Viable Placemaking review the NPPF December 2024 to give you the highlights on what this means for housebuilding, the Green Belt vs Grey Belt land, development viability, the new 'Golden Rule', and more!
On 12 December 2024, the Government updated a series of national planning policy and guidance, including the greatly anticipated update to the National Planning Policy Framework (the 'NPPF').
In this Insight, we'll give you context on the NPPF updates, FIVE key takeaways from the December 2024 revision, and explain what all this means for planning and development in England in the coming months.
Setting the Scene
Earlier this year, following the election, the new Labour Government launched a consultation on prospective changes to planning policy in England (further information available here). Some of these changes were adopted and some were not - but the path was clear, that the new Government - led by Kier Starmer and Angela Rayner (SoS for Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and Deputy Prime Minister) - were going to do all they could to boost housebuilding in the UK.
One of the key factors in consideration were councils' housing supply requirements, which had been softened by the previous Conservative Goverment in December 2023. The implications of this on housebuilding were significant and stalled Labour's charge into planning and development.
The new NPPF sought to reverse these changes - by reinstating and pushing housing supply targets - alongside a series of other updates.
Viable Placemaking's team have reviewed the updated NPPF (which is available in full here) and identified FIVE key points to get you up-to-speed.
1. Housing Land Supply
The first key update is the reinstatement of the Five Year Housing Land Supply.
The requirement for a five year housing land supply was softened in some circumstances to four years within the Conservative's December 2023 update and it came as no surprise to those who have followed the new Government's rhetoric around planning that this was to be reversed.
The Government's goal of reaching 1.5 million homes in their term is ambitious, even with an annual target of 370,000, and one of the key ways the Government will seek to hold local councils accountable in meeting their part of the nation's housing needs is through strict local targets.
Housing Land Supply also has implications around the tilted balance in favour of sustainable development and paragraph 11(d) (plus footnotes 7 & 8) of the NPPF, so it will be important to review this as part of planning applications and appeals for housing developments.
More detailed guidance on how housing supply requirements and housing delivery is applied has also been added to the Government's housing delivery test measurement rule book, and the Planning Practice Guidance (PPG) has been updated to ensure Local Planning Authority's (LPA's) housing needs assessments are conducted in line with the new NPPF.
Viable Placemaking take on housing supply reviews and housing needs assessments on a case-by-case basis as these are large, complex projects. Demonstrating a Council's housing supply position and local housing needs can be essential in delivering a development, and this has been emphasised by these changes to the NPPF.
2. Green Belt, Grey Belt, and 'The Golden Rules'
The second key update is the softening of the rules restricting development in the Green Belt and the introduction of the Grey Belt.
The NPPF now gives more allowances for new residential development where it satisfies the 'Golden Rules'. This will include delivering affoldable housing at a level 15% higher than the existing policy requirement, up to a maximum of 50%. Where there is no existing policy - a threshold of 50% will apply.
Other key components of the 'Golden Rules' will also be to provide and improve local/national infrastructure and local green spaces.
The Grey Belt is "land in the Green Belt comprising previously developed land and/or any other land that, in either case, does not strongly contribute to any of purposes (a), (b), or (d) in paragraph 143."
There are common misconceptions between Green Belt land and greenfield land or land in the countryside. Further details on the differences between these are available in our Insight: Green Belt vs Greenfield Land - what's the difference?
Grey Belt land does have some exclusions, such as land in Local Green Spaces, National Parks (or the Broads), Heritage Coast, etc., where policies relating to these assets (included at footnote 7 of the NPPF) would give strong reason for refusing or restricting development.
It is clear that the Governments changes to national Green Belt policy do not seek to simply unlock greenfields for housing - but to balance the local housing needs and affordable housing delivery with existing Green Belt policies. These changes will push brownfield land (previously developed land) and other Grey Belt land in turn, where other land and opportunities around a Council area are failing to deliver local housing and infrastructure needs.
3. ViabilityÂ
The Government have updated the viability PPG to be read alongside the new NPPF, which provides clear restrictions on the role viability plays for new developments in the Green Belt.
Where development takes place on land in, or released from the Green Belt, and is subject to the Golden Rules, the PPG states that a viability assessment should not be undertaken or taken into account for the purpose of reducing developer contributions, including affordable housing.
