Building News is an information portal for all professional building specifiers. Here you can find all of the latest construction news from around the UK and the rest of the world.

Why investing in reliable internet is critical for construction programmes

According to Mobile Data and Fixed Line communications company Comms365, the construction sector’s appetite for reliable internet services has increased dramatically in recent years due to the growing number of devices and cloud-based applications in use on construction sites. In our world of rapidly advancing technology, construction sites need minimum bandwidths to use new apps and software for contract and supplier management, surveys, geolocation and workflow. Without reliable internet access, communication is hindered and sites can’t operate as well as they need to.

The challenge may arise in provisioning the internet resources in the first place: From industry experience, there is 30% chance that any ethernet installation will be disrupted due to wayleave or lack of fibre infrastructure. If any of your sites have suffered from a delay in the install of a fixed line, you’ll be familiar with the financial cost that this disruption causes.

As construction companies often work in locations where fixed connectivity is limited, expensive or impossible, IT managers and programme leads are investing in reliable and secure cost-effective bonded internet solutions.

Reliable internet connections are needed by construction managers to communicate with architects, contractors and clients to keep sites running efficiently. Web access is needed for site workers as well as guest contractors, architect and visitors who need immediate access to plans, surveys and orders as well as technical and health and safety information. This means that unreliable or delayed connections can have impacts on client relationships, contract management and on-site safety as well as the bottom line.

In summary, the benefits of having reliable connectivity far outweigh the costs.

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New skills needed to harness true potential of offsite construction

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Offsite construction could revolutionise the construction industry and provide a solution to the UK housing shortage, but only if the sector develops the right skills.

Faster, Smarter, More Efficient: Building Skills for Offsite Construction shows that 42% of construction industry employers with over 100 staff expect to use offsite methods in five years’ time.

When asked about the use of offsite-specific construction materials and products, 100% said they expected the use of precast concrete panels to increase; 91% anticipated the use of precast concrete frame to rise.

At present however, offsite construction accounts for just 10% of industry output.

The report – which follows the recommendations set out in industry expert Mark Farmer’s government-backed review of UK construction – also reveals that nearly 50% of construction industry clients expect the use of offsite construction to increase over the next five years.

Offsite processes save time and money and can improve quality through pre-fabrication of components – from panels to fully fitted rooms.

Mark Farmer said “The urgency for modernisation has never been greater, set against an insidious backdrop of an ageing workforce and increasing concerns about the impact of Brexit.

“Any strategic shift towards pre-manufacturing and offsite construction creates an immediate requirement to define our future skills needs through collaboration between industry, educators, training providers and government.

“This is crucial to ensuring we can transition to a higher productivity, digitally enabled industry which inherently attracts more of the young talent we so desperately need. It should also set out clear opportunities for the existing construction workforce and indeed workers from other industries to reskill through a new family of career pathways.”

Steve Radley, Director of Policy at CITB, said “There is massive potential for offsite construction. The Government recently announced an additional £1.4bn of funding for affordable homes, with an increase in offsite construction set as an objective, representing a clear opportunity for growth in this area.

“The greatest potential currently lies within the housing and commercial sectors, where mass customisation can create the buildings we need more quickly and to higher standards. There are also opportunities to bring the benefits of offsite to large-scale infrastructure projects – some high profile examples include HS2 and Hinkley Point, which are already using offsite techniques.”

The report outlines six key skills areas related to offsite construction:

  1. digital design
  2. estimating/commercial
  3. offsite manufacturing
  4. logistics
  5. site management and integration
  6. onsite placement and assembly

Increasingly, workers will need the skills to move between offsite and onsite environments and so the training for these six areas must evolve to meet the changing demand.

Currently, significant barriers exist which prevent the delivery of training and skills to meet the needs of these crucial areas. These include:

  • Existing training does not include the required offsite content
  • Lack of awareness and suitability of available training and qualifications – companies are delivering their own ‘in-house’ training, which leads to non-standard approaches
  • A shortage of qualified training providers and assessors

Steve Radley concluded “Successful offsite management hinges on the effective integration of both onsite and offsite functions – and this requires a comprehensive understanding of both aspects.”

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Cowboy builders cost the UK economy £10bn per year

The UK economy is missing out on £10 billion each year because home owners are so fearful of hiring a cowboy builder, they simply don’t commission building work, according to research by the Federation of Master Builders (FMB).

