‘We must redouble our efforts to make better use of brownfield land to provide the affordable housing the nation needs. Effective land use planning and a strong national brownfield target are central to achieving this.’

This was CPRE’s [1] reaction to the Prime Minister’s announcement today (Wednesday) on housing.

Neil Sinden, CPRE’s Policy Director, said:

‘We welcome the Prime Minister’s promise of robust protection for the Green Belt, following earlier worrying indications it might be weakened. [2]  We are also encouraged by Gordon Brown’s emphasis on brownfield regeneration as the key to tackling the nation’s housing needs.  While great progress has been made in recent years, there is great scope for recycling more previously developed land and buildings throughout the country. [3]  The Government should set  a new national target of at least 75% of new housing on brownfield land and develop fiscal and policy measures to help achieve this.

‘But critically, there should be no decision on housing numbers without full consideration of the environmental consequences. In setting housebuilding levels, the Government should avoid a return to “predict and provide”.  There is also a desperate need to improve the quality of new housing.’ [4]

Neil Sinden continued:

‘The focus on subsidised, affordable housing is particularly refreshing.  Up to now politicians have assumed that simply building more market homes will solve the affordability problem. [5]  In fact there has been a massive decline in the provision of affordable housing since the 1970s, while levels of market housebuilding have increased only slightly. [6]  Delivering the affordable homes we need will require a significant injection of public funding and more effective planning policies to ensure a better mix of market and affordable housing. [7]

Neil Sinden concluded:

‘A more sustainable approach to housing development is urgently needed.  The focus on affordable, brownfield housing is welcome but the Government must now demonstrate its commitment to reducing the overall environmental impact of housing. 

‘We need greener housing which regenerates our towns and cities, and meets the needs of rural communities in ways which protect and enhance the countryside.’

– END –

NOTES FOR EDITORS

1.  CPRE, the Campaign to Protect Rural England, is a charity which promotes the beauty, tranquillity and diversity of rural England. We advocate positive solutions for the long-term future of the countryside. Founded in 1926, we have 60,000 supporters and a branch in every county. President: Bill Bryson. Patron: Her Majesty The Queen.

2.  The Communities Secretary, Rt Hon Hazel Blears MP, and Chancellor, Rt Hon Alistair Darling MP, are both reported to have suggested earlier this week that building on the Green Belt will be necessary.  CPRE welcomes yesterday’s assurance by the Prime Minister’s spokesman that no changes are proposed to ‘the very robust protections to greenbelt (sic) land.’

3.  The percentage of new dwellings on previously developed land and from conversions stood at 74% in 2006, up from 56% in 1997.  This is against a national target of 60% by 2008 which CPRE believes should be increased to at least 75% by 2011.  According to the latest Government figures 63,500 ha of previously developed land remained available for development in 2005, 27,600 ha of which was considered suitable for housing, enough for more than a million homes at 40 dwellings per ha.

4.  In their recent audit of housing development in around a third of schemes visited CABE considered the design was so poor they should not have been granted planning permission in the first place. Housing audit: assessing the design quality of new housing (CABE, 2007). The Sustainable Development Commission has also highlighted the poor environmental standard of much new development in its recent report Building houses or creating communities? (SDC, May 2007).

5.  This is despite the finding of Kate Barker in her review of housing supply in 2004 that it would take an unsustainable and unrealistic increase in housebuilding of at least 145,000 homes pa in the UK just to reduce the rate of house price inflation to the European average.

6.  Between 1950 and 1980 over 100,000 affordable homes were built each year in England.  Since 1985 fewer than 25,000 affordable homes have been built each year on average, and less than 20,000 each year since 2003.  The number of market homes built in 2005 (156,300) is above the average of the past 50 years, having increased in recent years, and it is now at the highest level that it has been since 1989.

7.  Regional and local planning policies need to be used to increase the proportion of affordable housing on development sites to at least 30%, and much more where there is an identifiable need.