Introduction
In this blog post, we discuss the Government’s new national planning guidance on identifying Grey Belt Land and assessing the appropriateness of development on this Land
What is Grey Belt Land and why is it important?
Firstly, we need to remind ourselves what is Grey Belt Land and why it is important to distinguish between this and other Green Belt Land under the planning system
Annex 2 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-planning-policy-framework–2) defines Grey Belt Land as land in the Green Belt comprising previously developed land and/or any other land that does not strongly contribute to any of purposes (a), (b), or (d) in paragraph 143 of the NPPF and excluding land where the application of the policies relating to the areas or assets in footnote 7 of the NPPF (e.g. habitats sites, Sites of Special Scientific Interest, Local Green Space, National Landscape, National Park, designated heritage assets) would provide a strong reason for refusing or restricting development
There are two important consequences under the planning system of land being identified as Grey Belt Land (as opposed to other Green Belt Land):
- For plan-making purposes, Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) are required under paragraph 148 of the NPPF to release it first before releasing greenfield Green Belt Land
- For decision-making purposes, a site which is considered to be Grey Belt Land and which also satisfies all of the conditions set out in paragraph 155 of the NPPF (which are that the development does not undermine the remaining Green Belt, is a type of development for which there is a demonstrable unmet need, is in a sustainable location, and meets the Golden Rules requirements in paragraphs 156-157 of the NPPF) will no longer be treated as inappropriate development in the Green Belt – meaning that there will be no need to consider whether very special circumstances apply and there would be no strong reason for refusal of the development in accordance with Green Belt planning policies
Guidance for LPAs to identify and assess development on Grey Belt Land
On 27 February 2025 the Government published an update to its national planning guidance on Green Belt Land (the Guidance). The Guidance has been updated to now include guidance on how to identify Grey Belt Land and to apply the planning policies set out in the NPPF relating to this Land
The full Guidance can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/green-belt
The Guidance sets out the following requirements for LPAs when identifying Grey Belt Land:
- In order to identify Grey Belt Land, LPAs should produce a Green Belt assessment, either as part of the review of Green Belt boundaries or during the preparation or updating of a local plan
- When making judgements as to whether land is Grey Belt, LPAs should consider the strength of the contribution that the site makes to Green Belt purposes (a), (b) and (d) as follows:
- (a) to check the unrestricted sprawl of large built up areas
- (b) to prevent neighbouring towns merging into one another
- (d) to preserve the setting and special character of historic towns
- The Guidance makes it clear that the above purposes do not apply to villages
- The Guidance provides that a site that is not judged to strongly contribute to any one of purposes (a), (b), or (d) can be identified as Grey Belt Land, subject to the exclusion of land where the application of the policies relating to the areas or assets in footnote 7 to the NPPF would provide a strong reason for refusing or restricting development
- The Guidance also requires LPAs to consider whether development of the site would fundamentally undermine the purposes of the remaining Green Belt across the plan area
In assessing the appropriateness of development on Grey Belt Land, the Guidance provides LPAs with the following helpful diagram setting out all the requirements to be met under paragraph 155 of the NPPF:
Our Comments
Grey Belt Land has been somewhat of a ‘grey’ area under the planning system since the term was first included under the NPPF a few years ago, however this new Guidance published by the Government goes some way to clarifying how this Land is to be identified (as opposed to other Green Belt Land) and how LPAs should assess development on this Land in accordance with the policy requirements under the NPPF
Note: all comments and views expressed in this blog are merely opinions and provided for information purposes only and do not constitute legal advice which can be relied upon. Should you require legal advice on a matter then please contact us
