spatial strategy will be one of the most important elements of the new Local
Plan. Cheshire East contains a diverse range of settlements, including market towns, service
centres, villages and rural communities. Decisions regarding the distribution of development will
therefore have significant implications for infrastructure planning and service provision.
UUW supports a plan-led approach that directs development towards sustainable locations whilst
taking account of infrastructure considerations alongside economic, social and environmental
factors.
Infrastructure should not be considered in isolation and should not determine the spatial strategy.
However, infrastructure requirements, opportunities and delivery implications represent important
evidence that should inform decisions regarding the location and distribution of growth.
The Council should ensure that spatial strategy options are assessed against infrastructure
evidence to understand their respective implications for water and wastewater service provision.
Particular consideration should be given to:
• the cumulative effects of growth;
• the relative sustainability of different growth options;
• infrastructure delivery requirements;
• long-term service resilience; and
• the ability to coordinate development and infrastructure investment.
Given the extensive rural nature of parts of Cheshire East, growth distribution decisions may have
differing infrastructure implications than comparable growth within the Borough's larger urban
areas. The Local Plan should therefore be informed by a realistic understanding of infrastructure
requirements and deliverability.
Housing Growth and Site Allocations
UUW supports the allocation of sufficient land to meet identified development needs through a
clear and robust development strategy.
The Plan should seek to provide certainty regarding the location and scale of future growth. This
assists infrastructure providers in planning future investment requirements and enables potential
infrastructure needs to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Allocated sites generally provide significantly greater certainty than reliance upon unplanned
development opportunities. This supports:
• effective infrastructure planning;
• timely investment decisions;
• identification of network reinforcement requirements;
• coordination of infrastructure delivery; and
• consideration of sustainable water management measures from the outset.
The allocation process should therefore be supported by infrastructure evidence to ensure that
sites remain deliverable throughout the plan period. Where significant strategic allocations are
proposed, infrastructure requirements should be considered as part of the site's overall
development strategy.
The Council should recognise that fragmented land ownership can, in some circumstances, create
challenges for the coordinated delivery of development and supporting infrastructure. Where
multiple land interests are involved, there can be additional complexity in securing comprehensive
masterplanning, infrastructure corridors, surface water management measures and the timely
provision of utility infrastructure. As part of the site assessment and allocation process, the Council
should therefore have regard to the extent to which sites can be brought forward in a coordinated
and deliverable manner, supported by the infrastructure necessary to achieve sustainable
development.
The Local Plan should make use of site-specific allocation policies where appropriate to identify the
key requirements associated with the development of individual sites. Site-specific policies provide
an opportunity to clearly set out infrastructure, environmental and delivery expectations from the
outset and can help ensure that development is brought forward in a coordinated and
comprehensive manner. This may include requirements relating to water and wastewater
infrastructure, sustainable drainage, flood risk, water efficiency, green and blue infrastructure,
environmental mitigation and other measures necessary to support sustainable development. By
providing greater certainty regarding the requirements for development, site-specific policies can
help support effective infrastructure planning, improve deliverability and assist in securing
sustainable development outcomes throughout the Plan period.
Infrastructure Planning and Delivery
UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage at this early stage of plan preparation and would highlight
recent changes to national planning policy relating to water and wastewater infrastructure. The
National Planning Policy Framework places increased emphasis on the importance of
infrastructure planning and investment in supporting sustainable development. In particular,
national policy recognises the critical role of water and wastewater infrastructure in facilitating
growth and supporting the delivery of homes, employment and wider economic development.
The Council should have regard to the changes introduced through the revised National Planning
Policy Framework which require substantial weight to be given to the benefits associated with
proposals involving water supply and wastewater infrastructure. This reflects the essential role
such infrastructure plays in supporting sustainable development, environmental improvement,
public health and economic growth.
A clear and robust allocation strategy will also assist infrastructure planning by providing greater
certainty regarding the location, scale and timing of future development. Planned growth enables
infrastructure requirements to be understood at an earlier stage and supports more effective
coordination between development and infrastructure delivery than growth arising through
unplanned or speculative development opportunities.
Given the significant increase in housing need identified for Cheshire East, it will be important that
the Local Plan is supported by early and ongoing engagement with infrastructure providers,
including UUW, to ensure that infrastructure requirements are properly understood and reflected
throughout the plan-making process. The Local Plan should recognise that the timely delivery of
water and wastewater infrastructure is an important component of sustainable growth and that
investment may be required to facilitate development, support environmental improvements and
maintain resilient services. Infrastructure planning should therefore be integrated throughout plan
preparation to ensure that development aspirations and infrastructure delivery can be appropriately
coordinated.
Once site-specific requirements and delivery trajectories become clearer, there may be
circumstances where development and infrastructure delivery need to be coordinated to ensure
that appropriate infrastructure is available to serve growth.
The Council should also have regard to recent changes to national Green Belt policy. National
planning policy now provides greater recognition of the role of essential infrastructure in the Green
Belt, including water and wastewater infrastructure. The revised Framework confirms that certain
forms of engineering and other operations, together with infrastructure required for water and
wastewater purposes, may not be inappropriate development in the Green Belt provided they
preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it. The Local
Plan should therefore ensure that locally-specific Green Belt policies do not create unnecessary
barriers to the delivery, maintenance, upgrading or expansion of essential water and wastewater
infrastructure where such development is required.
Investment in water and wastewater infrastructure should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for
accommodating growth. Infrastructure investment can also support wider environmental
objectives through improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, network resilience,
sustainable drainage initiatives and partnership-led integrated water management projects. Such
measures can contribute towards reducing surface water inflows to wastewater systems, improving
climate resilience, enhancing water quality and supporting wider objectives to reduce storm
overflow operation and sewer spills in accordance with the Environment Act 2021.
The Local Plan should provide an appropriate framework for coordinating growth and infrastructure
provision. The Plan should therefore recognise that:
• infrastructure requirements may vary between locations;
• infrastructure improvements may be required to support development in some
circumstances;
• infrastructure providers should be engaged throughout plan preparation; and
• development and infrastructure delivery may need to be coordinated where necessary.
This would assist in ensuring that growth remains sustainable and deliverable throughout the Plan
period.
Water Supply and Water Efficiency
The Local Plan should seek to promote the efficient use of water resources. UUW supports the
inclusion of policy requirements that seek to achieve high standards of water efficiency in new
development.
The Council should have regard to the evidence contained within UUW's latest Water Resources
Management Plan (WRMP24), which identifies water efficiency and demand reduction as key
components of a long-term, sustainable approach to water resource management across the
Strategic Resource Zone, UUW's principal water supply area serving the vast majority of customers
across the North West of England. WRMP24 supports reductions in water consumption to 110 litres
per person per day by 2050 as part of a wider package of measures aimed at improving the resilience
and sustainability of water supplies.
In accordance with the evidence contained within WRMP24 and wider regional and national water
resource planning objectives, UUW considers it appropriate for the Local Plan to require a water
efficiency standard of 110 litres per person per day for all new residential development across
Cheshire East. The Council should also support opportunities for water reuse through measures
such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling where appropriate. In addition to reducing
potable water demand, these measures can form part of an integrated approach to sustainable
water management by helping to manage surface water close to where it falls, consistent with the
surface water hierarchy and the principles underpinning the latest Non-Statutory Technical
Standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems.
Improving water efficiency will contribute towards the sustainable management of water resources,
support wider climate resilience objectives and help reduce water consumption and customer
water bills. It also assists in reducing future demand for water resources and the scale of investment
that may otherwise be required to maintain long-term water supply resilience.
Sustainable Water Management and Flood Risk
UUW strongly supports a coordinated and integrated water management approach through the
Local Plan. Water supply, wastewater infrastructure, drainage, flood risk management, green
infrastructure and environmental outcomes are closely interrelated and should be planned in a
coordinated manner.
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. This has the
potential to increase the volume and rate of surface water entering drainage systems, placing
additional pressure on wastewater networks and increasing flood risk. The Local Plan can help
address these challenges through policies that support sustainable drainage systems, blue-green
infrastructure, natural flood management, watercourse restoration and opportunities to manage
surface water above ground wherever appropriate.
The Local Plan has an important role to play in supporting these outcomes. Through effective place
making, development design and strategic infrastructure planning, new development should seek
to manage surface water sustainably and minimise unnecessary connections to the wastewater
network. An integrated water management approach can contribute to reducing flows within sewer
systems and support wider partnership objectives to reduce storm overflow operation and sewer
spills in accordance with the objectives established through the Environment Act 2021 and related
regulatory requirements.
The Council should consider how planning policy can support integrated water management
outcomes through requirements for sustainable drainage, multifunctional green infrastructure,
surface water separation where feasible, catchment-based approaches and early engagement
between developers, the Council, Lead Local Flood Authority and United Utilities. Such measures
can help ensure that growth is delivered in a manner that supports both environmental
improvement and the long-term resilience of water infrastructure.
The Local Plan should support the application of the drainage hierarchy and encourage sustainable
drainage solutions that manage surface water as close to source as possible. This should include
the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), multi-functional blue-green infrastructure,
surface water attenuation and water quality improvements, alongside measures that support
climate resilience and foul-only drainage approaches wherever practicable. Sustainable drainage
should be considered at the earliest stages of development design to maximise environmental and
infrastructure benefits.
Climate Change and Resilience
UUW supports the inclusion of strong climate adaptation and resilience policies within the new
Local Plan.
The effects of climate change will increasingly influence how places are planned and developed.
The Local Plan should therefore encourage development that is resilient to future climate
conditions and incorporates appropriate adaptation measures from the outset.
Water management has an important role to play in supporting climate resilience through:
• water efficiency;
• drought resilience;
• protection and enhancement of the water environment;
• resilient water and wastewater infrastructure; and
• sustainable design measures that support adaptation to changing climatic conditions.
The Local Plan should support development that contributes towards the long-term resilience of
communities, infrastructure and the environment whilst recognising the role that effective water
management can play in achieving these outcomes.
Evidence Base
The evidence base should support an understanding of how water and wastewater infrastructure
considerations interact with growth options, site allocations, delivery assumptions and
infrastructure investment planning to inform the development of a sound, deliverable and
sustainable spatial strategy.
UUW welcomes the opportunity to assist Cheshire East Council in developing the evidence base
supporting the Local Plan. The evidence base should support an understanding of how
infrastructure considerations interact with growth options, site allocations and delivery
assumptions to inform the development of a sound and deliverable spatial strategy.
The Council should engage directly with UUW regarding water and wastewater matters to ensure
that the evidence base reflects the latest available information relating to:
• water supply and wastewater infrastructure;
• sewer and reservoir flood risk, which should inform future Strategic Flood Risk Assessment
work; and
• the latest evidence contained within the Water Resources Management Plan 2024 and any
subsequent updates.
The Council should also engage with UUW when considering the implications of planned growth for
water and wastewater infrastructure, including any requirements arising from the Local Plan
strategy and the potential need for future infrastructure investment.
As statutory water and wastewater undertaker, UUW is best placed to provide advice on existing
infrastructure, network and treatment capacity, growth implications, infrastructure planning and
investment requirements. The preparation of water and wastewater evidence should therefore be
undertaken in consultation with UUW rather than relying solely on third-party assessments or
assumptions regarding infrastructure capacity.
Early and ongoing engagement will help ensure that infrastructure considerations are accurately
understood and appropriately reflected within the evidence base, site assessment process, spatial
strategy and wider plan-making decisions.
Safeguarding Infrastructure Assets
The Local Plan should contain an appropriate policy framework to safeguard existing water and
wastewater infrastructure. Development proposals should take account of operational assets and
ensure that appropriate access, easements and protection measures are maintained.
Where diversion of infrastructure is proposed, this should be addressed through early engagement
with UUW and considered as part of site deliverability and design processes. UUW does not object
in principle to infrastructure diversion where appropriate engineering solutions can be identified
and operational requirements can continue to be met.
Summary
UUW supports the preparation of a new Local Plan that promotes sustainable, deliverable and
resilient growth across Cheshire East. In particular, the emerging Plan should:
• adopt a clear and robust plan-led strategy for growth;
• ensure that infrastructure planning and delivery considerations inform spatial strategy
decisions;
• support allocation-led growth that provides certainty for infrastructure planning;
• facilitate coordinated infrastructure delivery where necessary;
• promote sustainable water management and SuDS;
• require high standards of water efficiency, including a residential water consumption
standard of 110 litres per person per day;
• support climate resilience and environmental protection;
• safeguard existing infrastructure assets; and
• engage directly with UUW in the preparation of the evidence base.
The new Local Plan presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy. This is particularly
important given Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, varied urban and rural communities,
and the increasing challenges associated with climate change, water quality, water resource
management and flood risk from all sources.
Climate adaptation should be treated as a golden thread running throughout the Plan and supported
by robust application of the drainage hierarchy, multifunctional sustainable drainage systems,
blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and effective management of water resources.
These measures can help deliver multiple benefits including improved flood resilience, enhanced
biodiversity, improved water quality and increased community wellbeing.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider environmental, social and economic objectives. The timely
provision of water and wastewater infrastructure can play a critical role in facilitating growth,
supporting environmental improvements and maintaining resilient services. Development can
generally be accommodated most effectively where existing infrastructure has available capacity
or where infrastructure improvements can be planned and delivered in a coordinated manner.
