To provide some clarity, Lodders’ Planning Law team explains what the grey belt is and what it means for developers, and shares an update on the government’s proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
Before we discuss the grey belt, it’s important to first establish what is meant by “green belt” land. Green belts are areas of permanently open land that prevent urban sprawl and are protected from many forms of development.
Green Belt serves five purposes:
The majority of green belt has been designated by Local Planning Authorities, who are responsible for designating land as green belt under powers established in the Town and Country Planning Act 1947.
A new term coined by Keir Starmer’s Labour government, the ‘grey belt’ refers to ‘land in the green belt comprising previously Developed Land and any other parcels and/or areas of green belt land that make a limited contribution to the five Green Belt purposes’ but excluding some areas or assets of particular importance such as (but not limited to) Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), areas of outstanding natural beauty (AONBs) and land at risk of flooding.
Examples of grey belt might include land on the fringes of existing settlements.
As part of proposed reforms to the NPPF, the government has suggested that some green belt land could be reclassified as grey belt, with the aim of making more land available for housing development.
Grey belt will make a limited contribution to the Green Belt purposes and will meet at least one of the following criteria:
Planning applications for development on grey belt won’t need to meet the previously high threshold of having ‘very special circumstances’ clearly outweighing harm to the green belt. However, to be granted permission, development will need to satisfy the following:
Roughly 12% of England is green belt land. While there is no definitive figure on how much of this could now be classified as grey belt, research conducted by estate agent Knight Frank identified around 11,000 previously developed sites that could potentially qualify – accounting for less than 1% of the existing green belt. It estimates that this could accommodate up to 200,000 new homes.
Ultimately, it will be up to individual planning authorities to make a final decision on what will be designated as grey belt.
Accounting for approximately 8.7% of land in England, brownfield sites are developed land that is, or was previously, occupied by a permanent structure.
The NPPF changes propose that local planning authorities give “substantial weight to the value of using suitable brownfield land.”
The government is looking to implement brownfield passports to support their brownfield first approach to development, to help expedite the process and provide better clarity for developers. This seeks to ‘ensure where proposals meet design and quality standards, the default answer is yes’.
Looking ahead, the government is working through the responses from its consultation, which closed on 24 September 2024. Although the original aim was to have the new framework in place by the end of October, this now seems unlikely due to the volume of feedback received.
While Matthew Pennycook, Minister of State for Housing and Planning, stated that Labour is committed to implementing these reforms before the end of the year, there were suggestions at the Labour Party Conference that the update may be delayed until the new year. We will keep you updated regarding further developments.
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