Key results from the FMB’s research into consumer confidence in the UK’s builders include:

  • The UK economy is missing out on £10 billion of activity per year because of anxiety over cowboy builders
  • One third (32%) of home owners are put off doing major home improvement works requiring a builder because they fear hiring a dodgy builder
  • If all home owners had full confidence in the building industry, they would typically spend an average of £40,000 on major home improvement projects over the next five years

Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB, said “A third of home owners are so anxious about the possibility of choosing a bad builder, they don’t commission any building work whatsoever. This means that the UK economy could be missing out on £10 billion of activity every year. Indeed, the FMB’s latest research shows that on average, your typical home owner would spend £40,000 on major home improvement projects over the next five years if they could be guaranteed a positive experience. If we were able to unlock this pent-up demand from fearful consumers, the benefit to jobs and growth would be enormous. Last year the UK experienced its slowest growth since 2012 with a rise in GDP of just 1.8 per cent. With Brexit just around the corner, it’s therefore vital that the Government pulls as many leavers as possible to turbo-charge the economy and protect it from any potential economic wobbles.”

“In the longer term, we need to end the cowboy builders’ reign of terror so we can give all home owners the confidence they need to invest their cash in building work. The Government should consider introducing some form of mandatory licensing system for domestic builders so that consumers know that all building firms have a base level of skill, competence and professionalism. Unlike in Australia and Canada, in this country anyone can be a builder and that’s why there is a significant minority of rogue traders out there giving the whole construction industry a bad name. We’re exploring mandatory licensing with industry and Government but in the meantime, our advice to home owners who are looking for a builder is to ask for a recommendation from family or friends. If they can’t help, consumers should approach a professional trade association like the Federation of Master Builders who can put them in touch with a vetted and inspected building firm.”

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Can modular housing solve the UK’s housing crisis?

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The UK is in the grips of a chronic housing crisis. Rising rent prices, falling wages and a severe labour skills shortage have left housing construction stagnant and properties financially out of reach. Productivity in the construction sector has stalled post-Brexit, and developer focus in recent years has shifted from creating accommodation that is affordable and simple to construct, to complex, luxury projects which often remain unoccupied. With the housing sector contributing to economic inequality in this country, an innovative solution to this crisis is desperately needed.

Modular housing is one solution that has the potential to ease the UK’s housing crisis. Such homes are cost-effective, scalable, sustainable, and efficient to build. However, legislative red tape, local authority dependence on short-term housing solutions, and reluctance by landowners to free up their land have hidebound modular housing’s potential, meaning that the contribution it could make to the easing the housing crisis has not yet been tested.

Currently, housing construction of any type in the UK is being strangled by a severe labour skills shortage. An ageing workforce and a Brexit-induced worker exodus is limiting construction activity, whilst increasing labour costs are making affordable housing financially unattractive for construction companies. Consequently, housing demand is not being met. This is particularly problematic given that the number of new households has exceeded the number of homes built every year since 2008, and estimates suggest there is a need for between 230,000-300,000 additional units per year – a level not reached since the 1970s.

Here, modular could have a significant impact by reinvigorating supply in an affordable and efficient model. Factory, rather than field-based, modular housing can take as little as three days to construct and requires only a semi-skilled workforce who take months, not years, to train. Modular houses also require fewer builders due to being semi mass-produced and standardised, making them appealing to construction companies with diminished workforces and restricted budgets.

The critical shortage of affordable housing in the UK is being exacerbated by legislative red-tape and landowner opposition. Across the country, luxury apartments are plentiful compared to low-cost developments, in part due to landowners who want to achieve the best possible land value, and traditional housebuilders who are perceived as offering the best price. At present off site construction development proposals are less competitive than traditional methods: construction costs are higher than traditional construction meaning a lower land offer for the land, [meaning housebuilders are] less likely to win a competitive bid for land unless the awarding body specifically states the desire to use off-site manufacturing as part of development. Clearly this position may change over time, particularly when site labour becomes more scarce or the demand for offsite manufacturing increases.

However, attitudes could be changing – Wolverhampton City Council is delivering 23,000 modular homes as part of a pilot scheme and a recent decision by the Greater London Authority’s assistant director of housing, to commission a common framework for ‘delivering precision manufactured homes at scale’, suggests that modular, standardised builds are now seen as an acceptable, even attractive, way to work around constrained local authority budgets.

