Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill: reforms to national planning policy – our response

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities recently consulted on a number of proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), which sets out the government’s planning policies for England and how these are expected to be applied.

In our briefing which detailed the proposals, we shared our concerns that some of the changes proposed in the consultation will lead to a loss of affordable homes and weaken the requirement for local authorities to provide an adequate housing supply.

We reiterate these concerns in our response to the government and outline where and why we do not support the government’s proposed changes to the Framework.

We welcome some of the government’s proposals, specifically those around increasing the number of social rent properties, as well as proposals to bring forward appropriate housing for older people. We also welcome proposals around the environment and net zero, although we outline where the government can go further.

The consultation closed on 2 March. If you’d like any further information on the proposals or our response, please get in touch.