Land owners are being asked to put forward plots they think could be used for building homes or traveller sites.

Swale council says it is particularly interested in previously developed areas in Sittingbourne that may be available for housing.

The appeal is a result of new targets that have been imposed by the government.

Adopted in 2017, the current Local Plan is called Bearing Fruits and is in the process of being reviewed by the council.

It sets out a blueprint for what can be built and where over the next 18 years up to 2040.

The plan covers important issues such as housing, the economy, retail and town centres, infrastructure and the environment.

It will also include policies on how planning applications will be decided, in addition to the allocation of land for homes, employment and other uses.

Several sites have already been submitted as part of the review, but the council says it still needs to find more to help meet the targets for housing and traveller sites.

To see which sites have been put forward, which includes huge swathes of land around south of Sittingbourne, Iwade, Bobbing, Minster, Queenborough and Faversham, click here.

The authority previously agreed to borrow up to £23 million to fund its housing company, Swale Rainbow Homes (SRH).

In June 2022, it pushed ahead with a project converting three sites in Sittingbourne into flats, which would have been a total of 170 affordable properties for the town.

However, in September it was decided land in Fountain Street should be put up for sale instead.

Build costs are being sought for SRH’s plan for 51 apartments in Cockleshell Walk but it is not going ahead with its plans for East Street and the status of that site is to be confirmed.

On the call for sites, Cllr Alastair Gould, chair of the planning and transportation policy working group, said: “Reviewing our Local Plan makes sure our planning policies more accurately represent the current needs of the borough.

“The local plan is incredibly important as it is what we use as a guideline for all planning decisions and outlines where future development should take place.

“Frustratingly, the government has imposed ever-increasing housing targets on us as a council and to meet this perceived need, we are being required to find sites for development.

“We are prioritising sites that have previously been developed on.

“If you own a piece of land that you think would match our aims, please submit it.

“We will always work, within our powers, to make sure development in our borough is sustainable, responsible and to the benefit of our residents.”

If you would like to submit a site via the online portal, click here.

A new form is needed to be filled out for each individual site that is put forward.

If it is to be considered in the council’s next consultation of the Local Plan, sites must be submitted by Thursday, November 14.