One of the key factors within the NPPF consultation earlier in the year which was excluded in the published update was the draft 'Annex 4' guidance on viability for Green Belt sites. While this was not adopted, the Government have made it clear that they intend to review their viability guidance and will be reconsidering how viability is approached on various schemes, such as large sites and brownfield land.
Should any changes be made to the national viability guidance, Viable Placemaking will respond accordingly and may provide Insights and Webinars for our clients and colleagues to ensure development is delivered in a way which supports the national objectives.
4. Transport
The Transport implications of a development are always among the key factors to be considered within a planning submission. The changes to the NPPF relating to transport were slightly more nuanced but gave the following key points:
Transport should be considered using a "vision-led approach".
Paragraph 116 (previously 115) requires that development should not be refused on highway grounds unless the impact on road safety or residual cumulative impacts on the road network, "following mitigation, would be severe".
Transport solutions should deliver "well-designed, sustainable and popular places".
This will surely be tested and debated between expert transport consultancies and highway authorities in the coming months and the standards for meeting these requirements will evolve with time.
5. Local Plans and Transition Arrangements
The changes made in the new NPPF are effective immediately for decision-making, so many planning applications and appeals may need to be considered in a new light due to these changes.
LPAs will need to begin considering the new NPPF from 12 March 2025 - just 3 months from the date of publication unless the plan is at a relatively late stage.
For LPAs whose plans are at an advanced stage (regulation 19), they must still meet at least 80% of the local housing need required by the new national policy and guidance.
Multiple councils around England criticised the draft changes earlier in the year and, although this NPPF does give some leeway for LPAs whose plans are towards or at examination, the Government is clearly placing the highest importance on housing delivery. This was reaffirmed by the addition to the Government's PPG: Plan-making page, which denoted that the SoS may consider intervening in the plan-making process, within the allowances of the law, if deemed necessary.
Comment from Viable Placemaking's Director
In response to the NPPF updates, Viable Placemaking's Director, Adam Place, gave the following comments:
"Viable Placemaking fundamentally support the changes made by the Government earlier today, and back the delivery of housing."
"The need for housing, especially affordable housing, is crystal clear to everyone around the country and it's critical that we as planners take the bull by the horns and do what is necessary to deliver the housing and infrastructure communities so desperately need, in a sustainable way."
"Our last Briefing Note - Homes For All - gave five key suggestions to help tackle the housing crisis - which were to reinstate housing targets, lead with sustainability, support economic growth, improve affordability, and end homelessness."
"We have a long way to go but it's great to see, following our conversations with party members earlier in the year, that this Government are on the same page and are beginning to lay the groundwork we need in planning to get Britain building."
Viable Placemaking's team will be contacting all clients who have developments which are impacted by the NPPF update directly, but also welcome any site-specific or general queries on how the Government's NPPF changes impact a site/development.
Other News
There have been several other recent announcements which may have been missed in the shadow of the NPPF update. The highlights include:
Angela Rayner granted planning permission for Marks & Spencer to demolish and redevelop its flagship store on Oxford Street. The full decision is available here.
M&S had previously taken legal action against the Conservative Government after the previous SoS (Michael Gove) refused the scheme. During the High Court judgement, it was found that Gove "misinterpreted the national planning policy framework, and therefore the law."
This scheme is the epitome of complex planning balance, with significant sustainability, vitality, and heritage factors in play. In the end, SoS Rayner corroborated the Inspector's conclusions and decided to grant permission.
In November, the Older People's Housing Taskforce published its independent report and research into the future of older persons housing (available here). This considered the role ageing populations play in delivering an appropriate supply of homes and links to Viable Placemaking's previous research into the link between rightsizing and affordability.
The Government will be consulting on their draft National Development Management Policies in the spring. This may support in 'slimming down' the NPPF and some local development plans.
The Government have also published a working paper on proposed reforms to planning committees which would see dedicated groups for strategic development and mandatory training for councillors.
With all of the above and more updates expected in the new year, there is clearly a lot for planning professionals to consider as we enter 2025!
Viable Placemaking have extensive experience with all aspects of these key updates and are currently supporting clients with an array of projects, most recently this has included new housing development in the Green Belt and housing needs assessments reviews. We have also begun preparing Grey Belt Statements to accompany development submissions for housing schemes around the UK.
If you have any questions about what these updates may mean for your development, or if you have a site which you think may have planning potential, please feel free to get in touch and we will be happy to help.
