Better roads and public transport, support for tourism and more job creation will be among the focus of Northumberland County Council over the next 18 years.

The council has unveiled the latest draft of its core strategy local plan – a blueprint which will guide planning decisions until 2036.

Key points in the plan also include a reduction in the housing numbers, down from 24,000 to 17,700, as well as commitments to travel improvements in the east of the county and creating better jobs.

The council has also altered the affordable housing provision, so that developments in areas with higher value homes will have to provide up to 30 per cent affordable housing, while lower value areas will be at 10 per cent.

While Hexham has no housing allocation on the greenbelt in the new plan, Anick Grange has been identified as a potential sand and gravel extraction site, with a shortage in the materials forecast by the end of the plan.

Proposals to quarry sand and gravel from the site were announced recently, but Coun. Richard Wearmouth, portfolio holder for economic development, said the quarry still may not go ahead.

Coun. Wearmouth said: “It’s got to be the subject of a planning application. It’s identified as it could be suitable.

“That doesn’t mean it is suitable.”

Deputy leader of the council, Coun. Wayne Daley, added that the plan was designed to protect tourism in the county.

He said: “This is an area where you can come to live, invest, learn, and work.

“Around 17 per cent of our economy is based on tourism, so there’s an unashamed admission of that and the plan is protection of the places that people want to come and see, rather than building over them.”

The Conservative administration was criticised after withdrawing the previous plan following the 2017 election, with fears that a lack of planning guidance could leave the county open to rampant development.

But Coun. John Riddle said that the new plan was only a few months behind the core strategy’s timeline.

He said: “In reality, they were running quite a bit behind. We’re probably going to be done nine months after they would have been. We should recognise the amount of work that’s gone into this from the officers.

“Housing numbers have been reduced, but the plan still has a lot of growth in it.”

The plan will go before cabinet next Wednesday, before being debated by full council next year.