There is, however, a long way to go, and even rising homelessness is currently failing to fuel demand for affordable accommodation. With demand far outstripping supply, local and national government now spend £2 million a day on temporary accommodation, often using the most expensive and least desirable forms of emergency housing, such as B&Bs and hotels, for the over-77,000 homeless households under local authority care. Contrastingly, modular houses can cost as little as £25,000 to build, and offer a permanent or semi-permanent alternative to emergency accommodation which is economically sustainable in the long-run. Some councils are already picking up on modular’s potential to provide stability for those in crisis – in Lewisham, plans for a 25-home modular social rent development are underway; and a collaboration between 16 London boroughs to provide modular housing for use by the homeless has been promised £11m by Sadiq Khan, after a £20,000 seed funding contribution from London Councils’ City Ambition programme kick-started the project.

Creativity, modernisation and efficiency are critical if the UK is ever to solve its housing crisis. The country’s population is unlikely to stop increasing, there is no real answer yet to the severe skills shortage in the country’s construction industry, and the threat of homelessness continues to grow. These are chronic problems for which a solution is needed, and fast. Modular housing could provide just that. Accessible, efficient and sustainable, today’s modular homes are not the prefabs of the past. Instead, they are slick and distinctive; environmentally friendly and architecturally evolved. With the government announcing plans, in March this year to build 100,000 modular homes by 2020, we may finally be waking up to the fact that, in a time of crisis, modular could prove to be just what the country needs.

Written by Ben O’Connor, Development Manager, Kajima

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Road reinforcement could save councils millions in repairs

Local authorities could mitigate the rising cost of highway repair and maintenance by employing simple preventative solutions, according to road reinforcement experts.

The claim comes as the Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance (ALARM) survey reports total carriageway maintenance expenditure across England and Wales in 2017-18 was around £1.93 billion — an increase on the previous year’s £1.66 billion.

The survey, published by the Asphalt Industry Alliance, also highlights a gap of £3.3 million between the funds that local authority highways teams in England and Wales received in the last 12 months and the amount needed to keep the carriageway in ‘reasonable order’.

One in five of local roads in the UK is now deemed to be structurally poor, meaning it has less than five years of life remaining, reports show.

Taking a longer-term, preventative approach to road maintenance would reduce the need for regular remedial work; a regular drain on local authority budgets.

Jochen Bromen, Application Technology Manager, Asphalt Systems, at pavement reinforcement specialist Tensar, said “anything that represents a more permanent repair (rather than patching) is a good thing; the taxpayer benefits, the local authority can spend money on more road maintenance or infrastructure projects, motorists face fewer repairs to their cars, and the total economic impact is ultimately reduced.

“One pothole is now filled every 21 seconds in the UK, and although the Government’s Pothole Action Fund recently injected an extra £100 million towards the repair of affected road surfaces, following a winter of severe weather conditions, the Local Government Association claims funding “will provide just over 1% of what is needed to tackle our current £9.3 billion local roads repair backlog.”

Combined with rising asphalt costs, innovative approaches are increasingly needed to further safeguard the UK’s highways.

A composite paving grid can effectively mitigate reflective cracking in new pavements caused by joints or cracks in the old structure.

“The technology combines the reinforcing function of a grid with the stress-relief and interlayer barrier function of a paving fabric,” Bromen explained. “This type of maintenance solution is simple and economical and can extend the operating life of a road, reducing whole-life costs.”

The ALARM survey also found a huge disparity between recommended frequency of road resurfacing work and the current reality. It is advised that resurfacing should occur every 10 to 20 years. However, the reporting of such activity has plummeted to once every 92 years in England.

“Without sufficient funding to properly resurface the UK’s roads within the recommended time frame, councils are left facing hefty road repair bills, which add up to more in the long run,” Bromen added. “It’s like re-icing a cake that’s crumbling underneath — an unsustainable solution.

“By taking a whole-life approach to road maintenance and investing in the correct technology to extend their lifespan, local authorities will realise huge long-term savings.”

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Housing crisis: more than 10,000 empty buildings in zones 1-3

The number of empty commercial properties in London’s zones 1-3 has reached more than 10,000 according to new figures out today from Live-in Guardians. The company carried out research among London’s 22 Local Authorities but with many unable to report the data, the current 10,666 figures on record is expected to be thousands higher. The Live-in Guardians Vacant Property Index undertaken by the guardian company, is the first annual report to collect the data with many councils missing the data.

Founder Arthur Duke, a former commercial lawyer, has lambasted the housing department and the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan for not doing enough, while there is a crippling housing crisis in the capital. He says the Government will create more red tape for companies like his, despite so many buildings being unused, when they introduce more onerous HMO (House in Multiple Occupation) legislation later this year.