The Plan should recognise the strategic importance of water resources, water quality, essential
utility infrastructure and coordinated infrastructure planning whilst supporting investment required
to improve environmental outcomes, enhance resilience, protect public health and facilitate
sustainable development.
The Council's emerging Local Plan presents an opportunity to align future growth with wider
objectives around integrated water management, climate resilience and environmental
improvement. Through ongoing collaboration between the Council, UUW and other stakeholders,
new development can contribute towards reducing surface water inputs to wastewater networks,
supporting future investment strategies, improving resilience and helping to deliver the
environmental outcomes sought through the Environment Act and related regulatory programmes.
This will help ensure that growth is supported by resilient infrastructure whilst delivering wider
benefits for communities and the environment.
The Council is invited to have regard to the detailed recommendations contained within the
enclosed ‘Supporting Information and Recommended Policies for Local Plan Preparation’, and
UUW would welcome the opportunity for continued engagement as the Local Plan progresses.
UUW looks forward to continuing to work with the Council throughout preparation of the Local Plan
and supporting evidence base.

Thank you for consulting United Utilities Water Limited (UUW) on the Cheshire East Local Plan
Scoping Consultation. UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage with Cheshire East Council at this
early stage of plan preparation and looks forward to working positively with the Council throughout
the development of the new Local Plan. UUW wishes to build a strong partnership with the Council
to support the preparation of a sound, sustainable and deliverable Local Plan. Early and ongoing
engagement between local planning authorities and infrastructure providers is important to ensure
that growth and infrastructure planning are appropriately aligned and that future development can
be supported in a sustainable manner.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider social, environmental and economic objectives. Whilst
infrastructure constraints are generally expected to arise by exception rather than as a widespread
issue, there may be circumstances where growth and infrastructure investment need to be
coordinated to support sustainable and deliverable outcomes.
The Local Plan also presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy whilst supporting the
protection of water quality, water resources and essential utility infrastructure.
Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, environmental assets and varied urban and rural
communities mean that the sustainable management of water should be a key consideration in the
preparation of the Local Plan. The Plan presents an important opportunity to align future growth with
the delivery of water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure; improve water quality; support the
removal of surface water from the sewer network where opportunities arise; increase resilience to
flood risk and climate change; and protect and enhance the borough's wider blue-green
infrastructure network.
We encourage the Council to direct developers to our pre-application service to discuss proposals
and identify any potential constraints at an early stage by contacting:
Website (including ‘Live Chat’): Building & Developing - United Utilities
Telephone (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm): 0345 072 6067
Email:
WATER (water mains, supply and metering): DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
WASTEWATER (public sewers and drainage): SewerAdoptions@uuplc.co.uk
SLUDGE PIPELINES: DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
To supplement this response, we have enclosed an Appendix providing supporting information and
example policy wording for consideration during the preparation of the new Local Plan. Please note
that we are in the process of updating this supporting document to reflect the latest changes to the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Please ensure that regard is had to both the main body of this letter and the associated supporting
information, which includes recommended policy approaches, and supporting water efficiency
evidence.
Scope of the New Local Plan
UUW supports the broad scope proposed for the new Local Plan. The emerging Plan should
recognise the fundamental role that water and wastewater infrastructure plays in facilitating
sustainable development and supporting healthy, resilient communities. Infrastructure
considerations should be integrated throughout plan preparation, including the development of the
spatial strategy, site allocation process, infrastructure planning, climate resilience policies and
delivery framework.
The evidence base supporting the Local Plan should include appropriate engagement with
infrastructure providers from the earliest stages of plan preparation to ensure that infrastructure
requirements, constraints and opportunities are properly understood.
Vision and Strategic Objectives
UUW supports the inclusion of strategic objectives relating to sustainable growth, climate
resilience, environmental protection and infrastructure delivery.
We recommend that the Vision and Strategic Objectives recognise:
• the role of infrastructure in supporting sustainable growth;
• climate resilient communities;
• sustainable water management;
• water efficiency;
• resilience to flooding and drought;
• protection of water resources and water quality;
• support for investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure;
• multifunctional blue-green infrastructure;
• improved water quality across local catchments;
• resilience to all forms of flood risk; and
• protection and enhancement of river catchments.
The Council should also consider including a specific objective relating to infrastructure planning
and delivery to ensure that growth aspirations are supported by a robust understanding of
infrastructure requirements throughout the plan period.
Suggested Vision Wording
‘Cheshire East will be a climate resilient borough where sustainable growth is supported by high
quality infrastructure, efficient use of natural resources, resilient water supplies and sustainable
wastewater services. The borough's environmental assets will be protected and enhanced through
integrated water management, biodiversity enhancement and the delivery of multifunctional blue
green infrastructure. Future development will be designed to support resilience to flooding, drought
and climate change whilst making efficient use of water resources and contributing towards
improvements in environmental quality and public wellbeing. The borough will positively support
investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to facilitate sustainable
development and improve environmental outcomes throughout the plan period.’
Spatial Strategy
UUW considers that the spatial strategy will be one of the most important elements of the new Local
Plan. Cheshire East contains a diverse range of settlements, including market towns, service
centres, villages and rural communities. Decisions regarding the distribution of development will
therefore have significant implications for infrastructure planning and service provision.
UUW supports a plan-led approach that directs development towards sustainable locations whilst
taking account of infrastructure considerations alongside economic, social and environmental
factors.
Infrastructure should not be considered in isolation and should not determine the spatial strategy.
However, infrastructure requirements, opportunities and delivery implications represent important
evidence that should inform decisions regarding the location and distribution of growth.
The Council should ensure that spatial strategy options are assessed against infrastructure
evidence to understand their respective implications for water and wastewater service provision.
Particular consideration should be given to:
• the cumulative effects of growth;
• the relative sustainability of different growth options;
• infrastructure delivery requirements;
• long-term service resilience; and
• the ability to coordinate development and infrastructure investment.
Given the extensive rural nature of parts of Cheshire East, growth distribution decisions may have
differing infrastructure implications than comparable growth within the Borough's larger urban
areas. The Local Plan should therefore be informed by a realistic understanding of infrastructure
requirements and deliverability.
Housing Growth and Site Allocations
UUW supports the allocation of sufficient land to meet identified development needs through a
clear and robust development strategy.
The Plan should seek to provide certainty regarding the location and scale of future growth. This
assists infrastructure providers in planning future investment requirements and enables potential
infrastructure needs to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Allocated sites generally provide significantly greater certainty than reliance upon unplanned
development opportunities. This supports:
• effective infrastructure planning;
• timely investment decisions;
• identification of network reinforcement requirements;
• coordination of infrastructure delivery; and
• consideration of sustainable water management measures from the outset.
The allocation process should therefore be supported by infrastructure evidence to ensure that
sites remain deliverable throughout the plan period. Where significant strategic allocations are
proposed, infrastructure requirements should be considered as part of the site's overall
development strategy.
The Council should recognise that fragmented land ownership can, in some circumstances, create
challenges for the coordinated delivery of development and supporting infrastructure. Where
multiple land interests are involved, there can be additional complexity in securing comprehensive
masterplanning, infrastructure corridors, surface water management measures and the timely
provision of utility infrastructure. As part of the site assessment and allocation process, the Council
should therefore have regard to the extent to which sites can be brought forward in a coordinated
and deliverable manner, supported by the infrastructure necessary to achieve sustainable
development.
The Local Plan should make use of site-specific allocation policies where appropriate to identify the
key requirements associated with the development of individual sites. Site-specific policies provide
an opportunity to clearly set out infrastructure, environmental and delivery expectations from the
outset and can help ensure that development is brought forward in a coordinated and
comprehensive manner. This may include requirements relating to water and wastewater
infrastructure, sustainable drainage, flood risk, water efficiency, green and blue infrastructure,
environmental mitigation and other measures necessary to support sustainable development. By
providing greater certainty regarding the requirements for development, site-specific policies can
help support effective infrastructure planning, improve deliverability and assist in securing
sustainable development outcomes throughout the Plan period.
Infrastructure Planning and Delivery
UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage at this early stage of plan preparation and would highlight
recent changes to national planning policy relating to water and wastewater infrastructure. The
National Planning Policy Framework places increased emphasis on the importance of
infrastructure planning and investment in supporting sustainable development. In particular,
national policy recognises the critical role of water and wastewater infrastructure in facilitating
growth and supporting the delivery of homes, employment and wider economic development.
The Council should have regard to the changes introduced through the revised National Planning
Policy Framework which require substantial weight to be given to the benefits associated with
proposals involving water supply and wastewater infrastructure. This reflects the essential role
such infrastructure plays in supporting sustainable development, environmental improvement,
public health and economic growth.
A clear and robust allocation strategy will also assist infrastructure planning by providing greater
certainty regarding the location, scale and timing of future development. Planned growth enables
infrastructure requirements to be understood at an earlier stage and supports more effective
coordination between development and infrastructure delivery than growth arising through
unplanned or speculative development opportunities.
Given the significant increase in housing need identified for Cheshire East, it will be important that
the Local Plan is supported by early and ongoing engagement with infrastructure providers,
including UUW, to ensure that infrastructure requirements are properly understood and reflected
throughout the plan-making process. The Local Plan should recognise that the timely delivery of
water and wastewater infrastructure is an important component of sustainable growth and that
investment may be required to facilitate development, support environmental improvements and
maintain resilient services. Infrastructure planning should therefore be integrated throughout plan
preparation to ensure that development aspirations and infrastructure delivery can be appropriately
coordinated.
Once site-specific requirements and delivery trajectories become clearer, there may be
circumstances where development and infrastructure delivery need to be coordinated to ensure
that appropriate infrastructure is available to serve growth.
The Council should also have regard to recent changes to national Green Belt policy. National
planning policy now provides greater recognition of the role of essential infrastructure in the Green
Belt, including water and wastewater infrastructure. The revised Framework confirms that certain
forms of engineering and other operations, together with infrastructure required for water and
wastewater purposes, may not be inappropriate development in the Green Belt provided they
preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it. The Local
Plan should therefore ensure that locally-specific Green Belt policies do not create unnecessary
barriers to the delivery, maintenance, upgrading or expansion of essential water and wastewater
infrastructure where such development is required.
Investment in water and wastewater infrastructure should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for
accommodating growth. Infrastructure investment can also support wider environmental
objectives through improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, network resilience,
sustainable drainage initiatives and partnership-led integrated water management projects. Such
measures can contribute towards reducing surface water inflows to wastewater systems, improving
climate resilience, enhancing water quality and supporting wider objectives to reduce storm
overflow operation and sewer spills in accordance with the Environment Act 2021.
The Local Plan should provide an appropriate framework for coordinating growth and infrastructure
provision. The Plan should therefore recognise that:
• infrastructure requirements may vary between locations;
• infrastructure improvements may be required to support development in some
circumstances;
• infrastructure providers should be engaged throughout plan preparation; and
• development and infrastructure delivery may need to be coordinated where necessary.
This would assist in ensuring that growth remains sustainable and deliverable throughout the Plan
period.
Water Supply and Water Efficiency
The Local Plan should seek to promote the efficient use of water resources. UUW supports the
inclusion of policy requirements that seek to achieve high standards of water efficiency in new
development.
The Council should have regard to the evidence contained within UUW's latest Water Resources
Management Plan (WRMP24), which identifies water efficiency and demand reduction as key
components of a long-term, sustainable approach to water resource management across the
Strategic Resource Zone, UUW's principal water supply area serving the vast majority of customers
across the North West of England. WRMP24 supports reductions in water consumption to 110 litres
per person per day by 2050 as part of a wider package of measures aimed at improving the resilience
and sustainability of water supplies.
In accordance with the evidence contained within WRMP24 and wider regional and national water
resource planning objectives, UUW considers it appropriate for the Local Plan to require a water
efficiency standard of 110 litres per person per day for all new residential development across
Cheshire East. The Council should also support opportunities for water reuse through measures
such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling where appropriate. In addition to reducing
potable water demand, these measures can form part of an integrated approach to sustainable
water management by helping to manage surface water close to where it falls, consistent with the
surface water hierarchy and the principles underpinning the latest Non-Statutory Technical
Standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems.
Improving water efficiency will contribute towards the sustainable management of water resources,
support wider climate resilience objectives and help reduce water consumption and customer
water bills. It also assists in reducing future demand for water resources and the scale of investment
that may otherwise be required to maintain long-term water supply resilience.
Sustainable Water Management and Flood Risk
UUW strongly supports a coordinated and integrated water management approach through the
Local Plan. Water supply, wastewater infrastructure, drainage, flood risk management, green
infrastructure and environmental outcomes are closely interrelated and should be planned in a
coordinated manner.
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. This has the
potential to increase the volume and rate of surface water entering drainage systems, placing
additional pressure on wastewater networks and increasing flood risk. The Local Plan can help
address these challenges through policies that support sustainable drainage systems, blue-green
infrastructure, natural flood management, watercourse restoration and opportunities to manage
surface water above ground wherever appropriate.
