Fix for England land use crisis exists, argues CPRE report

A new CPRE report warns that the government’s Land Use Framework, expected on Wednesday, will not solve the fundamental question of what gets built where. The report argues that policy tools to guide better land-use decisions already exist but remain fragmented and largely neglected.

The government’s Land Use Framework, expected on Wednesday, will make one thing clear: demands on our finite supply of land have never been more acute.  

With 1.5 million new homes to build, renewable energy targets to hit, nature in freefall and food security under pressure, every hectare is being pulled in multiple directions at once.   

But which demand wins – and what gets lost in the process – is increasingly decided by accident rather than design. The consequences of getting this wrong are severe: new homes built on floodplains, solar panels across the nation’s most productive farmland, and nature reserves reclassified as ‘grey belt’ to unlock development.  

The issue is not a lack of policy tools. The report identifies six strategic mechanisms, including Spatial Development Strategies, Local Nature Recovery Strategies and the Climate Adaptation Reporting Power, that already exist and could enable smarter, joined-up decisions to be made about land use.   

The challenge the report highlights is that they are being used in silos. Each mechanism has been developed through the lens of a different government department, producing a patchwork of strategies that overlap, contradict and occasionally cancel each other out.  

The Land Use Framework won’t fix this on its own

The government’s long-awaited Land Use Framework is unlikely to be the silver bullet many are hoping for. Competing departmental priorities will persist and the fundamental questions will remain unanswered: where should 1.5 million homes go? Which land is best suited to food production, and which to nature recovery or renewable energy?

Of the six tools examined, Spatial Development Strategies – which will be introduced as part of the English Devolution Bill – emerge as the most promising. They have the potential to balance housing need alongside climate, nature and food priorities but risk being treated simply as a means of distributing housebuilding targets.

With major planning consultations open and the Devolution Bill progressing through Parliament, CPRE is calling on the government to establish a statutory national plan for land use, develop a spatial framework that integrates all major sectors, and support Strategic Authorities to deliver on climate and nature targets alongside housing.

Roger Mortlock, CPRE chief executive, said: 

‘England’s land is finite, but the demands upon it are multiplying. So many government targets require land, but we still think in boxes about how we use it. Without a coherent national plan and clear mechanisms for delivery, the country risks fragmented development, needless loss of countryside, and missed opportunities to align housing, energy, food, climate and nature goals.

‘Evidence from this report shows there is still time to think differently, and that with strategic leadership, integrated planning and a renewed commitment to fairness between places, England can overcome the land crunch.’

Ellie Brodie, report author and founder of Grounded Insight, said: 

‘An additional area of land twice the size of Wales will be needed by 2050 to meet the UK’s targets for net zero and biodiversity alone. Add to that the government’s commitment to building 1.5 million new homes and the problem is clear.

‘Our report shows the art of the possible, both in future and right now, with the tools we have on the table. Connecting Local Nature Recovery Strategies to environmental payments for farmers, for example, and using Spatial Development Strategies to cut across historic town and country dividing lines.

There is still time – just – to make changes, be ambitious and do things differently.’