Under the Freedom of Information Act, Live-in Guardians’ research has revealed the empty commercial building figures across the 22 Local Authorities. Of those asked, eight councils were unable to provide the information. “It’s like The Titanic not filling all its lifeboats – thousands of buildings that can create affordable means of living are lying empty,” says Duke, who believes the Government should be looking into its empty building portfolios, when it comes to improving housing availability in the capital.

These empty building figures have grown over the last few years with two buildings a week becoming empty in Zones 1-3 only. The figures reveal the worse offenders – the City of London with 3,409 empty buildings; Hammersmith & Fulham with 1,288 empty buildings and Ealing with 1,147 vacant commercial properties. Interestingly, Kensington & Chelsea and Newham Councils did not respond to the request.

Duke goes on: “This is a reflection of extortionate property prices coupled with ferociously high business rates that push companies further away from the centre of town to the suburbs. Many of the buildings from our research include office buildings, retail premises, police stations, warehouses and factory buildings. We also have former law courts, restaurants, a former go-karting track and even a few banks.”

The HMO rules will see the license requirements change from ‘properties occupied by five or more people, forming two separate households comprises three or more storeys’ to all properties irrespective of how many storeys. These new rules will make it difficult for empty building owners to house guardians living communally in their larger commercial buildings. Duke adds: “I struggle to find the empty building figures acceptable. Especially when there is an increased amount of red tape forecast and fines of up to £20,000, which will mean higher costs to get these buildings in a condition where they are suitable for guardian occupation, when these buildings could be housing Londoners who are struggling to afford quality accommodation in the central London Zones.

“More should be done to make use of these empty spaces, which are, in fact viable temporary homes with a little imagination and effort – that benefit all parties. The Government should see these empty buildings as an alternative temporary form of living and has the added bonus of helping guardians save money they could potentially use to buy their own property in the future. Once guardians are living in commercial spaces, the owners are typically exempt from paying business rates and there’s no requirement for expensive security costs.”

Guardians typically pay less than 50% of the private rental costs, making it more affordable for them to live and work in the capital. Meanwhile, real estate advisor, Altus Group, says the average business rates bill for a commercial property in the City of London last year was £63,234 up 23.4% following last April’s revaluation – empty business rates can be mitigated once guardians occupy a commercial space, while its awaiting for example, planning permission.

House prices in London now weigh in at eight times the average salary, so there is a need for some dramatic action to resolve this growing problem. Duke suggest that the new Housing Minister, Dominic Raab and the Mayor of London consider these figures, and start assembling a true record of empty buildings. Moreover, rather than trying to assist, it seems that local councils are putting additional hurdles in place. “The Government should be supporting guardianship. There’s a real need for these empty buildings to be put to good use, the guardian figures prove this.

“I strongly urge that HMO legislation should not be applicable to Guardian properties or at least with a 12-month exemption, as guardian occupation is always ‘temporary’, unlike ‘pure’ residential buildings, which will be residential indefinitely. There is a housing crisis and thousands of empty buildings, surely this is a feasible temporary solution,” Duke explains.

Live-in Guardians currently manages 70 buildings in London, each home to savvy professionals who are using this as an alternative solution to affordable living. However, with over 2,000 Londoners looking to become a guardian at any given time, the numbers reflect the need for viable housing opportunities.

Arthur adds: “I am consistently astonished at the small number of business owners that are knowledgeable on the subject of putting guardians into their empty commercial spaces to save on business rates. It seems like a no brainer to me. If you have any empty building standing there, it is liable to be vandalized or at risk from squatters – but it doesn’t need to be empty. We have hundreds of vetted people who are desperate to live close to central London without the usual price tag.

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Financial constraints holding up construction workloads

Construction workloads slowed amid financial constraints, which were reported by 80% of respondents to be the most significant impediment to building activity, according to the Q2 2018 RICS UK Construction and Infrastructure Market Survey.

In Q2 2018, 15% more chartered surveyors reported that their workloads had risen rather than fallen, and, although this is still in positive territory, the Q2 figure moderated from a net balance of +23% in Q1. 80% of respondents noted that financial constraints were a limiting factor to building activity – the joint highest reading in five years. Respondents have often cited financial constraints to be causing difficulties in recent reports, and more specifically access to bank finance and credit, cash flow and liquidity challenges or less favourable cyclical market conditions.

