Housing! Housing! Housing!

With the Government’s intensified focus on accelerating housing delivery, the topic is surfacing daily.

(Source: Flickr)

Policy is now more pro-growth than it has been in years, reflected in a series of major reforms:

• The current NPPF (adopted December 2024) introduced mandatory housing targets, a new “Grey Belt” definition and “Golden Rules” for development in the Green Belt. Further pro-growth revisions are expected.

• The Planning and Infrastructure Bill, now progressing through Parliament, underpins the government’s Plan for Change: delivering 1.5 million homes, achieving clean power by 2030, raising living standards and putting money back into people’s pockets.

• A draft of the new National Development Management Policies (NDMP) is anticipated shortly, with many policies expected to focus on boosting housebuilding and speeding up the planning process.

  
  

Additional reforms include:

• A default “YES” to homes near well-connected train stations.

• Commissioning an independent New Towns Taskforce for large-scale delivery.

• Streamlining consultations with statutory consultees.

• Easier acquisition of land under the compulsory purchase order (CPO).

These reforms are designed to accelerate development, reduce delays and encourage investment. Yet despite the growing list of pro-growth policies, the struggles of delivering new housing persist, as outlined in our blog Planning Permissions for New Homes Fall to Lowest Level Since 2012.

A few months ago, the Local Government Lawyer produced a document, ‘The new National Planning Policy Framework’, which highlighted the results of a survey taken of legal professionals relaying their opinions on whether the reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) would deliver the new housebuilding it promised. 51% of respondents agreed that altering the NPPF would increase the number of homes built.

These responses suggest that policy alone cannot fix the deeper issue of what is really holding housing delivery back – so what is?

Survey responses identified lack of funding, availability of construction works, lack of private investment and poorly resourced and staffed planning departments are significant barriers in delivering new homes.

The RTPI published its 2025 State of the Profession Report for England which highlighted that 85% of LPAs have vacancies and 67% of public sector planners report lacking capacity frequently or all the time. These are not marginal gaps as it is clear that the lack of capacity slows decision-making and reduces the ability of authorities to support strategic development.

Within the private sector, we see a constant stream of work – clear evidence that people want to build. But with every submission we warn our clients that even the ‘simplest’ of projects will likely take longer than the statutory target, not because of policy barriers but because local planning teams simply do not have the resources to process applications efficiently.

It is clear that the government’s ambition is necessary, but policy alone cannot address the resourcing issues. Without additional investment in people and skills, even the most promising reforms will struggle to deliver the scale of housing that the government envisions.

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If you are unsure how these reforms might affect your projects or how to navigate the balance between national guidance and local plan policy, we are here to help. Our team advises clients daily on how policy changes translate into real-world implications for site promotion, applications and appeals, ensuring you stay ahead of emerging practice and avoid unnecessary risks or delays.

Contact us on +44 1235 766825 or email admin@bluestoneplanning.co.uk to discuss how these changes may influence your planning strategy and how we can support you in responding confidently and effectively.