The Local Plan has an important role to play in supporting these outcomes. Through effective place
making, development design and strategic infrastructure planning, new development should seek
to manage surface water sustainably and minimise unnecessary connections to the wastewater
network. An integrated water management approach can contribute to reducing flows within sewer
systems and support wider partnership objectives to reduce storm overflow operation and sewer
spills in accordance with the objectives established through the Environment Act 2021 and related
regulatory requirements.
The Council should consider how planning policy can support integrated water management
outcomes through requirements for sustainable drainage, multifunctional green infrastructure,
surface water separation where feasible, catchment-based approaches and early engagement
between developers, the Council, Lead Local Flood Authority and United Utilities. Such measures
can help ensure that growth is delivered in a manner that supports both environmental
improvement and the long-term resilience of water infrastructure.
The Local Plan should support the application of the drainage hierarchy and encourage sustainable
drainage solutions that manage surface water as close to source as possible. This should include
the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), multi-functional blue-green infrastructure,
surface water attenuation and water quality improvements, alongside measures that support
climate resilience and foul-only drainage approaches wherever practicable. Sustainable drainage
should be considered at the earliest stages of development design to maximise environmental and
infrastructure benefits.
Climate Change and Resilience
UUW supports the inclusion of strong climate adaptation and resilience policies within the new
Local Plan.
The effects of climate change will increasingly influence how places are planned and developed.
The Local Plan should therefore encourage development that is resilient to future climate
conditions and incorporates appropriate adaptation measures from the outset.
Water management has an important role to play in supporting climate resilience through:
• water efficiency;
• drought resilience;
• protection and enhancement of the water environment;
• resilient water and wastewater infrastructure; and
• sustainable design measures that support adaptation to changing climatic conditions.
The Local Plan should support development that contributes towards the long-term resilience of
communities, infrastructure and the environment whilst recognising the role that effective water
management can play in achieving these outcomes.
Evidence Base
The evidence base should support an understanding of how water and wastewater infrastructure
considerations interact with growth options, site allocations, delivery assumptions and
infrastructure investment planning to inform the development of a sound, deliverable and
sustainable spatial strategy.
UUW welcomes the opportunity to assist Cheshire East Council in developing the evidence base
supporting the Local Plan. The evidence base should support an understanding of how
infrastructure considerations interact with growth options, site allocations and delivery
assumptions to inform the development of a sound and deliverable spatial strategy.
The Council should engage directly with UUW regarding water and wastewater matters to ensure
that the evidence base reflects the latest available information relating to:
• water supply and wastewater infrastructure;
• sewer and reservoir flood risk, which should inform future Strategic Flood Risk Assessment
work; and
• the latest evidence contained within the Water Resources Management Plan 2024 and any
subsequent updates.
The Council should also engage with UUW when considering the implications of planned growth for
water and wastewater infrastructure, including any requirements arising from the Local Plan
strategy and the potential need for future infrastructure investment.
As statutory water and wastewater undertaker, UUW is best placed to provide advice on existing
infrastructure, network and treatment capacity, growth implications, infrastructure planning and
investment requirements. The preparation of water and wastewater evidence should therefore be
undertaken in consultation with UUW rather than relying solely on third-party assessments or
assumptions regarding infrastructure capacity.
Early and ongoing engagement will help ensure that infrastructure considerations are accurately
understood and appropriately reflected within the evidence base, site assessment process, spatial
strategy and wider plan-making decisions.
Safeguarding Infrastructure Assets
The Local Plan should contain an appropriate policy framework to safeguard existing water and
wastewater infrastructure. Development proposals should take account of operational assets and
ensure that appropriate access, easements and protection measures are maintained.
Where diversion of infrastructure is proposed, this should be addressed through early engagement
with UUW and considered as part of site deliverability and design processes. UUW does not object
in principle to infrastructure diversion where appropriate engineering solutions can be identified
and operational requirements can continue to be met.
Summary
UUW supports the preparation of a new Local Plan that promotes sustainable, deliverable and
resilient growth across Cheshire East. In particular, the emerging Plan should:
• adopt a clear and robust plan-led strategy for growth;
• ensure that infrastructure planning and delivery considerations inform spatial strategy
decisions;
• support allocation-led growth that provides certainty for infrastructure planning;
• facilitate coordinated infrastructure delivery where necessary;
• promote sustainable water management and SuDS;
• require high standards of water efficiency, including a residential water consumption
standard of 110 litres per person per day;
• support climate resilience and environmental protection;
• safeguard existing infrastructure assets; and
• engage directly with UUW in the preparation of the evidence base.
The new Local Plan presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy. This is particularly
important given Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, varied urban and rural communities,
and the increasing challenges associated with climate change, water quality, water resource
management and flood risk from all sources.
Climate adaptation should be treated as a golden thread running throughout the Plan and supported
by robust application of the drainage hierarchy, multifunctional sustainable drainage systems,
blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and effective management of water resources.
These measures can help deliver multiple benefits including improved flood resilience, enhanced
biodiversity, improved water quality and increased community wellbeing.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider environmental, social and economic objectives. The timely
provision of water and wastewater infrastructure can play a critical role in facilitating growth,
supporting environmental improvements and maintaining resilient services. Development can
generally be accommodated most effectively where existing infrastructure has available capacity
or where infrastructure improvements can be planned and delivered in a coordinated manner.
The Plan should recognise the strategic importance of water resources, water quality, essential
utility infrastructure and coordinated infrastructure planning whilst supporting investment required
to improve environmental outcomes, enhance resilience, protect public health and facilitate
sustainable development.
The Council's emerging Local Plan presents an opportunity to align future growth with wider
objectives around integrated water management, climate resilience and environmental
improvement. Through ongoing collaboration between the Council, UUW and other stakeholders,
new development can contribute towards reducing surface water inputs to wastewater networks,
supporting future investment strategies, improving resilience and helping to deliver the
environmental outcomes sought through the Environment Act and related regulatory programmes.
This will help ensure that growth is supported by resilient infrastructure whilst delivering wider
benefits for communities and the environment.
The Council is invited to have regard to the detailed recommendations contained within the
enclosed ‘Supporting Information and Recommended Policies for Local Plan Preparation’, and
UUW would welcome the opportunity for continued engagement as the Local Plan progresses.
UUW looks forward to continuing to work with the Council throughout preparation of the Local Plan
and supporting evidence base.

Thank you for consulting United Utilities Water Limited (UUW) on the Cheshire East Local Plan
Scoping Consultation. UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage with Cheshire East Council at this
early stage of plan preparation and looks forward to working positively with the Council throughout
the development of the new Local Plan. UUW wishes to build a strong partnership with the Council
to support the preparation of a sound, sustainable and deliverable Local Plan. Early and ongoing
engagement between local planning authorities and infrastructure providers is important to ensure
that growth and infrastructure planning are appropriately aligned and that future development can
be supported in a sustainable manner.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider social, environmental and economic objectives. Whilst
infrastructure constraints are generally expected to arise by exception rather than as a widespread
issue, there may be circumstances where growth and infrastructure investment need to be
coordinated to support sustainable and deliverable outcomes.
The Local Plan also presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy whilst supporting the
protection of water quality, water resources and essential utility infrastructure.
Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, environmental assets and varied urban and rural
communities mean that the sustainable management of water should be a key consideration in the
preparation of the Local Plan. The Plan presents an important opportunity to align future growth with
the delivery of water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure; improve water quality; support the
removal of surface water from the sewer network where opportunities arise; increase resilience to
flood risk and climate change; and protect and enhance the borough's wider blue-green
infrastructure network.
We encourage the Council to direct developers to our pre-application service to discuss proposals
and identify any potential constraints at an early stage by contacting:
Website (including ‘Live Chat’): Building & Developing - United Utilities
Telephone (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm): 0345 072 6067
Email:
WATER (water mains, supply and metering): DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
WASTEWATER (public sewers and drainage): SewerAdoptions@uuplc.co.uk
SLUDGE PIPELINES: DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
To supplement this response, we have enclosed an Appendix providing supporting information and
example policy wording for consideration during the preparation of the new Local Plan. Please note
that we are in the process of updating this supporting document to reflect the latest changes to the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Please ensure that regard is had to both the main body of this letter and the associated supporting
information, which includes recommended policy approaches, and supporting water efficiency
evidence.
Scope of the New Local Plan
UUW supports the broad scope proposed for the new Local Plan. The emerging Plan should
recognise the fundamental role that water and wastewater infrastructure plays in facilitating
sustainable development and supporting healthy, resilient communities. Infrastructure
considerations should be integrated throughout plan preparation, including the development of the
spatial strategy, site allocation process, infrastructure planning, climate resilience policies and
delivery framework.
The evidence base supporting the Local Plan should include appropriate engagement with
infrastructure providers from the earliest stages of plan preparation to ensure that infrastructure
requirements, constraints and opportunities are properly understood.
Vision and Strategic Objectives
UUW supports the inclusion of strategic objectives relating to sustainable growth, climate
resilience, environmental protection and infrastructure delivery.
We recommend that the Vision and Strategic Objectives recognise:
• the role of infrastructure in supporting sustainable growth;
• climate resilient communities;
• sustainable water management;
• water efficiency;
• resilience to flooding and drought;
• protection of water resources and water quality;
• support for investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure;
• multifunctional blue-green infrastructure;
• improved water quality across local catchments;
• resilience to all forms of flood risk; and
• protection and enhancement of river catchments.
The Council should also consider including a specific objective relating to infrastructure planning
and delivery to ensure that growth aspirations are supported by a robust understanding of
infrastructure requirements throughout the plan period.
Suggested Vision Wording
‘Cheshire East will be a climate resilient borough where sustainable growth is supported by high
quality infrastructure, efficient use of natural resources, resilient water supplies and sustainable
wastewater services. The borough's environmental assets will be protected and enhanced through
integrated water management, biodiversity enhancement and the delivery of multifunctional blue
green infrastructure. Future development will be designed to support resilience to flooding, drought
and climate change whilst making efficient use of water resources and contributing towards
improvements in environmental quality and public wellbeing. The borough will positively support
investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to facilitate sustainable
development and improve environmental outcomes throughout the plan period.’
Spatial Strategy
UUW considers that the spatial strategy will be one of the most important elements of the new Local
Plan. Cheshire East contains a diverse range of settlements, including market towns, service
centres, villages and rural communities. Decisions regarding the distribution of development will
therefore have significant implications for infrastructure planning and service provision.
UUW supports a plan-led approach that directs development towards sustainable locations whilst
taking account of infrastructure considerations alongside economic, social and environmental
factors.
Infrastructure should not be considered in isolation and should not determine the spatial strategy.
However, infrastructure requirements, opportunities and delivery implications represent important
evidence that should inform decisions regarding the location and distribution of growth.
The Council should ensure that spatial strategy options are assessed against infrastructure
evidence to understand their respective implications for water and wastewater service provision.
Particular consideration should be given to:
• the cumulative effects of growth;
• the relative sustainability of different growth options;
• infrastructure delivery requirements;
• long-term service resilience; and
• the ability to coordinate development and infrastructure investment.
Given the extensive rural nature of parts of Cheshire East, growth distribution decisions may have
differing infrastructure implications than comparable growth within the Borough's larger urban
areas. The Local Plan should therefore be informed by a realistic understanding of infrastructure
requirements and deliverability.
Housing Growth and Site Allocations
UUW supports the allocation of sufficient land to meet identified development needs through a
clear and robust development strategy.
The Plan should seek to provide certainty regarding the location and scale of future growth. This
assists infrastructure providers in planning future investment requirements and enables potential
infrastructure needs to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Allocated sites generally provide significantly greater certainty than reliance upon unplanned
development opportunities. This supports:
• effective infrastructure planning;
• timely investment decisions;
• identification of network reinforcement requirements;
• coordination of infrastructure delivery; and
• consideration of sustainable water management measures from the outset.
The allocation process should therefore be supported by infrastructure evidence to ensure that
sites remain deliverable throughout the plan period. Where significant strategic allocations are
proposed, infrastructure requirements should be considered as part of the site's overall
development strategy.
The Council should recognise that fragmented land ownership can, in some circumstances, create
challenges for the coordinated delivery of development and supporting infrastructure. Where
multiple land interests are involved, there can be additional complexity in securing comprehensive
masterplanning, infrastructure corridors, surface water management measures and the timely
provision of utility infrastructure. As part of the site assessment and allocation process, the Council
should therefore have regard to the extent to which sites can be brought forward in a coordinated
and deliverable manner, supported by the infrastructure necessary to achieve sustainable
development.
The Local Plan should make use of site-specific allocation policies where appropriate to identify the
key requirements associated with the development of individual sites. Site-specific policies provide
an opportunity to clearly set out infrastructure, environmental and delivery expectations from the
outset and can help ensure that development is brought forward in a coordinated and
comprehensive manner. This may include requirements relating to water and wastewater
infrastructure, sustainable drainage, flood risk, water efficiency, green and blue infrastructure,
environmental mitigation and other measures necessary to support sustainable development. By
providing greater certainty regarding the requirements for development, site-specific policies can
help support effective infrastructure planning, improve deliverability and assist in securing
sustainable development outcomes throughout the Plan period.
Infrastructure Planning and Delivery
UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage at this early stage of plan preparation and would highlight
recent changes to national planning policy relating to water and wastewater infrastructure. The
National Planning Policy Framework places increased emphasis on the importance of
infrastructure planning and investment in supporting sustainable development. In particular,
national policy recognises the critical role of water and wastewater infrastructure in facilitating
growth and supporting the delivery of homes, employment and wider economic development.