Private and industrial housing

The RICS quarterly series indicated growth eased across nearly all sectors in Q2, with private industrial and housing segments observing the sharpest slowdown. While the figures are still positive, the pace has slowed in housing with a net balance of +25% of contributors reporting a rise in private housing activity, compared to +36% in Q1 and an average of +30% over the past two years. Anecdotal evidence suggested that the housing market slowdown, coupled with ongoing ambiguity with the Brexit negotiations, is weighing on investment decisions.

Industrial workloads

Contributors reported a flat reading this quarter which was the weakest reported sentiment over the last five years.

Total workloads are now reported to be slowing across all geographic regions. This was particularly the case in the Midlands and East of England which was led by the first decline in industrial activity in over five years. In contrast, total workloads in the North and South West were the most resilient, supported by solid activity in private housing.

Infrastructure sectors

In infrastructure, 11% more contributors reported a rise rather than a fall in activity (easing from a net balance of +21% in Q1) with respondents expecting the rail, roads and energy subsectors to post the strongest growth over the next twelve months. Meanwhile, results for public sector workloads were mixed with 12% more contributors reporting a modest acceleration of growth in housing, compared to a net balance of +5% in non-housing.

Activity net balance

Despite the uncertain outlook for the economy, 41% more respondents expect activity to rise rather than fall. When asked how business enquiries for new projects or contracts have fared in the past three months, 14% more respondents reported an increase rather than decrease. This is alongside a net balance of +28% foreseeing an increase in hiring compared with an average of +32% over the last four quarters. Ongoing uncertainty driven by Brexit and recent market events are leading businesses to postpone or curtail investments, however, which may negatively affect the industry’s longer-term growth prospects.

Outlook for tender prices

Although tender price expectations over the next twelve months moderated in Q2, +54% and +48% more respondents continue to envisage greater price pressures in the building and civil engineering areas, respectively. The expected rise in tender prices may signal rising input costs and shrinking profit margins for businesses. Indeed, expectations on profit margins eased from a net balance of +15% to +5% in the latest results.

Jeffrey Matsu, RICS Senior Economist said “although growth in the sector has moderated, ongoing capacity constraints have ensured a steady pipeline of work with robust expectations for the year ahead. With businesses continuing to hire to meet this pent up demand, the effects of any uncertainty generated by Brexit or recent market events, including Carillion, may only become more evident in the longer-term.”

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Sun-scorched ground at risk from future flooding

With many areas of the UK not seeing any significant rainfall since the end of May as a result of the exceptionally warm summer, the Know Your Flood Risk campaign is warning people to be prepared for when prolonged rain or thunderstorms arrive; the results of which have the potential to pose a real threat of flooding.

In its newly published edition of the Homeowners Guide to Flood Resilience, which is a free guide designed to support home owners in being ‘flood aware and prepared’, it has sections dedicated to learning about flood risks. This includes surface water flooding, which can occur when heavy downpours are unable to soak away or overcome surrounding drainage or sewerage systems.

The free guide offers assistance on how to protect your home, community-based defence options plus a new section specifically on Sustainable Drainage Solutions (SuDS). In addition, the guide includes helpful hints and tips relating to property-level resilience that encourage appropriate drainage with the aim of reducing surface water flooding.

Mary Dhonau OBE, chief executive of the Know Your Flood Risk and a champion for community-based flood resilience said “We need to take heed from historic events, for example, in 2012 many areas of the country badly were hit by flash flooding, after a series of storms that broke following a long period of dry conditions. Flooding can happen when people least expect it and, with the current hot conditions, the ground simply won’t be able to soak up rainfall and surface water flooding will pose a real threat.

“I am therefore urging the public to be flood aware. If we experience prolonged or exceptionally heavy downpours within the next few weeks, I fear that the hard, dry ground will be unable to absorb the rainfall and the drains and sewers may not be able to cope, leading to potential flooding.”

 

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Chance to solve rural housing crisis ‘severely limited’ by changes to planning rules

Rural landowners have warned that the lack of flexibility in new planning rules which prevent a mix of affordable and market homes from being built on special sites in the countryside will severely limit the chances of solving the rural housing crisis.

The Government has published a revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) which claims to help build more homes, more quickly in places where people want to live. But according to the CLA which represents landowners, farmers and rural businesses, changes made to the criteria for Entry Level Exception Sites will now encourage less land being made available for much needed homes in the countryside.

