Prioritise Brownfield Development

Changes to planning rules to support building homes on brownfield land have been announced by the government.

The government has announced that every council in England will be told that they will need to prioritise brownfield developments and instructed to be less bureaucratic and more flexible in applying policies that halt housebuilding on brownfield land.

The bar for refusing brownfield plans is also set to be made higher for big city councils which are failing to hit their locally agreed housebuilding targets.

Planning authorities in England’s 20 largest cities and towns will be made to follow a ‘brownfield presumption’, if housebuilding drops below expected levels.

New legislation will extend current Permitted Development Rights to allow commercial buildings of any size to be converted into new homes.

The government is also launching a consultation on proposals to remove extensions or large loft conversions from the process of receiving planning permission.

Housing secretary Michael Gove said:

“Today marks another important step forward in our Long-Term Plan for Housing, taking a brownfield first approach to deliver thousands of new homes where people want to live and work, without concreting over the countryside.

“Our new brownfield presumption will tackle under delivery in our key towns and cities – where new homes are most needed to support jobs and drive growth.”

David Thomas, chief executive at Barratt Developments, said:

“We welcome any efforts to make it easier to get planning permission, particularly for brownfield regeneration which is already naturally a more complicated and capital-intensive process. Industry and local and national government need to work together to find ways of delivering more new homes more quickly, including on previously developed land, and this is a positive step.”

Simon Carter, chief executive at British Land, added:

“Today’s announcement is another important step towards unlocking the potential of brownfield urban regeneration. British Land has consistently advocated for practical, deliverable planning reform which prioritises brownfield development, accelerates the pace of housing delivery and helps to secure long-term sustainable growth, by intensifying development in urban areas where it is needed most.”

Source: Insider Media