The Council should have regard to the changes introduced through the revised National Planning
Policy Framework which require substantial weight to be given to the benefits associated with
proposals involving water supply and wastewater infrastructure. This reflects the essential role
such infrastructure plays in supporting sustainable development, environmental improvement,
public health and economic growth.
A clear and robust allocation strategy will also assist infrastructure planning by providing greater
certainty regarding the location, scale and timing of future development. Planned growth enables
infrastructure requirements to be understood at an earlier stage and supports more effective
coordination between development and infrastructure delivery than growth arising through
unplanned or speculative development opportunities.
Given the significant increase in housing need identified for Cheshire East, it will be important that
the Local Plan is supported by early and ongoing engagement with infrastructure providers,
including UUW, to ensure that infrastructure requirements are properly understood and reflected
throughout the plan-making process. The Local Plan should recognise that the timely delivery of
water and wastewater infrastructure is an important component of sustainable growth and that
investment may be required to facilitate development, support environmental improvements and
maintain resilient services. Infrastructure planning should therefore be integrated throughout plan
preparation to ensure that development aspirations and infrastructure delivery can be appropriately
coordinated.
Once site-specific requirements and delivery trajectories become clearer, there may be
circumstances where development and infrastructure delivery need to be coordinated to ensure
that appropriate infrastructure is available to serve growth.
The Council should also have regard to recent changes to national Green Belt policy. National
planning policy now provides greater recognition of the role of essential infrastructure in the Green
Belt, including water and wastewater infrastructure. The revised Framework confirms that certain
forms of engineering and other operations, together with infrastructure required for water and
wastewater purposes, may not be inappropriate development in the Green Belt provided they
preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it. The Local
Plan should therefore ensure that locally-specific Green Belt policies do not create unnecessary
barriers to the delivery, maintenance, upgrading or expansion of essential water and wastewater
infrastructure where such development is required.
Investment in water and wastewater infrastructure should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for
accommodating growth. Infrastructure investment can also support wider environmental
objectives through improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, network resilience,
sustainable drainage initiatives and partnership-led integrated water management projects. Such
measures can contribute towards reducing surface water inflows to wastewater systems, improving
climate resilience, enhancing water quality and supporting wider objectives to reduce storm
overflow operation and sewer spills in accordance with the Environment Act 2021.
The Local Plan should provide an appropriate framework for coordinating growth and infrastructure
provision. The Plan should therefore recognise that:
• infrastructure requirements may vary between locations;
• infrastructure improvements may be required to support development in some
circumstances;
• infrastructure providers should be engaged throughout plan preparation; and
• development and infrastructure delivery may need to be coordinated where necessary.
This would assist in ensuring that growth remains sustainable and deliverable throughout the Plan
period.
Water Supply and Water Efficiency
The Local Plan should seek to promote the efficient use of water resources. UUW supports the
inclusion of policy requirements that seek to achieve high standards of water efficiency in new
development.
The Council should have regard to the evidence contained within UUW's latest Water Resources
Management Plan (WRMP24), which identifies water efficiency and demand reduction as key
components of a long-term, sustainable approach to water resource management across the
Strategic Resource Zone, UUW's principal water supply area serving the vast majority of customers
across the North West of England. WRMP24 supports reductions in water consumption to 110 litres
per person per day by 2050 as part of a wider package of measures aimed at improving the resilience
and sustainability of water supplies.
In accordance with the evidence contained within WRMP24 and wider regional and national water
resource planning objectives, UUW considers it appropriate for the Local Plan to require a water
efficiency standard of 110 litres per person per day for all new residential development across
Cheshire East. The Council should also support opportunities for water reuse through measures
such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling where appropriate. In addition to reducing
potable water demand, these measures can form part of an integrated approach to sustainable
water management by helping to manage surface water close to where it falls, consistent with the
surface water hierarchy and the principles underpinning the latest Non-Statutory Technical
Standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems.
Improving water efficiency will contribute towards the sustainable management of water resources,
support wider climate resilience objectives and help reduce water consumption and customer
water bills. It also assists in reducing future demand for water resources and the scale of investment
that may otherwise be required to maintain long-term water supply resilience.
Sustainable Water Management and Flood Risk
UUW strongly supports a coordinated and integrated water management approach through the
Local Plan. Water supply, wastewater infrastructure, drainage, flood risk management, green
infrastructure and environmental outcomes are closely interrelated and should be planned in a
coordinated manner.
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. This has the
potential to increase the volume and rate of surface water entering drainage systems, placing
additional pressure on wastewater networks and increasing flood risk. The Local Plan can help
address these challenges through policies that support sustainable drainage systems, blue-green
infrastructure, natural flood management, watercourse restoration and opportunities to manage
surface water above ground wherever appropriate.
The Local Plan has an important role to play in supporting these outcomes. Through effective place
making, development design and strategic infrastructure planning, new development should seek
to manage surface water sustainably and minimise unnecessary connections to the wastewater
network. An integrated water management approach can contribute to reducing flows within sewer
systems and support wider partnership objectives to reduce storm overflow operation and sewer
spills in accordance with the objectives established through the Environment Act 2021 and related
regulatory requirements.
The Council should consider how planning policy can support integrated water management
outcomes through requirements for sustainable drainage, multifunctional green infrastructure,
surface water separation where feasible, catchment-based approaches and early engagement
between developers, the Council, Lead Local Flood Authority and United Utilities. Such measures
can help ensure that growth is delivered in a manner that supports both environmental
improvement and the long-term resilience of water infrastructure.
The Local Plan should support the application of the drainage hierarchy and encourage sustainable
drainage solutions that manage surface water as close to source as possible. This should include
the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), multi-functional blue-green infrastructure,
surface water attenuation and water quality improvements, alongside measures that support
climate resilience and foul-only drainage approaches wherever practicable. Sustainable drainage
should be considered at the earliest stages of development design to maximise environmental and
infrastructure benefits.
Climate Change and Resilience
UUW supports the inclusion of strong climate adaptation and resilience policies within the new
Local Plan.
The effects of climate change will increasingly influence how places are planned and developed.
The Local Plan should therefore encourage development that is resilient to future climate
conditions and incorporates appropriate adaptation measures from the outset.
Water management has an important role to play in supporting climate resilience through:
• water efficiency;
• drought resilience;
• protection and enhancement of the water environment;
• resilient water and wastewater infrastructure; and
• sustainable design measures that support adaptation to changing climatic conditions.
The Local Plan should support development that contributes towards the long-term resilience of
communities, infrastructure and the environment whilst recognising the role that effective water
management can play in achieving these outcomes.
Evidence Base
The evidence base should support an understanding of how water and wastewater infrastructure
considerations interact with growth options, site allocations, delivery assumptions and
infrastructure investment planning to inform the development of a sound, deliverable and
sustainable spatial strategy.
UUW welcomes the opportunity to assist Cheshire East Council in developing the evidence base
supporting the Local Plan. The evidence base should support an understanding of how
infrastructure considerations interact with growth options, site allocations and delivery
assumptions to inform the development of a sound and deliverable spatial strategy.
The Council should engage directly with UUW regarding water and wastewater matters to ensure
that the evidence base reflects the latest available information relating to:
• water supply and wastewater infrastructure;
• sewer and reservoir flood risk, which should inform future Strategic Flood Risk Assessment
work; and
• the latest evidence contained within the Water Resources Management Plan 2024 and any
subsequent updates.
The Council should also engage with UUW when considering the implications of planned growth for
water and wastewater infrastructure, including any requirements arising from the Local Plan
strategy and the potential need for future infrastructure investment.
As statutory water and wastewater undertaker, UUW is best placed to provide advice on existing
infrastructure, network and treatment capacity, growth implications, infrastructure planning and
investment requirements. The preparation of water and wastewater evidence should therefore be
undertaken in consultation with UUW rather than relying solely on third-party assessments or
assumptions regarding infrastructure capacity.
Early and ongoing engagement will help ensure that infrastructure considerations are accurately
understood and appropriately reflected within the evidence base, site assessment process, spatial
strategy and wider plan-making decisions.
Safeguarding Infrastructure Assets
The Local Plan should contain an appropriate policy framework to safeguard existing water and
wastewater infrastructure. Development proposals should take account of operational assets and
ensure that appropriate access, easements and protection measures are maintained.
Where diversion of infrastructure is proposed, this should be addressed through early engagement
with UUW and considered as part of site deliverability and design processes. UUW does not object
in principle to infrastructure diversion where appropriate engineering solutions can be identified
and operational requirements can continue to be met.
Summary
UUW supports the preparation of a new Local Plan that promotes sustainable, deliverable and
resilient growth across Cheshire East. In particular, the emerging Plan should:
• adopt a clear and robust plan-led strategy for growth;
• ensure that infrastructure planning and delivery considerations inform spatial strategy
decisions;
• support allocation-led growth that provides certainty for infrastructure planning;
• facilitate coordinated infrastructure delivery where necessary;
• promote sustainable water management and SuDS;
• require high standards of water efficiency, including a residential water consumption
standard of 110 litres per person per day;
• support climate resilience and environmental protection;
• safeguard existing infrastructure assets; and
• engage directly with UUW in the preparation of the evidence base.
The new Local Plan presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy. This is particularly
important given Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, varied urban and rural communities,
and the increasing challenges associated with climate change, water quality, water resource
management and flood risk from all sources.
Climate adaptation should be treated as a golden thread running throughout the Plan and supported
by robust application of the drainage hierarchy, multifunctional sustainable drainage systems,
blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and effective management of water resources.
These measures can help deliver multiple benefits including improved flood resilience, enhanced
biodiversity, improved water quality and increased community wellbeing.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider environmental, social and economic objectives. The timely
provision of water and wastewater infrastructure can play a critical role in facilitating growth,
supporting environmental improvements and maintaining resilient services. Development can
generally be accommodated most effectively where existing infrastructure has available capacity
or where infrastructure improvements can be planned and delivered in a coordinated manner.
The Plan should recognise the strategic importance of water resources, water quality, essential
utility infrastructure and coordinated infrastructure planning whilst supporting investment required
to improve environmental outcomes, enhance resilience, protect public health and facilitate
sustainable development.
The Council's emerging Local Plan presents an opportunity to align future growth with wider
objectives around integrated water management, climate resilience and environmental
improvement. Through ongoing collaboration between the Council, UUW and other stakeholders,
new development can contribute towards reducing surface water inputs to wastewater networks,
supporting future investment strategies, improving resilience and helping to deliver the
environmental outcomes sought through the Environment Act and related regulatory programmes.
This will help ensure that growth is supported by resilient infrastructure whilst delivering wider
benefits for communities and the environment.
The Council is invited to have regard to the detailed recommendations contained within the
enclosed ‘Supporting Information and Recommended Policies for Local Plan Preparation’, and
UUW would welcome the opportunity for continued engagement as the Local Plan progresses.
UUW looks forward to continuing to work with the Council throughout preparation of the Local Plan
and supporting evidence base.

Thank you for consulting United Utilities Water Limited (UUW) on the Cheshire East Local Plan
Scoping Consultation. UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage with Cheshire East Council at this
early stage of plan preparation and looks forward to working positively with the Council throughout
the development of the new Local Plan. UUW wishes to build a strong partnership with the Council
to support the preparation of a sound, sustainable and deliverable Local Plan. Early and ongoing
engagement between local planning authorities and infrastructure providers is important to ensure
that growth and infrastructure planning are appropriately aligned and that future development can
be supported in a sustainable manner.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider social, environmental and economic objectives. Whilst
infrastructure constraints are generally expected to arise by exception rather than as a widespread
issue, there may be circumstances where growth and infrastructure investment need to be
coordinated to support sustainable and deliverable outcomes.
The Local Plan also presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy whilst supporting the
protection of water quality, water resources and essential utility infrastructure.
Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, environmental assets and varied urban and rural
communities mean that the sustainable management of water should be a key consideration in the
preparation of the Local Plan. The Plan presents an important opportunity to align future growth with
the delivery of water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure; improve water quality; support the
removal of surface water from the sewer network where opportunities arise; increase resilience to
flood risk and climate change; and protect and enhance the borough's wider blue-green
infrastructure network.
We encourage the Council to direct developers to our pre-application service to discuss proposals
and identify any potential constraints at an early stage by contacting:
Website (including ‘Live Chat’): Building & Developing - United Utilities
Telephone (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm): 0345 072 6067
Email:
WATER (water mains, supply and metering): DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
WASTEWATER (public sewers and drainage): SewerAdoptions@uuplc.co.uk
SLUDGE PIPELINES: DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
To supplement this response, we have enclosed an Appendix providing supporting information and
example policy wording for consideration during the preparation of the new Local Plan. Please note
that we are in the process of updating this supporting document to reflect the latest changes to the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Please ensure that regard is had to both the main body of this letter and the associated supporting
information, which includes recommended policy approaches, and supporting water efficiency
evidence.
Scope of the New Local Plan
UUW supports the broad scope proposed for the new Local Plan. The emerging Plan should
recognise the fundamental role that water and wastewater infrastructure plays in facilitating
sustainable development and supporting healthy, resilient communities. Infrastructure
considerations should be integrated throughout plan preparation, including the development of the
spatial strategy, site allocation process, infrastructure planning, climate resilience policies and
delivery framework.
