Knowle, Dorridge and Bentley Heath has been defined as a town at a recent Planning Decision Session at Solihull Council.
The Background
Solihull Council recently published a consultation on the report “Draft Rural Settlement Policy”. The report was prompted by a change in Government policy on Green Belts. Councils are now expected to examine their Green Belt and decide whether it is performing well against certain defined purposes.
One of those purposes is “to prevent neighbouring towns merging into one another”. If the Green Belt is deemed to perform strongly against this purpose, it is more likely that development could be resisted. However, the defence is against the merger of “towns” rather than preservation of the Green Belt. Hence, in the context of the potential merger of Solihull and Knowle, Dorridge and Bentley Heath, it becomes important to decide whether KDBH can be regarded as a town.
The study looked at a range of factors including a comparison with other towns (such as Kenilworth), population, the number of dwellings in KDBH and the range of services and facilities that are available. A public consultation took place, ending on 25 August 2025. In the light of factors such as those mentioned, it was concluded that KDBH could reasonably be regarded as a town, specifically in respect of Green Belt policy assessment purposes.
What the decision means
This conclusion was confirmed at a meeting of the Council’s CPH Climate Change & Planning Decision Session on 23 October 2025.
For the residents of Knowle, Dorridge and Bentley Heath, there will always be three distinct villages, each with its own character and range of facilities. However, it is to be hoped that by defining KDBH as a town for planning purposes will help in warding off some of the significant development pressures currently facing our area.