CLA President Tim Breitmeyer said “The new rules now state that all properties on an Entry Level Exception Site must be affordable. While we desperately need affordable homes so people can live and work in the countryside, the reality of the policy means that landowners will not bring land forward because the incentive of including market homes on the site has been removed. Without the benefit of cross subsidy, the decision to release land for housing is not financially viable so fewer homes are likely to be built.

“In the last five years, 13% of CLA members have donated or sold land at a discount for affordable housing. We made a robust case to the Government for greater incentives to help grow this figure but by making it less attractive for landowners, the Entry Level Exception Site policy severely limits the chance to solve the rural housing crisis.”

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Government’s new planning rulebook to deliver more quality, well-designed homes

Building attractive and better-designed homes in areas where they are needed is at the centre of new planning rules published by Secretary of State Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP this week.

The new rules will also make it easier for councils to challenge poor quality and unattractive development, and give communities a greater voice about how developments should look and feel.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework follows a public consultation launched by the Prime Minister earlier this year to provide a comprehensive approach for planners, developers and councils to build more homes, more quickly and in the places where people want to live.

Revised National Planning Policy Framework

The new rule book will focus on:

  • promoting high quality design of new homes and places
  • stronger protection for the environment
  • building the right number of homes in the right places
  • greater responsibility and accountability for housing delivery from councils and developers

Secretary of State for Communities, Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP said “Fundamental to building the homes our country needs is ensuring that our planning system is fit for the future.

“This revised planning framework sets out our vision of a planning system that delivers the homes we need. I am clear that quantity must never compromise the quality of what is built, and this is reflected in the new rules.

“We have listened to the tens of thousands of people who told us their views, making this a shared strategy for development in England.”

Ministers have been clear on their ambition to achieve 300,000 new homes a year by the mid-2020s, which follows 217,000 homes built last year, the biggest increase in housing supply in England for almost a decade.

The new rules will see 85 of the proposals set out in the housing white paper and the Budget, implemented in the new National Planning Policy Framework.

Promoting high quality design of new homes and places

Refocusing on the quality and design of proposals which are in line with what local communities want, the framework ensures councils have the confidence and tools to refuse permission for development that does not prioritise design quality and does not complement its surroundings.

With an emphasis on engaging with communities and allowing residents to see proposed development before it’s even built, the new framework encourages councils to make use of innovative new visual tools to promote better design and quality, which will also make sure new homes fit in with their surroundings.

Adopted neighbourhood plans will demonstrate clear local leadership in design quality, with the framework allowing groups seeking such plans to truly reflect the community’s expectations on how new development will visually contribute to their area.

Whilst the framework sets the strategic direction for driving up new build quality, it will remain up to councils to apply these polices in the most appropriate way in their area, recognising that they are well placed to know their area’s unique character and setting.

To maximise the use of land we are promoting more effective use of the land available and giving councils more confidence to refuse applications that don’t provide enough homes.

Stronger protection for the environment

The new framework has also been updated to provide further protection for biodiversity; ensuring wildlife thrives at the same time as addressing the need for new homes.

Changes to the framework see the planning system align more closely with Defra’s 25 Year Environment Plan, which aims to leave the environment in a better state for future generations. This includes more protection for habitats, and places greater importance on air quality when deciding development proposals.

It provides strengthened protection for ancient woodland and ancient and veteran trees across England, ensuring they can be retained for the benefit of future generations.

Whilst giving councils real flexibility to make the most of their existing brownfield land, the revised framework makes sure they exhaust all other reasonable options for development before looking to alter a Green Belt boundary.

The government has more explicitly outlined the protection of the Green Belt in England, explaining the high expectations and considerable evidence that would be needed to alter any boundary.

Building the right number of homes in the right places

To help tackle unaffordable house prices in many areas across the country, the framework sets out a new way for councils to calculate the housing need of their local community (including different forms of housing, such as older people’s retirement homes).

This new methodology aims to deliver more homes in the places where they are most needed, based on factors including the affordability of existing homes for people on lower and medium incomes.

Greater responsibility and accountability for housing delivery from councils and developers

From November 2018 councils will have a Housing Delivery Test focused on driving up the numbers of homes actually delivered in their area, rather than how many are planned for.

In addition, to make sure that the necessary infrastructure and affordable housing is delivered to support communities, clearer guidance for both developers and councils will also be published this week.

Meaning that developers will know what is expected of them up front, even before they submit a planning application and councils have greater power to hold them to these commitments.

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