The evidence base supporting the Local Plan should include appropriate engagement with
infrastructure providers from the earliest stages of plan preparation to ensure that infrastructure
requirements, constraints and opportunities are properly understood.
Vision and Strategic Objectives
UUW supports the inclusion of strategic objectives relating to sustainable growth, climate
resilience, environmental protection and infrastructure delivery.
We recommend that the Vision and Strategic Objectives recognise:
• the role of infrastructure in supporting sustainable growth;
• climate resilient communities;
• sustainable water management;
• water efficiency;
• resilience to flooding and drought;
• protection of water resources and water quality;
• support for investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure;
• multifunctional blue-green infrastructure;
• improved water quality across local catchments;
• resilience to all forms of flood risk; and
• protection and enhancement of river catchments.
The Council should also consider including a specific objective relating to infrastructure planning
and delivery to ensure that growth aspirations are supported by a robust understanding of
infrastructure requirements throughout the plan period.
Suggested Vision Wording
‘Cheshire East will be a climate resilient borough where sustainable growth is supported by high
quality infrastructure, efficient use of natural resources, resilient water supplies and sustainable
wastewater services. The borough's environmental assets will be protected and enhanced through
integrated water management, biodiversity enhancement and the delivery of multifunctional blue
green infrastructure. Future development will be designed to support resilience to flooding, drought
and climate change whilst making efficient use of water resources and contributing towards
improvements in environmental quality and public wellbeing. The borough will positively support
investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to facilitate sustainable
development and improve environmental outcomes throughout the plan period.’
Spatial Strategy
UUW considers that the spatial strategy will be one of the most important elements of the new Local
Plan. Cheshire East contains a diverse range of settlements, including market towns, service
centres, villages and rural communities. Decisions regarding the distribution of development will
therefore have significant implications for infrastructure planning and service provision.
UUW supports a plan-led approach that directs development towards sustainable locations whilst
taking account of infrastructure considerations alongside economic, social and environmental
factors.
Infrastructure should not be considered in isolation and should not determine the spatial strategy.
However, infrastructure requirements, opportunities and delivery implications represent important
evidence that should inform decisions regarding the location and distribution of growth.
The Council should ensure that spatial strategy options are assessed against infrastructure
evidence to understand their respective implications for water and wastewater service provision.
Particular consideration should be given to:
• the cumulative effects of growth;
• the relative sustainability of different growth options;
• infrastructure delivery requirements;
• long-term service resilience; and
• the ability to coordinate development and infrastructure investment.
Given the extensive rural nature of parts of Cheshire East, growth distribution decisions may have
differing infrastructure implications than comparable growth within the Borough's larger urban
areas. The Local Plan should therefore be informed by a realistic understanding of infrastructure
requirements and deliverability.
Housing Growth and Site Allocations
UUW supports the allocation of sufficient land to meet identified development needs through a
clear and robust development strategy.
The Plan should seek to provide certainty regarding the location and scale of future growth. This
assists infrastructure providers in planning future investment requirements and enables potential
infrastructure needs to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Allocated sites generally provide significantly greater certainty than reliance upon unplanned
development opportunities. This supports:
• effective infrastructure planning;
• timely investment decisions;
• identification of network reinforcement requirements;
• coordination of infrastructure delivery; and
• consideration of sustainable water management measures from the outset.
The allocation process should therefore be supported by infrastructure evidence to ensure that
sites remain deliverable throughout the plan period. Where significant strategic allocations are
proposed, infrastructure requirements should be considered as part of the site's overall
development strategy.
The Council should recognise that fragmented land ownership can, in some circumstances, create
challenges for the coordinated delivery of development and supporting infrastructure. Where
multiple land interests are involved, there can be additional complexity in securing comprehensive
masterplanning, infrastructure corridors, surface water management measures and the timely
provision of utility infrastructure. As part of the site assessment and allocation process, the Council
should therefore have regard to the extent to which sites can be brought forward in a coordinated
and deliverable manner, supported by the infrastructure necessary to achieve sustainable
development.
The Local Plan should make use of site-specific allocation policies where appropriate to identify the
key requirements associated with the development of individual sites. Site-specific policies provide
an opportunity to clearly set out infrastructure, environmental and delivery expectations from the
outset and can help ensure that development is brought forward in a coordinated and
comprehensive manner. This may include requirements relating to water and wastewater
infrastructure, sustainable drainage, flood risk, water efficiency, green and blue infrastructure,
environmental mitigation and other measures necessary to support sustainable development. By
providing greater certainty regarding the requirements for development, site-specific policies can
help support effective infrastructure planning, improve deliverability and assist in securing
sustainable development outcomes throughout the Plan period.
Infrastructure Planning and Delivery
UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage at this early stage of plan preparation and would highlight
recent changes to national planning policy relating to water and wastewater infrastructure. The
National Planning Policy Framework places increased emphasis on the importance of
infrastructure planning and investment in supporting sustainable development. In particular,
national policy recognises the critical role of water and wastewater infrastructure in facilitating
growth and supporting the delivery of homes, employment and wider economic development.
The Council should have regard to the changes introduced through the revised National Planning
Policy Framework which require substantial weight to be given to the benefits associated with
proposals involving water supply and wastewater infrastructure. This reflects the essential role
such infrastructure plays in supporting sustainable development, environmental improvement,
public health and economic growth.
A clear and robust allocation strategy will also assist infrastructure planning by providing greater
certainty regarding the location, scale and timing of future development. Planned growth enables
infrastructure requirements to be understood at an earlier stage and supports more effective
coordination between development and infrastructure delivery than growth arising through
unplanned or speculative development opportunities.
Given the significant increase in housing need identified for Cheshire East, it will be important that
the Local Plan is supported by early and ongoing engagement with infrastructure providers,
including UUW, to ensure that infrastructure requirements are properly understood and reflected
throughout the plan-making process. The Local Plan should recognise that the timely delivery of
water and wastewater infrastructure is an important component of sustainable growth and that
investment may be required to facilitate development, support environmental improvements and
maintain resilient services. Infrastructure planning should therefore be integrated throughout plan
preparation to ensure that development aspirations and infrastructure delivery can be appropriately
coordinated.
Once site-specific requirements and delivery trajectories become clearer, there may be
circumstances where development and infrastructure delivery need to be coordinated to ensure
that appropriate infrastructure is available to serve growth.
The Council should also have regard to recent changes to national Green Belt policy. National
planning policy now provides greater recognition of the role of essential infrastructure in the Green
Belt, including water and wastewater infrastructure. The revised Framework confirms that certain
forms of engineering and other operations, together with infrastructure required for water and
wastewater purposes, may not be inappropriate development in the Green Belt provided they
preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it. The Local
Plan should therefore ensure that locally-specific Green Belt policies do not create unnecessary
barriers to the delivery, maintenance, upgrading or expansion of essential water and wastewater
infrastructure where such development is required.
Investment in water and wastewater infrastructure should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for
accommodating growth. Infrastructure investment can also support wider environmental
objectives through improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, network resilience,
sustainable drainage initiatives and partnership-led integrated water management projects. Such
measures can contribute towards reducing surface water inflows to wastewater systems, improving
climate resilience, enhancing water quality and supporting wider objectives to reduce storm
overflow operation and sewer spills in accordance with the Environment Act 2021.
The Local Plan should provide an appropriate framework for coordinating growth and infrastructure
provision. The Plan should therefore recognise that:
• infrastructure requirements may vary between locations;
• infrastructure improvements may be required to support development in some
circumstances;
• infrastructure providers should be engaged throughout plan preparation; and
• development and infrastructure delivery may need to be coordinated where necessary.
This would assist in ensuring that growth remains sustainable and deliverable throughout the Plan
period.
Water Supply and Water Efficiency
The Local Plan should seek to promote the efficient use of water resources. UUW supports the
inclusion of policy requirements that seek to achieve high standards of water efficiency in new
development.
The Council should have regard to the evidence contained within UUW's latest Water Resources
Management Plan (WRMP24), which identifies water efficiency and demand reduction as key
components of a long-term, sustainable approach to water resource management across the
Strategic Resource Zone, UUW's principal water supply area serving the vast majority of customers
across the North West of England. WRMP24 supports reductions in water consumption to 110 litres
per person per day by 2050 as part of a wider package of measures aimed at improving the resilience
and sustainability of water supplies.
In accordance with the evidence contained within WRMP24 and wider regional and national water
resource planning objectives, UUW considers it appropriate for the Local Plan to require a water
efficiency standard of 110 litres per person per day for all new residential development across
Cheshire East. The Council should also support opportunities for water reuse through measures
such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling where appropriate. In addition to reducing
potable water demand, these measures can form part of an integrated approach to sustainable
water management by helping to manage surface water close to where it falls, consistent with the
surface water hierarchy and the principles underpinning the latest Non-Statutory Technical
Standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems.
Improving water efficiency will contribute towards the sustainable management of water resources,
support wider climate resilience objectives and help reduce water consumption and customer
water bills. It also assists in reducing future demand for water resources and the scale of investment
that may otherwise be required to maintain long-term water supply resilience.
Sustainable Water Management and Flood Risk
UUW strongly supports a coordinated and integrated water management approach through the
Local Plan. Water supply, wastewater infrastructure, drainage, flood risk management, green
infrastructure and environmental outcomes are closely interrelated and should be planned in a
coordinated manner.
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. This has the
potential to increase the volume and rate of surface water entering drainage systems, placing
additional pressure on wastewater networks and increasing flood risk. The Local Plan can help
address these challenges through policies that support sustainable drainage systems, blue-green
infrastructure, natural flood management, watercourse restoration and opportunities to manage
surface water above ground wherever appropriate.
The Local Plan has an important role to play in supporting these outcomes. Through effective place
making, development design and strategic infrastructure planning, new development should seek
to manage surface water sustainably and minimise unnecessary connections to the wastewater
network. An integrated water management approach can contribute to reducing flows within sewer
systems and support wider partnership objectives to reduce storm overflow operation and sewer
spills in accordance with the objectives established through the Environment Act 2021 and related
regulatory requirements.
The Council should consider how planning policy can support integrated water management
outcomes through requirements for sustainable drainage, multifunctional green infrastructure,
surface water separation where feasible, catchment-based approaches and early engagement
between developers, the Council, Lead Local Flood Authority and United Utilities. Such measures
can help ensure that growth is delivered in a manner that supports both environmental
improvement and the long-term resilience of water infrastructure.
The Local Plan should support the application of the drainage hierarchy and encourage sustainable
drainage solutions that manage surface water as close to source as possible. This should include
the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), multi-functional blue-green infrastructure,
surface water attenuation and water quality improvements, alongside measures that support
climate resilience and foul-only drainage approaches wherever practicable. Sustainable drainage
should be considered at the earliest stages of development design to maximise environmental and
infrastructure benefits.
Climate Change and Resilience
UUW supports the inclusion of strong climate adaptation and resilience policies within the new
Local Plan.
The effects of climate change will increasingly influence how places are planned and developed.
The Local Plan should therefore encourage development that is resilient to future climate
conditions and incorporates appropriate adaptation measures from the outset.
Water management has an important role to play in supporting climate resilience through:
• water efficiency;
• drought resilience;
• protection and enhancement of the water environment;
• resilient water and wastewater infrastructure; and
• sustainable design measures that support adaptation to changing climatic conditions.
The Local Plan should support development that contributes towards the long-term resilience of
communities, infrastructure and the environment whilst recognising the role that effective water
management can play in achieving these outcomes.
Evidence Base
The evidence base should support an understanding of how water and wastewater infrastructure
considerations interact with growth options, site allocations, delivery assumptions and
infrastructure investment planning to inform the development of a sound, deliverable and
sustainable spatial strategy.
UUW welcomes the opportunity to assist Cheshire East Council in developing the evidence base
supporting the Local Plan. The evidence base should support an understanding of how
infrastructure considerations interact with growth options, site allocations and delivery
assumptions to inform the development of a sound and deliverable spatial strategy.
The Council should engage directly with UUW regarding water and wastewater matters to ensure
that the evidence base reflects the latest available information relating to:
• water supply and wastewater infrastructure;
• sewer and reservoir flood risk, which should inform future Strategic Flood Risk Assessment
work; and
• the latest evidence contained within the Water Resources Management Plan 2024 and any
subsequent updates.
The Council should also engage with UUW when considering the implications of planned growth for
water and wastewater infrastructure, including any requirements arising from the Local Plan
strategy and the potential need for future infrastructure investment.
As statutory water and wastewater undertaker, UUW is best placed to provide advice on existing
infrastructure, network and treatment capacity, growth implications, infrastructure planning and
investment requirements. The preparation of water and wastewater evidence should therefore be
undertaken in consultation with UUW rather than relying solely on third-party assessments or
assumptions regarding infrastructure capacity.
Early and ongoing engagement will help ensure that infrastructure considerations are accurately
understood and appropriately reflected within the evidence base, site assessment process, spatial
strategy and wider plan-making decisions.
Safeguarding Infrastructure Assets
The Local Plan should contain an appropriate policy framework to safeguard existing water and
wastewater infrastructure. Development proposals should take account of operational assets and
ensure that appropriate access, easements and protection measures are maintained.
