Cheshire East has scrapped the 950-home Danes Moss scheme, holds a 3.3-year land supply, and its new Local Plan consultation closes 1 September 2026.

Planning around Macclesfield is at a genuine turning point. The 950-home development the town argued about for a generation has been shelved, the council’s housing numbers have been overtaken by a tripled government target, and the consultation that starts the replacement Local Plan is open right now. Here is where each piece actually stands, from the council’s own documents.

The quick answer

Three things decide what gets built around Macclesfield in 2026:

  1. The adopted Cheshire East Local Plan Strategy (2017) plans for a minimum of 36,000 homes between 2010 and 2030, about 1,800 a year.
  2. The government’s new standard method has pushed Cheshire East’s assessed housing need to 2,507 homes a year, and the council can show only a 3.3-year deliverable land supply against the five years required, which tilts decisions in developers’ favour.
  3. A new Local Plan formally began in June 2026. Its first public consultation closes at 5pm on Tuesday 1 September 2026, and adoption is targeted for March 2029.

The plan that decides applications today

Applications across the borough are judged against the Local Plan Strategy, adopted on 27 July 2017 and covering 2010 to 2030. Its headline commitment, Policy PG 1, is land for a minimum of 36,000 homes, delivered at an average of 1,800 a year, plus at least 380 hectares of employment land. The detail sits in the Site Allocations and Development Policies Document, adopted on 22 December 2022, which on adoption finally retired the saved policies of the old Macclesfield Local Plan.

The supply problem that tilts every decision

The reason planning feels looser than the plan suggests is arithmetic. Under the government’s December 2024 planning framework, Cheshire East’s assessed housing need jumped from just under 1,000 homes a year to around 2,600, currently 2,507 a year plus a 5% buffer. Against that, the council could show a deliverable supply of just 8,780 homes at 31 March 2025, a 3.3-year supply against the five years required (council spatial planning update).

When supply falls short, national policy applies what planners call the tilted balance: schemes that conflict with the Local Plan can still be approved unless the harm significantly outweighs the benefit. In plain terms, speculative applications on unallocated land are harder to refuse in Cheshire East right now, and that will remain true until the new plan lands.

The new Local Plan: consultation open until 1 September

Work on the replacement plan formally began in June 2026, under the government’s reformed 30-month plan-making system (council announcement). The first stage, a scoping consultation on what the plan should cover (housing, employment, transport, climate, heritage and more, but not yet individual sites), runs from 21 July to 5pm on Tuesday 1 September 2026 at localplan.cheshireeast.gov.uk (consultation launch). The plan will guide decisions “into the 2040s”, so this is the cheapest moment to influence it.

Timetable for the new Cheshire East Local Plan, 2026 to 2029 Timeline. Scoping consultation 21 July to 1 September 2026, open now. Plan content and evidence consultation July to August 2027. Proposed plan consultation May to June 2028. Submission for examination September 2028. Adoption target 30 March 2029. Source: the council's published Local Plan timetable. The new Local Plan: five dates that matter Cheshire East's published timetable, June 2026 Now Scoping consultation closes 1 Sep 2026 Summer 2027 Consultation on plan content and evidence May 2028 Proposed plan published for consultation Sep 2028 Submitted for examination Mar 2029 Adoption target Until adoption, the 2017 plan and the tilted balance decide applications. Have your say at localplan.cheshireeast.gov.uk or by email to localplan@cheshireeast.gov.uk. Site submissions are not invited at the scoping stage; that comes with the 2027 consultation. Source: Cheshire East Local Plan timetable, published 12 June 2026
The 30-month route to a new plan. The current scoping stage closes on 1 September 2026.

Danes Moss: the 950-home scheme is off

The South Macclesfield Development Area, the peatland site south of Moss Lane beside the West Coast Main Line, had been earmarked for housing since 1997 and carried an outline permission, granted in 2019, for up to 950 homes, a link road, a primary school and a local centre. In June 2025 the council’s Economy and Growth Committee accepted a recommendation not to proceed: the site sits on peat of varying depths next to the Danes Moss SSSI, hosts endangered willow tits, and the committee agreed to withdraw the reserved matters applications and the Housing Infrastructure Fund agreement while it reviews alternatives, from disposal through to a nature-led recovery option (committee report; decision record). The link road “is unlikely to be delivered” under any alternative, the report says. For a town that fought over this site for decades, that is the biggest local planning story in years, and where those 950 homes’ worth of need goes instead is now a live question for the new plan.

Handforth Garden Village: 1,500 homes at the other end

At the north end of our patch, the Local Plan’s site LPS 33, Handforth East, allocates a garden village of around 1,500 homes, up to 12 hectares of employment land, a mixed-use centre and a school for up to 700 pupils. In March 2025 the council agreed to explore a joint venture with MADE Partnership as master developer, with the final decision still to come; the council itself calls the scheme “complex and ambitious” (council release). Anyone buying nearby should read the allocation before they read the brochure; our house prices page covers what the market is doing in the meantime.

In town: the Market Hall reopened

Town-centre regeneration produced something visible this year: the Macclesfield Market Hall reopened on 24 February 2026 after a £2.4 million refurbishment funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, with new trading units, commissioned artworks and a redesigned layout, described by the council as a significant milestone for the town centre (council release).

How to see and comment on applications

Cheshire East publishes a weekly list of new and decided applications through its weekly lists page, and you can search, view and comment on any application at the planning portal without registering. Decisions are made by three committees: the Northern and Southern Planning Committees and, for the biggest schemes, the Strategic Planning Board (the Danes Moss outline was a Strategic Planning Board decision). The Northern Planning Committee’s next 2026 meetings are 19 August and 30 September (committee calendar).

Frequently asked questions

What is happening with the Danes Moss development in Macclesfield?

It has been shelved. The council decided in June 2025 not to proceed with the 950-home South Macclesfield Development Area, withdrew the reserved matters applications and the infrastructure funding agreement, and is reviewing options for the peatland site, including nature-led recovery.

How many houses is Cheshire East supposed to build?

The adopted Local Plan commits to a minimum of 36,000 homes between 2010 and 2030, around 1,800 a year. The government’s new standard method has since raised the borough’s assessed need to 2,507 homes a year, which the new Local Plan will have to confront.

What is the new Cheshire East Local Plan and when can I comment?

It is the replacement plan being prepared under the government’s 30-month system, guiding development into the 2040s. The first consultation, on scope rather than sites, closes at 5pm on 1 September 2026 at localplan.cheshireeast.gov.uk. Adoption is targeted for March 2029.

Why do controversial schemes keep getting approved?

Because the council can demonstrate only a 3.3-year housing land supply against the five years national policy requires. That triggers the tilted balance, under which out-of-plan schemes must be approved unless the harm significantly outweighs the benefits.

Where can I see planning applications for Macclesfield?

On the council’s planning portal at pa.cheshireeast.gov.uk, via the weekly lists page. Viewing and commenting need no registration.

Sources

Planning positions move with every committee cycle and land supply statement. Details above were checked against the linked council documents on 8 August 2026; always confirm against the originals before acting on them.