COMMENT The spring bulbs are flowering, and for those of us within the planning and development sector, I think we can even smell a sense of optimism. While we all endured 2024, we also looked forward to the chance to thrive in 2025. And that also appears to be the mood from the government through its pipeline of announcements and the rhetoric around them in the past few months.
In December we were treated to an early Christmas present in the form of the updated National Planning Policy Framework and, more recently, we have seen the publication of updated Planning Practice Guidance. The updated NPPF and its strong support for growth has been widely welcomed by the development industry, as has the reintroduction of mandatory housing targets and the national target to deliver 1.5m homes by 2029.
Many will debate whether the target is anywhere near achievable within this current parliament given a slew of economic constraints, but it does signal strong support from the top down to accelerate housing delivery. We are already seeing indications from the government of how it will look to roll out its pro-development mandate, from the publication of the Devolution White Paper and empowerment of regional mayors to the willingness of the secretary of state to call in significant applications for determination.
Alongside this are constant mentions of reforming the planning system, including introducing brownfield passports and changing the role of planning committees. The devil will be in the detail, and we await the publication of the draft National Development Management Policies, which has been promised this spring.
Change in mindset
The government’s mandate is clear. We need more housing approvals and, in turn, more completions. Delivery needs to be significantly increased. To foster this, Labour promises to reduce the burden of the planning process, and to “get things done” in mayoral areas.
The challenges, however, are complex. Reforming the planning system takes time and may also take a significant change in mindset to create a context in which the presumption is always “yes”.
Local authorities are facing shortfalls in the skills and resources needed to manage and determine complex applications. Planning fees are rising and the information required to support even small-scale housing schemes is becoming increasingly onerous, not to mention expensive. Biodiversity net gain remains a challenge for many sites, particularly greenfield ones where it continues to create uncertainty, issues of viability and constraints on developable areas.
Even if we could fast-track the promised reform, reduce the burden and increase the output of permissions, we are still staring down the barrel at high build costs, inflation, volatility within the affordable housing market and construction skills shortages.
Careful balance
Taking a longer term and optimistic view, the planning system needs to be ready to act once economic certainty returns.
This means reducing the risk faced by the planning process and the time it takes to secure a permission. The government certainly seems willing to act in this respect, but it also needs to look at reducing overall complexity. It must put more trust in the development and construction industry to deliver quality homes without the need for endless conditions, so many of which are staring to duplicate Building Regulations requirements. With the Building Safety Act regime now in place, why not logically delegate a raft of technical matters and avoid duplication within the planning system?
In the short term, we need to foster a greater partnership approach between the applicant and the local authority. This may mean greater recognition of the viability challenges faced by the development sector and a more collaborative effort to achieve planning permissions which are fundable and deliverable, recognising that permissions today may not look like those from even just a couple of years ago.
There is, of course, a careful balance to strike in ensuring that schemes continue to deliver a suite of benefits, but given the declining number of housing starts, perhaps delivery itself is the benefit?
The first couple of months of 2025 were an encouraging start to the year. If the government wants to turn its rhetoric into action and deliver on its plans to build the homes we need, the approach that is most likely to bear fruit is working in partnership with the industry to unlock the complexities holding us back. Then we will really know that spring has sprung.
Katie Hale is planning director at Telford
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