Where diversion of infrastructure is proposed, this should be addressed through early engagement
with UUW and considered as part of site deliverability and design processes. UUW does not object
in principle to infrastructure diversion where appropriate engineering solutions can be identified
and operational requirements can continue to be met.
Summary
UUW supports the preparation of a new Local Plan that promotes sustainable, deliverable and
resilient growth across Cheshire East. In particular, the emerging Plan should:
• adopt a clear and robust plan-led strategy for growth;
• ensure that infrastructure planning and delivery considerations inform spatial strategy
decisions;
• support allocation-led growth that provides certainty for infrastructure planning;
• facilitate coordinated infrastructure delivery where necessary;
• promote sustainable water management and SuDS;
• require high standards of water efficiency, including a residential water consumption
standard of 110 litres per person per day;
• support climate resilience and environmental protection;
• safeguard existing infrastructure assets; and
• engage directly with UUW in the preparation of the evidence base.
The new Local Plan presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy. This is particularly
important given Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, varied urban and rural communities,
and the increasing challenges associated with climate change, water quality, water resource
management and flood risk from all sources.
Climate adaptation should be treated as a golden thread running throughout the Plan and supported
by robust application of the drainage hierarchy, multifunctional sustainable drainage systems,
blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and effective management of water resources.
These measures can help deliver multiple benefits including improved flood resilience, enhanced
biodiversity, improved water quality and increased community wellbeing.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider environmental, social and economic objectives. The timely
provision of water and wastewater infrastructure can play a critical role in facilitating growth,
supporting environmental improvements and maintaining resilient services. Development can
generally be accommodated most effectively where existing infrastructure has available capacity
or where infrastructure improvements can be planned and delivered in a coordinated manner.
The Plan should recognise the strategic importance of water resources, water quality, essential
utility infrastructure and coordinated infrastructure planning whilst supporting investment required
to improve environmental outcomes, enhance resilience, protect public health and facilitate
sustainable development.
The Council's emerging Local Plan presents an opportunity to align future growth with wider
objectives around integrated water management, climate resilience and environmental
improvement. Through ongoing collaboration between the Council, UUW and other stakeholders,
new development can contribute towards reducing surface water inputs to wastewater networks,
supporting future investment strategies, improving resilience and helping to deliver the
environmental outcomes sought through the Environment Act and related regulatory programmes.
This will help ensure that growth is supported by resilient infrastructure whilst delivering wider
benefits for communities and the environment.
The Council is invited to have regard to the detailed recommendations contained within the
enclosed ‘Supporting Information and Recommended Policies for Local Plan Preparation’, and
UUW would welcome the opportunity for continued engagement as the Local Plan progresses.
UUW looks forward to continuing to work with the Council throughout preparation of the Local Plan
and supporting evidence base.

Thank you for consulting United Utilities Water Limited (UUW) on the Cheshire East Local Plan
Scoping Consultation. UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage with Cheshire East Council at this
early stage of plan preparation and looks forward to working positively with the Council throughout
the development of the new Local Plan. UUW wishes to build a strong partnership with the Council
to support the preparation of a sound, sustainable and deliverable Local Plan. Early and ongoing
engagement between local planning authorities and infrastructure providers is important to ensure
that growth and infrastructure planning are appropriately aligned and that future development can
be supported in a sustainable manner.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider social, environmental and economic objectives. Whilst
infrastructure constraints are generally expected to arise by exception rather than as a widespread
issue, there may be circumstances where growth and infrastructure investment need to be
coordinated to support sustainable and deliverable outcomes.
The Local Plan also presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy whilst supporting the
protection of water quality, water resources and essential utility infrastructure.
Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, environmental assets and varied urban and rural
communities mean that the sustainable management of water should be a key consideration in the
preparation of the Local Plan. The Plan presents an important opportunity to align future growth with
the delivery of water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure; improve water quality; support the
removal of surface water from the sewer network where opportunities arise; increase resilience to
flood risk and climate change; and protect and enhance the borough's wider blue-green
infrastructure network.
We encourage the Council to direct developers to our pre-application service to discuss proposals
and identify any potential constraints at an early stage by contacting:
Website (including ‘Live Chat’): Building & Developing - United Utilities
Telephone (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm): 0345 072 6067
Email:
WATER (water mains, supply and metering): DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
WASTEWATER (public sewers and drainage): SewerAdoptions@uuplc.co.uk
SLUDGE PIPELINES: DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
To supplement this response, we have enclosed an Appendix providing supporting information and
example policy wording for consideration during the preparation of the new Local Plan. Please note
that we are in the process of updating this supporting document to reflect the latest changes to the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Please ensure that regard is had to both the main body of this letter and the associated supporting
information, which includes recommended policy approaches, and supporting water efficiency
evidence.
Scope of the New Local Plan
UUW supports the broad scope proposed for the new Local Plan. The emerging Plan should
recognise the fundamental role that water and wastewater infrastructure plays in facilitating
sustainable development and supporting healthy, resilient communities. Infrastructure
considerations should be integrated throughout plan preparation, including the development of the
spatial strategy, site allocation process, infrastructure planning, climate resilience policies and
delivery framework.
The evidence base supporting the Local Plan should include appropriate engagement with
infrastructure providers from the earliest stages of plan preparation to ensure that infrastructure
requirements, constraints and opportunities are properly understood.
Vision and Strategic Objectives
UUW supports the inclusion of strategic objectives relating to sustainable growth, climate
resilience, environmental protection and infrastructure delivery.
We recommend that the Vision and Strategic Objectives recognise:
• the role of infrastructure in supporting sustainable growth;
• climate resilient communities;
• sustainable water management;
• water efficiency;
• resilience to flooding and drought;
• protection of water resources and water quality;
• support for investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure;
• multifunctional blue-green infrastructure;
• improved water quality across local catchments;
• resilience to all forms of flood risk; and
• protection and enhancement of river catchments.
The Council should also consider including a specific objective relating to infrastructure planning
and delivery to ensure that growth aspirations are supported by a robust understanding of
infrastructure requirements throughout the plan period.
Suggested Vision Wording
‘Cheshire East will be a climate resilient borough where sustainable growth is supported by high
quality infrastructure, efficient use of natural resources, resilient water supplies and sustainable
wastewater services. The borough's environmental assets will be protected and enhanced through
integrated water management, biodiversity enhancement and the delivery of multifunctional blue
green infrastructure. Future development will be designed to support resilience to flooding, drought
and climate change whilst making efficient use of water resources and contributing towards
improvements in environmental quality and public wellbeing. The borough will positively support
investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to facilitate sustainable
development and improve environmental outcomes throughout the plan period.’
Spatial Strategy
UUW considers that the spatial strategy will be one of the most important elements of the new Local
Plan. Cheshire East contains a diverse range of settlements, including market towns, service
centres, villages and rural communities. Decisions regarding the distribution of development will
therefore have significant implications for infrastructure planning and service provision.
UUW supports a plan-led approach that directs development towards sustainable locations whilst
taking account of infrastructure considerations alongside economic, social and environmental
factors.
Infrastructure should not be considered in isolation and should not determine the spatial strategy.
However, infrastructure requirements, opportunities and delivery implications represent important
evidence that should inform decisions regarding the location and distribution of growth.
The Council should ensure that spatial strategy options are assessed against infrastructure
evidence to understand their respective implications for water and wastewater service provision.
Particular consideration should be given to:
• the cumulative effects of growth;
• the relative sustainability of different growth options;
• infrastructure delivery requirements;
• long-term service resilience; and
• the ability to coordinate development and infrastructure investment.
Given the extensive rural nature of parts of Cheshire East, growth distribution decisions may have
differing infrastructure implications than comparable growth within the Borough's larger urban
areas. The Local Plan should therefore be informed by a realistic understanding of infrastructure
requirements and deliverability.
Housing Growth and Site Allocations
UUW supports the allocation of sufficient land to meet identified development needs through a
clear and robust development strategy.
The Plan should seek to provide certainty regarding the location and scale of future growth. This
assists infrastructure providers in planning future investment requirements and enables potential
infrastructure needs to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Allocated sites generally provide significantly greater certainty than reliance upon unplanned
development opportunities. This supports:
• effective infrastructure planning;
• timely investment decisions;
• identification of network reinforcement requirements;
• coordination of infrastructure delivery; and
• consideration of sustainable water management measures from the outset.
The allocation process should therefore be supported by infrastructure evidence to ensure that
sites remain deliverable throughout the plan period. Where significant strategic allocations are
proposed, infrastructure requirements should be considered as part of the site's overall
development strategy.
The Council should recognise that fragmented land ownership can, in some circumstances, create
challenges for the coordinated delivery of development and supporting infrastructure. Where
multiple land interests are involved, there can be additional complexity in securing comprehensive
masterplanning, infrastructure corridors, surface water management measures and the timely
provision of utility infrastructure. As part of the site assessment and allocation process, the Council
should therefore have regard to the extent to which sites can be brought forward in a coordinated
and deliverable manner, supported by the infrastructure necessary to achieve sustainable
development.
The Local Plan should make use of site-specific allocation policies where appropriate to identify the
key requirements associated with the development of individual sites. Site-specific policies provide
an opportunity to clearly set out infrastructure, environmental and delivery expectations from the
outset and can help ensure that development is brought forward in a coordinated and
comprehensive manner. This may include requirements relating to water and wastewater
infrastructure, sustainable drainage, flood risk, water efficiency, green and blue infrastructure,
environmental mitigation and other measures necessary to support sustainable development. By
providing greater certainty regarding the requirements for development, site-specific policies can
help support effective infrastructure planning, improve deliverability and assist in securing
sustainable development outcomes throughout the Plan period.
Infrastructure Planning and Delivery
UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage at this early stage of plan preparation and would highlight
recent changes to national planning policy relating to water and wastewater infrastructure. The
National Planning Policy Framework places increased emphasis on the importance of
infrastructure planning and investment in supporting sustainable development. In particular,
national policy recognises the critical role of water and wastewater infrastructure in facilitating
growth and supporting the delivery of homes, employment and wider economic development.
The Council should have regard to the changes introduced through the revised National Planning
Policy Framework which require substantial weight to be given to the benefits associated with
proposals involving water supply and wastewater infrastructure. This reflects the essential role
such infrastructure plays in supporting sustainable development, environmental improvement,
public health and economic growth.
A clear and robust allocation strategy will also assist infrastructure planning by providing greater
certainty regarding the location, scale and timing of future development. Planned growth enables
infrastructure requirements to be understood at an earlier stage and supports more effective
coordination between development and infrastructure delivery than growth arising through
unplanned or speculative development opportunities.
Given the significant increase in housing need identified for Cheshire East, it will be important that
the Local Plan is supported by early and ongoing engagement with infrastructure providers,
including UUW, to ensure that infrastructure requirements are properly understood and reflected
throughout the plan-making process. The Local Plan should recognise that the timely delivery of
water and wastewater infrastructure is an important component of sustainable growth and that
investment may be required to facilitate development, support environmental improvements and
maintain resilient services. Infrastructure planning should therefore be integrated throughout plan
preparation to ensure that development aspirations and infrastructure delivery can be appropriately
coordinated.
Once site-specific requirements and delivery trajectories become clearer, there may be
circumstances where development and infrastructure delivery need to be coordinated to ensure
that appropriate infrastructure is available to serve growth.
The Council should also have regard to recent changes to national Green Belt policy. National
planning policy now provides greater recognition of the role of essential infrastructure in the Green
Belt, including water and wastewater infrastructure. The revised Framework confirms that certain
forms of engineering and other operations, together with infrastructure required for water and
wastewater purposes, may not be inappropriate development in the Green Belt provided they
preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it. The Local
Plan should therefore ensure that locally-specific Green Belt policies do not create unnecessary
barriers to the delivery, maintenance, upgrading or expansion of essential water and wastewater
infrastructure where such development is required.
Investment in water and wastewater infrastructure should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for
accommodating growth. Infrastructure investment can also support wider environmental
objectives through improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, network resilience,
sustainable drainage initiatives and partnership-led integrated water management projects. Such
measures can contribute towards reducing surface water inflows to wastewater systems, improving
climate resilience, enhancing water quality and supporting wider objectives to reduce storm
overflow operation and sewer spills in accordance with the Environment Act 2021.
The Local Plan should provide an appropriate framework for coordinating growth and infrastructure
provision. The Plan should therefore recognise that:
• infrastructure requirements may vary between locations;
• infrastructure improvements may be required to support development in some
circumstances;
• infrastructure providers should be engaged throughout plan preparation; and
• development and infrastructure delivery may need to be coordinated where necessary.
This would assist in ensuring that growth remains sustainable and deliverable throughout the Plan
period.
Water Supply and Water Efficiency
The Local Plan should seek to promote the efficient use of water resources. UUW supports the
inclusion of policy requirements that seek to achieve high standards of water efficiency in new
development.
The Council should have regard to the evidence contained within UUW's latest Water Resources
Management Plan (WRMP24), which identifies water efficiency and demand reduction as key
components of a long-term, sustainable approach to water resource management across the
Strategic Resource Zone, UUW's principal water supply area serving the vast majority of customers
across the North West of England. WRMP24 supports reductions in water consumption to 110 litres
per person per day by 2050 as part of a wider package of measures aimed at improving the resilience
and sustainability of water supplies.
