Major Planning Shake Up Will Impact All Landowners

Significant changes to the planning system in England are being proposed which appear to go much further than many in the industry first thought and which could create a number of new strategic land opportunities here in the South East where house prices and demand for houses is high.

The Planning for The Future consultation  runs until 29^th October 2020 and proposes reforms to streamline and modernise the planning process, bringing a new focus to design and sustainability, improve the system of developer contributions to infrastructure and ensure more land is available for development where it is needed.

The consultation is focussed on housing and the approach to housing demand. The Government would in the future set binding numbers for each Local Planning Authority to meet the 300,000 new dwellings a year needed (identified in the 2004 Barker Report). Currently local plans provide for 187,000 and in 2019, 241,000 were built, which includes those under permitted development rights. Clearly the hike in numbers needed to meet the recommended levels will mean much more land being brought forward more quickly here in the South East.

Alongside this will be the proposals in the draft Environment Bill which sets out for developers to achieve a 10% improvement to biodiversity value, and they will be required to submit a biodiversity plan along with their development plans.  A net gain on the same site as the development is preferred but achieving 110% of biodiversity value and a development scheme will in some circumstances be impossible and a separate site will be required.

BNG is already a requirement of the National Planning Policy Framework and National Planning Practice Guidance, and Local Planning Authorities will be required to produce plans detailing priorities in the borough for biodiversity projects.