Skip to main content

The new NPPF – radical overhaul or missed opportunity?

Reflections

At long last, the new NPPF is here. Although yet to be formally adopted, the proposed changes – now out to consultation – give a clear picture of how Labour plans to fulfil its ambition to build 1.5m homes over the next five years, while also delivering critical infrastructure.

In addition to the NPPF consultation, a number of other measures are proposed which are expected to come forward in a forthcoming Planning and Infrastructure Bill.

But do the proposed changes go far enough? Let’s take a look at some of the key headlines:

Housing targets – All councils in England are to be given new, mandatory housing targets to pave the way to deliver 1.5 million more homes.

A revised Standard Method for calculating housing targets would mean the vast majority of authorities will see a significant increase in the number of homes expected to be delivered, although cities such as Birmingham, Bristol and London will actually see their requirements drop when compared to the previous method.

Green Belt – Or in some cases, now the ‘Grey Belt’. Under the new guidance, the Grey Belt covers areas of previously developed land and/or land that makes a “limited contribution” to the Green Belt purposes. Therefore, development in the ‘Grey Belt’ is deemed ‘appropriate’ and does not need to demonstrate ‘Very Special Circumstances’ in order to gain an allocation or consent.

Beyond the Grey Belt, many authorities will be compelled to review their Green Belt land to meet their new housing targets if they are unable to otherwise meet them.

When building on the Green Belt, developers must also adhere to new ‘Golden Rules’, which are:

  1. For housing schemes, the provision of at least 50% affordable housing (subject to viability)
  2. Relevant infrastructure improvements
  3. Provision or improvement of green spaces accessible to the public

Mixed tenures – Labour has confirmed its support for a mix of tenures across development sites. Tenures referenced in the NPPF include rented affordable housing and build to rent, which Labour says will create ‘diverse communities and supporting timely build out rates’ – a welcome move for many in the sector.

Commercial – But it’s not just about homes! The new NPPF states ‘appropriate sites for commercial development which meet the needs of a modern economy should be identified’. This includes labs, gigafactories, data centres, digital infrastructure, freight and logistics. One would think a more strategic level assessment is needed to determine what the ‘need’ is as part of a wider industrial strategy. Hopefully, more details will come on this one.

Renewables – You could write an essay on the changes for renewables alone. Developers will no longer need to demonstrate the overall need for renewable or low carbon energy, with significant weight to be given to proposals’ contribution to renewable energy generation and a net zero future.

The threshold for what is defined as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) is also being slated to change, specifically onshore wind and solar projects, rising from 50MW to 100MW and 150MW respectively.

Education – those with young children (or hoping to have some soon) will welcome a greater emphasis on increasing the number of ‘early-years’ places available through the provision of new facilities. With the previous Conservative government extending the level of funding available for parents in work, concerns were raised at the time that this was simply a case of increasing demand, rather than supply. Post-16 places have also been given a prominent mention too.

Beautiful is no more – much was said by Michael Gove and other Conservatives about the need to build ‘beautiful’, which, although sounds good in practice, is a phrasing which of course is terribly subjective. The word beautiful has been removed from key bits in the new NPPF, while ‘well-designed’ stays.

A vision for transport – sustainable transport will now need to be ‘vision-led’. This should help pave the way for measures which encourage behavioural change, enabling people to make better choices when deciding on how to get from A to B.

So what now?

The NPPF consultation will end on 24 September with a final version published before the end of the year. While a summer consultation will no doubt be helpful to dampen opposition, it will be worth keeping a close eye on potential backlash from authorities and the wider public not best pleased with the plans.

Many are casting doubt whether delivering 1.5m homes is really achievable, particularly given the shortage of planning officers and labour. We shall see whether the changes will represent a radical overhaul, or a missed opportunity.

Meanwhile, we await details of the forthcoming Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which according to Labour’s announcement this week will include ‘a national scheme of delegation that focuses planning committees on the applications that really matter…and places more trust in skilled professional planners.’

A new universal system of strategic planning across England will also be introduced within the next five years, which will aim to deliver growth for UK plc.

Despite clear direction from Labour, developers engaging with local government can expect significant backlash at a local level, particularly in areas where housing targets have increased dramatically and where Green Belt reviews will be needed.

So, what should we as the built environment industry prepare for?

According to a recent Ipsos poll, 28% of people still don’t believe that there is a housing crisis in their area at all.

As my colleague Nikki advocates, promoting the social impact potential from new developments can help bring people together and help them understand how changes in the built environment can benefit them. Language is key too and moving away from divisive terms like ‘Nimby’ would be a good start, while also ensuring that developers really take the time to listen to local concerns.

We’re the Meeting Place of deep knowledge and creative thinking. And we want to hear from you.