The much anticipated updated NPPF has been published this afternoon. A copy of it can be found here. For those interested in the detail of the changes, a comparison document can be viewed here.
The headlines that will make the press are the changes to housing policy – with the re-introduction of mandatory housing targets – and the definition of grey-belt land within the Green Belt and the “Golden Rules” that are to be applied to land released from the Green Belt for development.
From our quick review so far, the new housing supply targets, which will apply from 12 March 2025, are likely to provide our clients with additional opportunities for residential development in LPAs that are unable to demonstrate a 5-year housing supply measured against what is a more rigorous policy framework.
In respect of other changes, all references to “beautiful places” have gone and we have a new definition of a “Vision-led approach: an approach to transport planning based on setting outcomes for a development based on achieving well-designed, sustainable and popular places, and providing the transport solutions to deliver those outcomes as opposed to predicting future demand to provide capacity (often referred to as ‘predict and provide’).”
There are no substantive changes to the policies that most impact our rural clients. The one exception is the deletion of part of what was footnote 62 and is now footnote 65 to paragraph 188 of the new NPPF. That footnote now says “Where significant development of agricultural land is demonstrated to be necessary, areas of poorer quality land should be preferred to those of a higher quality.”
The text that has gone was “The availability of agricultural land used for food production should be considered, alongside the other policies in this Framework, when deciding what sites are most appropriate for development.”
Food production and/or food security is therefore no longer a relevant consideration for local planning authorities (LPAs) when considering development on agricultural land.
