Bath: Place Profile

Despite its strengths the city has become increasingly unaffordable, and increasingly unequal – with house prices now 16 times average earnings and both life expectancy and educational outcomes starkly different for those in our most deprived areas. Our population is aging; and both our university graduates and resident young people are unable to settle here – creating a shrinking resident workforce.

Economic growth in the last ten years has been sluggish and our lower-than-average wages cannot keep up with escalating costs of local housing. The council’s Economic Strategy signals a new approach to local economic development which prioritises meeting the needs of all our residents and places whilst reducing impacts on our natural resources and environment.

The city has a vibrant cultural offer which supports its important role as a domestic and international visitor destination that attracts over 6 million visitors annually. It is a successful regional shopping destination, with below average vacancies.

Bath is a rare double inscribed World Heritage Site, one of 22 of the currently inscribed 1,248 World Heritage Sites globally. This means that Bath is internationally significant and of Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) to the whole of humanity. It is within this context that the local plan manages how the city needs to evolve whilst avoiding harm to OUV. Some examples would be protecting sensitive landscapes such as the green setting, including the indicative setting, from inappropriate development or by controlling the height of new buildings.

The West of England Local Nature Recovery Strategy and Toolkit (LNRS) was published in November 2024. The LNRS identifies the following areas:

• Areas that are already of importance to biodiversity. These are sites that are nationally designated for their value to nature, such as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and Special Protection Areas (SPAs). It also includes sites that are designated as Local Nature Reserves; sites that are locally designated as Sites of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCIs), and/or are irreplaceable habitat including ancient woodland.
• Focus Areas for Nature Recovery. This is where action to recover nature will have the biggest impact and is most feasible. These have been mapped to reflect the priorities for nature recovery, and include all of the mapped measures for nature recovery. The focus areas for nature recovery are referred to as ‘areas that could become of particular importance’ in regulation.

The map at the bottom of this section shows where these areas are located in Bath, and the relationship between these areas and the Site Options under consideration in this Options consultation. Constraints and opportunities are referenced for each Site Option where appropriate.

There is a comprehensive network of liveable neighbourhoods that support the local needs of the resident population and provide day to day facilities within close proximity to where people live.

Bath has two universities that together represent approximately 25% of the residential population. The University of Bath is the second biggest employer in the city. Whilst the universities bring many benefits that include a thriving student population that support a vibrant city, the expansion of both the universities creates tensions in other areas of city life. Significant pressures include the effect of this expansion on the existing housing stock and on development sites that need to be prioritised for housing that is affordable, and for meeting the employment needs through new office and industrial development.

Traffic congestion in the city is a major challenge that has affected air quality resulting in an Air Quality Management Area. There is significant in- and out-commuting. Bath benefits from a mainline railway station with a half hourly service to London and frequent connections to Bristol, Keynsham and towns in Wiltshire. Bristol international airport is proximate to the city providing a national and international gateway to the city and region. It is a very walkable city and the city benefits from a number of strategic cycle routes: the Bristol to Bath Railway Path, the Kennet and Avon Canal and the Two Tunnels Greenway.

In formulating the spatial strategy for the city, a sound starting point is to review the existing spatial strategy for Bath and to identify where there are policy gaps, where it needs to be re-written and other areas where it’s robust but might need evolving.

As with other places across the district there is a broad range of evidence that informs policy choices including: Climate Emergency Strategy & Ecological Emergency Action Plan, Local Housing Needs Assessment (LHNA), Economic Needs Assessment, Journey to Net Zero Transport Strategy, Health & Wellbeing Strategy, Economic Strategy and Cultural Strategy. Some other strategies are in the process of being commissioned including the Sustainable Tourism and Visitor Accommodation Strategy.

Bath is of global importance, recognised by its double inscription as a World Heritage Site. This is an international designation which transcends national boundaries. In addition, the city has over 5,000 listed buildings, and an extensive conservation area that covers two-thirds of the city. It is surrounded by the Cotswold National Landscape around three sides, which is characterised here by a highly complex and often very steeply sloping landform, and also the Green Belt. Whilst these are positive aspects of the city’s character, a consequence of this is that there are limited opportunities for outward expansion and there is not enough land available to meet all of the city’s objectively assessed needs and so priorities need to be made. One of the key roles of the local plan is to prioritise and set out the spatial distribution of different uses within the city.

House prices in the city are very expensive and many people who work in the city have to or choose to live elsewhere to meet their housing needs. The Local Housing Needs Assessment (LHNA) identifies that the total need for affordable housing, comprised of social rent and low cost ownership, is very significant and represents 77% of total housing need in Bath. The Housing Mission Delivery Board has been established in B&NES to unite organisations from across the housing sector, including anchor institutions, to deliver more affordable housing that addresses needs. It is also important to recognise that whilst short-term lets limit housing for residents, they are an important aspect of the visitor economy.

The Economic Strategy sets out ambitious proposals to address Bath’s specific economic challenges and create a fairer, more prosperous and sustainable economy focussing on innovation and creativity. Our strong visitor economy outcompetes health and care sectors - with both sectors increasingly dependent on inward commuting, placing pressure on transport networks and resulting in congestion. There is an identified need for more high quality office space in central locations, and industrial/hybrid business floorspace at a broad range of scales for established, growing and emerging sectors, to meet the city’s economic ambitions. As referenced above, central Bristol to Bath has been established as a Growth Zone in the WECAWECA Local Growth Strategy creating new opportunities to diversify our economy, unlocking prime commercial development sites in the city centre benefiting from excellent access to Bath Spa train station.

The universities jointly represent approximately 25% of the city’s residential population. The University of Bath is the second biggest employer in the city. Whilst the universities bring many benefits that include a thriving student population that support a vibrant city, the expansion of both the universities creates tensions in other areas of city life. Significant pressures include the effect of this expansion on the existing housing stock and on development sites that need to be prioritised for housing that is affordable, and for meeting the employment needs through new office, industrial and hybrid business space development. The city suffers from significant traffic congestion. 75% of people driving to work in Bath do so from outside of the city resulting in heavy congestion on those key corridors into Bath such as Bathwick Street, London Road, Lower Bristol Road, and the Wellsway. In 2002 an Air Quality Management Area was declared and to improve air quality a Clean Air Zone was introduced in 2021 due to The effects of climate change are expected to bring increased flood risk, surface water run-off and land slip. These need to planned for and managed, where possible using nature-based solutions.

The role of green space and nature recovery in supporting, invigorating and enhancing the city is critical to address the ecological emergency and providing access for people.

Parts of some wards in Bath experience inequalities in health and wellbeing outcomes, including Twerton, Whiteway and Foxhill, and the built and natural environment can play an important role in addressing inequalities.

There are existing residents within and outside of Bath who feel disconnected with or do not utilise all that Bath has to offer. The role of the built and natural environment in promoting places that are inclusive to people of all ages, abilities and educational attainment, as well as being health promoting more generally, will be important.