In accordance with the evidence contained within WRMP24 and wider regional and national water
resource planning objectives, UUW considers it appropriate for the Local Plan to require a water
efficiency standard of 110 litres per person per day for all new residential development across
Cheshire East. The Council should also support opportunities for water reuse through measures
such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling where appropriate. In addition to reducing
potable water demand, these measures can form part of an integrated approach to sustainable
water management by helping to manage surface water close to where it falls, consistent with the
surface water hierarchy and the principles underpinning the latest Non-Statutory Technical
Standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems.
Improving water efficiency will contribute towards the sustainable management of water resources,
support wider climate resilience objectives and help reduce water consumption and customer
water bills. It also assists in reducing future demand for water resources and the scale of investment
that may otherwise be required to maintain long-term water supply resilience.
Sustainable Water Management and Flood Risk
UUW strongly supports a coordinated and integrated water management approach through the
Local Plan. Water supply, wastewater infrastructure, drainage, flood risk management, green
infrastructure and environmental outcomes are closely interrelated and should be planned in a
coordinated manner.
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. This has the
potential to increase the volume and rate of surface water entering drainage systems, placing
additional pressure on wastewater networks and increasing flood risk. The Local Plan can help
address these challenges through policies that support sustainable drainage systems, blue-green
infrastructure, natural flood management, watercourse restoration and opportunities to manage
surface water above ground wherever appropriate.
The Local Plan has an important role to play in supporting these outcomes. Through effective place
making, development design and strategic infrastructure planning, new development should seek
to manage surface water sustainably and minimise unnecessary connections to the wastewater
network. An integrated water management approach can contribute to reducing flows within sewer
systems and support wider partnership objectives to reduce storm overflow operation and sewer
spills in accordance with the objectives established through the Environment Act 2021 and related
regulatory requirements.
The Council should consider how planning policy can support integrated water management
outcomes through requirements for sustainable drainage, multifunctional green infrastructure,
surface water separation where feasible, catchment-based approaches and early engagement
between developers, the Council, Lead Local Flood Authority and United Utilities. Such measures
can help ensure that growth is delivered in a manner that supports both environmental
improvement and the long-term resilience of water infrastructure.
The Local Plan should support the application of the drainage hierarchy and encourage sustainable
drainage solutions that manage surface water as close to source as possible. This should include
the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), multi-functional blue-green infrastructure,
surface water attenuation and water quality improvements, alongside measures that support
climate resilience and foul-only drainage approaches wherever practicable. Sustainable drainage
should be considered at the earliest stages of development design to maximise environmental and
infrastructure benefits.
Climate Change and Resilience
UUW supports the inclusion of strong climate adaptation and resilience policies within the new
Local Plan.
The effects of climate change will increasingly influence how places are planned and developed.
The Local Plan should therefore encourage development that is resilient to future climate
conditions and incorporates appropriate adaptation measures from the outset.
Water management has an important role to play in supporting climate resilience through:
• water efficiency;
• drought resilience;
• protection and enhancement of the water environment;
• resilient water and wastewater infrastructure; and
• sustainable design measures that support adaptation to changing climatic conditions.
The Local Plan should support development that contributes towards the long-term resilience of
communities, infrastructure and the environment whilst recognising the role that effective water
management can play in achieving these outcomes.
Evidence Base
The evidence base should support an understanding of how water and wastewater infrastructure
considerations interact with growth options, site allocations, delivery assumptions and
infrastructure investment planning to inform the development of a sound, deliverable and
sustainable spatial strategy.
UUW welcomes the opportunity to assist Cheshire East Council in developing the evidence base
supporting the Local Plan. The evidence base should support an understanding of how
infrastructure considerations interact with growth options, site allocations and delivery
assumptions to inform the development of a sound and deliverable spatial strategy.
The Council should engage directly with UUW regarding water and wastewater matters to ensure
that the evidence base reflects the latest available information relating to:
• water supply and wastewater infrastructure;
• sewer and reservoir flood risk, which should inform future Strategic Flood Risk Assessment
work; and
• the latest evidence contained within the Water Resources Management Plan 2024 and any
subsequent updates.
The Council should also engage with UUW when considering the implications of planned growth for
water and wastewater infrastructure, including any requirements arising from the Local Plan
strategy and the potential need for future infrastructure investment.
As statutory water and wastewater undertaker, UUW is best placed to provide advice on existing
infrastructure, network and treatment capacity, growth implications, infrastructure planning and
investment requirements. The preparation of water and wastewater evidence should therefore be
undertaken in consultation with UUW rather than relying solely on third-party assessments or
assumptions regarding infrastructure capacity.
Early and ongoing engagement will help ensure that infrastructure considerations are accurately
understood and appropriately reflected within the evidence base, site assessment process, spatial
strategy and wider plan-making decisions.
Safeguarding Infrastructure Assets
The Local Plan should contain an appropriate policy framework to safeguard existing water and
wastewater infrastructure. Development proposals should take account of operational assets and
ensure that appropriate access, easements and protection measures are maintained.
Where diversion of infrastructure is proposed, this should be addressed through early engagement
with UUW and considered as part of site deliverability and design processes. UUW does not object
in principle to infrastructure diversion where appropriate engineering solutions can be identified
and operational requirements can continue to be met.
Summary
UUW supports the preparation of a new Local Plan that promotes sustainable, deliverable and
resilient growth across Cheshire East. In particular, the emerging Plan should:
• adopt a clear and robust plan-led strategy for growth;
• ensure that infrastructure planning and delivery considerations inform spatial strategy
decisions;
• support allocation-led growth that provides certainty for infrastructure planning;
• facilitate coordinated infrastructure delivery where necessary;
• promote sustainable water management and SuDS;
• require high standards of water efficiency, including a residential water consumption
standard of 110 litres per person per day;
• support climate resilience and environmental protection;
• safeguard existing infrastructure assets; and
• engage directly with UUW in the preparation of the evidence base.
The new Local Plan presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy. This is particularly
important given Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, varied urban and rural communities,
and the increasing challenges associated with climate change, water quality, water resource
management and flood risk from all sources.
Climate adaptation should be treated as a golden thread running throughout the Plan and supported
by robust application of the drainage hierarchy, multifunctional sustainable drainage systems,
blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and effective management of water resources.
These measures can help deliver multiple benefits including improved flood resilience, enhanced
biodiversity, improved water quality and increased community wellbeing.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider environmental, social and economic objectives. The timely
provision of water and wastewater infrastructure can play a critical role in facilitating growth,
supporting environmental improvements and maintaining resilient services. Development can
generally be accommodated most effectively where existing infrastructure has available capacity
or where infrastructure improvements can be planned and delivered in a coordinated manner.
The Plan should recognise the strategic importance of water resources, water quality, essential
utility infrastructure and coordinated infrastructure planning whilst supporting investment required
to improve environmental outcomes, enhance resilience, protect public health and facilitate
sustainable development.
The Council's emerging Local Plan presents an opportunity to align future growth with wider
objectives around integrated water management, climate resilience and environmental
improvement. Through ongoing collaboration between the Council, UUW and other stakeholders,
new development can contribute towards reducing surface water inputs to wastewater networks,
supporting future investment strategies, improving resilience and helping to deliver the
environmental outcomes sought through the Environment Act and related regulatory programmes.
This will help ensure that growth is supported by resilient infrastructure whilst delivering wider
benefits for communities and the environment.
The Council is invited to have regard to the detailed recommendations contained within the
enclosed ‘Supporting Information and Recommended Policies for Local Plan Preparation’, and
UUW would welcome the opportunity for continued engagement as the Local Plan progresses.
UUW looks forward to continuing to work with the Council throughout preparation of the Local Plan
and supporting evidence base.

Thank you for consulting United Utilities Water Limited (UUW) on the Cheshire East Local Plan
Scoping Consultation. UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage with Cheshire East Council at this
early stage of plan preparation and looks forward to working positively with the Council throughout
the development of the new Local Plan. UUW wishes to build a strong partnership with the Council
to support the preparation of a sound, sustainable and deliverable Local Plan. Early and ongoing
engagement between local planning authorities and infrastructure providers is important to ensure
that growth and infrastructure planning are appropriately aligned and that future development can
be supported in a sustainable manner.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider social, environmental and economic objectives. Whilst
infrastructure constraints are generally expected to arise by exception rather than as a widespread
issue, there may be circumstances where growth and infrastructure investment need to be
coordinated to support sustainable and deliverable outcomes.
The Local Plan also presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy whilst supporting the
protection of water quality, water resources and essential utility infrastructure.
Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, environmental assets and varied urban and rural
communities mean that the sustainable management of water should be a key consideration in the
preparation of the Local Plan. The Plan presents an important opportunity to align future growth with
the delivery of water, wastewater and drainage infrastructure; improve water quality; support the
removal of surface water from the sewer network where opportunities arise; increase resilience to
flood risk and climate change; and protect and enhance the borough's wider blue-green
infrastructure network.
We encourage the Council to direct developers to our pre-application service to discuss proposals
and identify any potential constraints at an early stage by contacting:
Website (including ‘Live Chat’): Building & Developing - United Utilities
Telephone (Monday-Friday, 8am-6pm): 0345 072 6067
Email:
WATER (water mains, supply and metering): DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
WASTEWATER (public sewers and drainage): SewerAdoptions@uuplc.co.uk
SLUDGE PIPELINES: DeveloperServicesWater@uuplc.co.uk
To supplement this response, we have enclosed an Appendix providing supporting information and
example policy wording for consideration during the preparation of the new Local Plan. Please note
that we are in the process of updating this supporting document to reflect the latest changes to the
National Planning Policy Framework.
Please ensure that regard is had to both the main body of this letter and the associated supporting
information, which includes recommended policy approaches, and supporting water efficiency
evidence.
Scope of the New Local Plan
UUW supports the broad scope proposed for the new Local Plan. The emerging Plan should
recognise the fundamental role that water and wastewater infrastructure plays in facilitating
sustainable development and supporting healthy, resilient communities. Infrastructure
considerations should be integrated throughout plan preparation, including the development of the
spatial strategy, site allocation process, infrastructure planning, climate resilience policies and
delivery framework.
The evidence base supporting the Local Plan should include appropriate engagement with
infrastructure providers from the earliest stages of plan preparation to ensure that infrastructure
requirements, constraints and opportunities are properly understood.
Vision and Strategic Objectives
UUW supports the inclusion of strategic objectives relating to sustainable growth, climate
resilience, environmental protection and infrastructure delivery.
We recommend that the Vision and Strategic Objectives recognise:
• the role of infrastructure in supporting sustainable growth;
• climate resilient communities;
• sustainable water management;
• water efficiency;
• resilience to flooding and drought;
• protection of water resources and water quality;
• support for investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure;
• multifunctional blue-green infrastructure;
• improved water quality across local catchments;
• resilience to all forms of flood risk; and
• protection and enhancement of river catchments.
The Council should also consider including a specific objective relating to infrastructure planning
and delivery to ensure that growth aspirations are supported by a robust understanding of
infrastructure requirements throughout the plan period.
Suggested Vision Wording
‘Cheshire East will be a climate resilient borough where sustainable growth is supported by high
quality infrastructure, efficient use of natural resources, resilient water supplies and sustainable
wastewater services. The borough's environmental assets will be protected and enhanced through
integrated water management, biodiversity enhancement and the delivery of multifunctional blue
green infrastructure. Future development will be designed to support resilience to flooding, drought
and climate change whilst making efficient use of water resources and contributing towards
improvements in environmental quality and public wellbeing. The borough will positively support
investment in essential water and wastewater infrastructure necessary to facilitate sustainable
development and improve environmental outcomes throughout the plan period.’
Spatial Strategy
UUW considers that the spatial strategy will be one of the most important elements of the new Local
Plan. Cheshire East contains a diverse range of settlements, including market towns, service
centres, villages and rural communities. Decisions regarding the distribution of development will
therefore have significant implications for infrastructure planning and service provision.
UUW supports a plan-led approach that directs development towards sustainable locations whilst
taking account of infrastructure considerations alongside economic, social and environmental
factors.
Infrastructure should not be considered in isolation and should not determine the spatial strategy.
However, infrastructure requirements, opportunities and delivery implications represent important
evidence that should inform decisions regarding the location and distribution of growth.
The Council should ensure that spatial strategy options are assessed against infrastructure
evidence to understand their respective implications for water and wastewater service provision.
Particular consideration should be given to:
• the cumulative effects of growth;
• the relative sustainability of different growth options;
• infrastructure delivery requirements;
• long-term service resilience; and
• the ability to coordinate development and infrastructure investment.
Given the extensive rural nature of parts of Cheshire East, growth distribution decisions may have
differing infrastructure implications than comparable growth within the Borough's larger urban
areas. The Local Plan should therefore be informed by a realistic understanding of infrastructure
requirements and deliverability.
Housing Growth and Site Allocations
UUW supports the allocation of sufficient land to meet identified development needs through a
clear and robust development strategy.
The Plan should seek to provide certainty regarding the location and scale of future growth. This
assists infrastructure providers in planning future investment requirements and enables potential
infrastructure needs to be identified and addressed at an early stage.
Allocated sites generally provide significantly greater certainty than reliance upon unplanned
development opportunities. This supports:
• effective infrastructure planning;
• timely investment decisions;
• identification of network reinforcement requirements;
• coordination of infrastructure delivery; and
• consideration of sustainable water management measures from the outset.
The allocation process should therefore be supported by infrastructure evidence to ensure that
sites remain deliverable throughout the plan period. Where significant strategic allocations are
proposed, infrastructure requirements should be considered as part of the site's overall
development strategy.
The Council should recognise that fragmented land ownership can, in some circumstances, create
challenges for the coordinated delivery of development and supporting infrastructure. Where
multiple land interests are involved, there can be additional complexity in securing comprehensive
masterplanning, infrastructure corridors, surface water management measures and the timely
provision of utility infrastructure. As part of the site assessment and allocation process, the Council
should therefore have regard to the extent to which sites can be brought forward in a coordinated
and deliverable manner, supported by the infrastructure necessary to achieve sustainable
development.
The Local Plan should make use of site-specific allocation policies where appropriate to identify the
key requirements associated with the development of individual sites. Site-specific policies provide
an opportunity to clearly set out infrastructure, environmental and delivery expectations from the
outset and can help ensure that development is brought forward in a coordinated and
comprehensive manner. This may include requirements relating to water and wastewater
infrastructure, sustainable drainage, flood risk, water efficiency, green and blue infrastructure,
environmental mitigation and other measures necessary to support sustainable development. By
providing greater certainty regarding the requirements for development, site-specific policies can
help support effective infrastructure planning, improve deliverability and assist in securing
sustainable development outcomes throughout the Plan period.
Infrastructure Planning and Delivery
UUW welcomes the opportunity to engage at this early stage of plan preparation and would highlight
recent changes to national planning policy relating to water and wastewater infrastructure. The
National Planning Policy Framework places increased emphasis on the importance of
infrastructure planning and investment in supporting sustainable development. In particular,
national policy recognises the critical role of water and wastewater infrastructure in facilitating
growth and supporting the delivery of homes, employment and wider economic development.
The Council should have regard to the changes introduced through the revised National Planning
Policy Framework which require substantial weight to be given to the benefits associated with
proposals involving water supply and wastewater infrastructure. This reflects the essential role
such infrastructure plays in supporting sustainable development, environmental improvement,
public health and economic growth.
A clear and robust allocation strategy will also assist infrastructure planning by providing greater
certainty regarding the location, scale and timing of future development. Planned growth enables
infrastructure requirements to be understood at an earlier stage and supports more effective
coordination between development and infrastructure delivery than growth arising through
unplanned or speculative development opportunities.
Given the significant increase in housing need identified for Cheshire East, it will be important that
the Local Plan is supported by early and ongoing engagement with infrastructure providers,
including UUW, to ensure that infrastructure requirements are properly understood and reflected
throughout the plan-making process. The Local Plan should recognise that the timely delivery of
water and wastewater infrastructure is an important component of sustainable growth and that
investment may be required to facilitate development, support environmental improvements and
maintain resilient services. Infrastructure planning should therefore be integrated throughout plan
preparation to ensure that development aspirations and infrastructure delivery can be appropriately
coordinated.
Once site-specific requirements and delivery trajectories become clearer, there may be
circumstances where development and infrastructure delivery need to be coordinated to ensure
that appropriate infrastructure is available to serve growth.
The Council should also have regard to recent changes to national Green Belt policy. National
planning policy now provides greater recognition of the role of essential infrastructure in the Green
Belt, including water and wastewater infrastructure. The revised Framework confirms that certain
forms of engineering and other operations, together with infrastructure required for water and
wastewater purposes, may not be inappropriate development in the Green Belt provided they
preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it. The Local
Plan should therefore ensure that locally-specific Green Belt policies do not create unnecessary
barriers to the delivery, maintenance, upgrading or expansion of essential water and wastewater
infrastructure where such development is required.
Investment in water and wastewater infrastructure should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for
accommodating growth. Infrastructure investment can also support wider environmental
objectives through improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, network resilience,
sustainable drainage initiatives and partnership-led integrated water management projects. Such
measures can contribute towards reducing surface water inflows to wastewater systems, improving
climate resilience, enhancing water quality and supporting wider objectives to reduce storm
overflow operation and sewer spills in accordance with the Environment Act 2021.
The Local Plan should provide an appropriate framework for coordinating growth and infrastructure
provision. The Plan should therefore recognise that:
• infrastructure requirements may vary between locations;
• infrastructure improvements may be required to support development in some
circumstances;
• infrastructure providers should be engaged throughout plan preparation; and
• development and infrastructure delivery may need to be coordinated where necessary.
This would assist in ensuring that growth remains sustainable and deliverable throughout the Plan
period.
Water Supply and Water Efficiency
The Local Plan should seek to promote the efficient use of water resources. UUW supports the
inclusion of policy requirements that seek to achieve high standards of water efficiency in new
development.
The Council should have regard to the evidence contained within UUW's latest Water Resources
Management Plan (WRMP24), which identifies water efficiency and demand reduction as key
components of a long-term, sustainable approach to water resource management across the
Strategic Resource Zone, UUW's principal water supply area serving the vast majority of customers
across the North West of England. WRMP24 supports reductions in water consumption to 110 litres
per person per day by 2050 as part of a wider package of measures aimed at improving the resilience
and sustainability of water supplies.
In accordance with the evidence contained within WRMP24 and wider regional and national water
resource planning objectives, UUW considers it appropriate for the Local Plan to require a water
efficiency standard of 110 litres per person per day for all new residential development across
Cheshire East. The Council should also support opportunities for water reuse through measures
such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling where appropriate. In addition to reducing
potable water demand, these measures can form part of an integrated approach to sustainable
water management by helping to manage surface water close to where it falls, consistent with the
surface water hierarchy and the principles underpinning the latest Non-Statutory Technical
Standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems.
Improving water efficiency will contribute towards the sustainable management of water resources,
support wider climate resilience objectives and help reduce water consumption and customer
water bills. It also assists in reducing future demand for water resources and the scale of investment
that may otherwise be required to maintain long-term water supply resilience.
Sustainable Water Management and Flood Risk
UUW strongly supports a coordinated and integrated water management approach through the
Local Plan. Water supply, wastewater infrastructure, drainage, flood risk management, green
infrastructure and environmental outcomes are closely interrelated and should be planned in a
coordinated manner.
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. This has the
potential to increase the volume and rate of surface water entering drainage systems, placing
additional pressure on wastewater networks and increasing flood risk. The Local Plan can help
address these challenges through policies that support sustainable drainage systems, blue-green
infrastructure, natural flood management, watercourse restoration and opportunities to manage
surface water above ground wherever appropriate.
The Local Plan has an important role to play in supporting these outcomes. Through effective place
making, development design and strategic infrastructure planning, new development should seek
to manage surface water sustainably and minimise unnecessary connections to the wastewater
network. An integrated water management approach can contribute to reducing flows within sewer
systems and support wider partnership objectives to reduce storm overflow operation and sewer
spills in accordance with the objectives established through the Environment Act 2021 and related
regulatory requirements.
The Council should consider how planning policy can support integrated water management
outcomes through requirements for sustainable drainage, multifunctional green infrastructure,
surface water separation where feasible, catchment-based approaches and early engagement
between developers, the Council, Lead Local Flood Authority and United Utilities. Such measures
can help ensure that growth is delivered in a manner that supports both environmental
improvement and the long-term resilience of water infrastructure.
The Local Plan should support the application of the drainage hierarchy and encourage sustainable
drainage solutions that manage surface water as close to source as possible. This should include
the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), multi-functional blue-green infrastructure,
surface water attenuation and water quality improvements, alongside measures that support
climate resilience and foul-only drainage approaches wherever practicable. Sustainable drainage
should be considered at the earliest stages of development design to maximise environmental and
infrastructure benefits.
Climate Change and Resilience
UUW supports the inclusion of strong climate adaptation and resilience policies within the new
Local Plan.
The effects of climate change will increasingly influence how places are planned and developed.
The Local Plan should therefore encourage development that is resilient to future climate
conditions and incorporates appropriate adaptation measures from the outset.
Water management has an important role to play in supporting climate resilience through:
• water efficiency;
• drought resilience;
• protection and enhancement of the water environment;
• resilient water and wastewater infrastructure; and
• sustainable design measures that support adaptation to changing climatic conditions.
The Local Plan should support development that contributes towards the long-term resilience of
communities, infrastructure and the environment whilst recognising the role that effective water
management can play in achieving these outcomes.
Evidence Base
The evidence base should support an understanding of how water and wastewater infrastructure
considerations interact with growth options, site allocations, delivery assumptions and
infrastructure investment planning to inform the development of a sound, deliverable and
sustainable spatial strategy.
UUW welcomes the opportunity to assist Cheshire East Council in developing the evidence base
supporting the Local Plan. The evidence base should support an understanding of how
infrastructure considerations interact with growth options, site allocations and delivery
assumptions to inform the development of a sound and deliverable spatial strategy.
The Council should engage directly with UUW regarding water and wastewater matters to ensure
that the evidence base reflects the latest available information relating to:
• water supply and wastewater infrastructure;
• sewer and reservoir flood risk, which should inform future Strategic Flood Risk Assessment
work; and
• the latest evidence contained within the Water Resources Management Plan 2024 and any
subsequent updates.
The Council should also engage with UUW when considering the implications of planned growth for
water and wastewater infrastructure, including any requirements arising from the Local Plan
strategy and the potential need for future infrastructure investment.
As statutory water and wastewater undertaker, UUW is best placed to provide advice on existing
infrastructure, network and treatment capacity, growth implications, infrastructure planning and
investment requirements. The preparation of water and wastewater evidence should therefore be
undertaken in consultation with UUW rather than relying solely on third-party assessments or
assumptions regarding infrastructure capacity.
Early and ongoing engagement will help ensure that infrastructure considerations are accurately
understood and appropriately reflected within the evidence base, site assessment process, spatial
strategy and wider plan-making decisions.
Safeguarding Infrastructure Assets
The Local Plan should contain an appropriate policy framework to safeguard existing water and
wastewater infrastructure. Development proposals should take account of operational assets and
ensure that appropriate access, easements and protection measures are maintained.
Where diversion of infrastructure is proposed, this should be addressed through early engagement
with UUW and considered as part of site deliverability and design processes. UUW does not object
in principle to infrastructure diversion where appropriate engineering solutions can be identified
and operational requirements can continue to be met.
Summary
UUW supports the preparation of a new Local Plan that promotes sustainable, deliverable and
resilient growth across Cheshire East. In particular, the emerging Plan should:
• adopt a clear and robust plan-led strategy for growth;
• ensure that infrastructure planning and delivery considerations inform spatial strategy
decisions;
• support allocation-led growth that provides certainty for infrastructure planning;
• facilitate coordinated infrastructure delivery where necessary;
• promote sustainable water management and SuDS;
• require high standards of water efficiency, including a residential water consumption
standard of 110 litres per person per day;
• support climate resilience and environmental protection;
• safeguard existing infrastructure assets; and
• engage directly with UUW in the preparation of the evidence base.
The new Local Plan presents an important opportunity to embed climate resilience, sustainable
water management and water efficiency throughout the development strategy. This is particularly
important given Cheshire East's extensive river catchments, varied urban and rural communities,
and the increasing challenges associated with climate change, water quality, water resource
management and flood risk from all sources.
Climate adaptation should be treated as a golden thread running throughout the Plan and supported
by robust application of the drainage hierarchy, multifunctional sustainable drainage systems,
blue-green infrastructure, nature-based solutions and effective management of water resources.
These measures can help deliver multiple benefits including improved flood resilience, enhanced
biodiversity, improved water quality and increased community wellbeing.
Infrastructure considerations are an important component of sustainable development and should
inform plan-making alongside wider environmental, social and economic objectives. The timely
provision of water and wastewater infrastructure can play a critical role in facilitating growth,
supporting environmental improvements and maintaining resilient services. Development can
generally be accommodated most effectively where existing infrastructure has available capacity
or where infrastructure improvements can be planned and delivered in a coordinated manner.
The Plan should recognise the strategic importance of water resources, water quality, essential
utility infrastructure and coordinated infrastructure planning whilst supporting investment required
to improve environmental outcomes, enhance resilience, protect public health and facilitate
sustainable development.
The Council's emerging Local Plan presents an opportunity to align future growth with wider
objectives around integrated water management, climate resilience and environmental
improvement. Through ongoing collaboration between the Council, UUW and other stakeholders,
new development can contribute towards reducing surface water inputs to wastewater networks,
supporting future investment strategies, improving resilience and helping to deliver the
environmental outcomes sought through the Environment Act and related regulatory programmes.
This will help ensure that growth is supported by resilient infrastructure whilst delivering wider
benefits for communities and the environment.
The Council is invited to have regard to the detailed recommendations contained within the
enclosed ‘Supporting Information and Recommended Policies for Local Plan Preparation’, and
UUW would welcome the opportunity for continued engagement as the Local Plan progresses.
UUW looks forward to continuing to work with the Council throughout preparation of the Local Plan
and supporting evidence base.