Areas we cover
Where We Buy Land in England
We review land anywhere in England. These are the counties we have researched in depth, council by council. Each county page shows, council by council, how housing delivery is going and where the local plan stands, using the government's own figures.
Counties We Cover
Choose a county to see its councils, the planning context and the places we look.
29 counties, 188 councils
57 of those councils are below 75% in the government's Housing Delivery Test 2025. Point to a county to see its figures.
- Oxfordshire
- Buckinghamshire
- Hampshire
- Surrey
- Kent
- Cambridgeshire
- Bedfordshire
- Hertfordshire
- Essex
- Warwickshire
- Worcestershire
- Northamptonshire
- Leicestershire
- Nottinghamshire
- Derbyshire
- Gloucestershire
- Wiltshire
- Cheshire
- West Sussex
- Berkshire
- Suffolk
- Norfolk
- East Sussex
- Staffordshire
- Rutland
- Herefordshire
- Shropshire
- West Midlands
- Lincolnshire
Not on the list? We still review land anywhere in England. Ask for a free review.
The 29 Counties at a Glance
Every figure below is counted from the Housing Delivery Test 2025 results for the councils on our county pages.
| County | Councils | Below 75% | 75% to 94% | Lowest result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oxfordshire | 5 | 1 | 0 | Oxford, 65% |
| Buckinghamshire | 2 | 0 | 1 | Buckinghamshire, 94% |
| Hampshire | 13 | 6 | 4 | Portsmouth, 11% |
| Surrey | 11 | 5 | 1 | Epsom and Ewell, 33% |
| Kent | 13 | 7 | 4 | Sevenoaks, 25% |
| Cambridgeshire | 6 | 0 | 1 | Cambridge, 82% |
| Bedfordshire | 3 | 1 | 1 | Luton, 54% |
| Hertfordshire | 10 | 5 | 2 | Hertsmere, 26% |
| Essex | 14 | 5 | 1 | Castle Point, 11% |
| Warwickshire | 5 | 0 | 0 | Warwick, 128% |
| Worcestershire | 6 | 1 | 1 | Bromsgrove, 58% |
| Northamptonshire | 2 | 0 | 0 | West Northamptonshire, 104% |
| Leicestershire | 8 | 2 | 1 | Leicester, 39% |
| Nottinghamshire | 8 | 0 | 1 | Ashfield, 93% |
| Derbyshire | 9 | 2 | 1 | Erewash, 49% |
| Gloucestershire | 7 | 3 | 1 | Cheltenham, 56% |
| Wiltshire | 2 | 0 | 2 | Swindon, 87% |
| Cheshire | 4 | 0 | 0 | Warrington, 134% |
| West Sussex | 7 | 3 | 1 | Crawley, 36% |
| Berkshire | 6 | 2 | 0 | Slough, 54% |
| Norfolk | 7 | 1 | 1 | North Norfolk, 54% |
| Suffolk | 5 | 1 | 2 | Ipswich, 63% |
| East Sussex | 6 | 5 | 1 | Eastbourne, 23% |
| Staffordshire | 9 | 1 | 1 | Stoke-on-Trent, 66% |
| Lincolnshire | 9 | 0 | 0 | South Kesteven, 97% |
| Rutland | 1 | 0 | 1 | Rutland, 89% |
| Herefordshire | 1 | 0 | 0 | Herefordshire, 96% |
| Shropshire | 2 | 0 | 0 | Shropshire, 124% |
| West Midlands | 7 | 6 | 1 | Sandwell, 34% |
| All 29 counties | 188 | 57 | 30 | Portsmouth, 11% |
Unitary councils are counted with the county they sit in. Medway is in the Kent figures, Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire, Luton in Bedfordshire, Peterborough in Cambridgeshire, Swindon in Wiltshire, Warrington in Cheshire, Telford and Wrekin in Shropshire, and North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire in Lincolnshire.
Across the 29 counties, 57 of 188 councils scored below 75%. Nationally, 93 of the 301 councils measured did. The spread between counties is very uneven, as the table shows: some have several councils below the line and others have none.
Every Council: A to Z
All 188 councils on our county pages, each with its latest five-year housing land supply and its Housing Delivery Test 2025 result. Choose a column heading to sort by supply or by delivery, lowest first, and select a council to read its page.
Of these, 133 cannot show five years of housing land and 57 scored below 75% in the Housing Delivery Test 2025.
| AdurWest Sussex | 3.2 yearsShort of five years | 48%Below 75% |
|---|---|---|
| Amber ValleyDerbyshire | 5.8 years | 173% |
| ArunWest Sussex | 3.41 yearsShort of five years | 84% |
| AshfieldNottinghamshire | 3.66 yearsShort of five years | 93% |
| AshfordKent | 3.16 yearsShort of five years | 75% |
| BaberghSuffolk | 4.68 yearsShort of five years | 147% |
| BasildonEssex | 1.96 yearsShort of five years | 23%Below 75% |
| Basingstoke and DeaneHampshire | 3.1 yearsShort of five years | 94% |
| BassetlawNottinghamshire | 5.31 years | 357% |
| BedfordBedfordshire | 3.35 yearsShort of five years | 94% |
| BirminghamWest Midlands | 6.45 years | 57%Below 75% |
| BlabyLeicestershire | 2.78 yearsShort of five years | 86% |
| BolsoverDerbyshire | 4.82 yearsShort of five years | 205% |
| BostonLincolnshire | 4.8 yearsShort of five years | 127% |
| Bracknell ForestBerkshire | 3.53 yearsShort of five years | 104% |
| BraintreeEssex | 5.32 years | 150% |
| BrecklandNorfolk | 2.82 yearsShort of five years | 144% |
| BrentwoodEssex | 5.18 years | 110% |
| Brighton and HoveEast Sussex | 1.5 yearsShort of five years | 50%Below 75% |
| BroadlandNorfolk | 4.85 yearsShort of five years | 111%Joint area result |
| BromsgroveWorcestershire | 2.24 yearsShort of five years | 58%Below 75% |
| BroxbourneHertfordshire | 2.13 yearsShort of five years | 110% |
| BroxtoweNottinghamshire | 4.85 yearsShort of five years | 109% |
| BuckinghamshireBuckinghamshire | 3.73 yearsShort of five years | 94% |
| CambridgeCambridgeshire | 2.72 yearsShort of five years | 82% |
| Cannock ChaseStaffordshire | 5 years | 115% |
| CanterburyKent | 3.62 yearsShort of five years | 79% |
| Castle PointEssex | 0.91 yearsShort of five years | 11%Below 75% |
| Central BedfordshireBedfordshire | 3.93 yearsShort of five years | 105% |
| CharnwoodLeicestershire | 3.56 yearsShort of five years | 62%Below 75% |
| ChelmsfordEssex | 4.74 yearsShort of five years | 110% |
| CheltenhamGloucestershire | 2.69 yearsShort of five years | 56%Below 75% |
| CherwellOxfordshire | 3.1 yearsShort of five years | 134% |
| Cheshire EastCheshire | 3.3 yearsShort of five years | 213% |
| Cheshire West and ChesterCheshire | 1.6 yearsShort of five years | 244% |
| ChesterfieldDerbyshire | 3.46 yearsShort of five years | 168% |
| ChichesterWest Sussex | 4.52 yearsShort of five years | 124% |
| ColchesterEssex | 3.37 yearsShort of five years | 109% |
| CotswoldGloucestershire | 1.8 yearsShort of five years | 68%Below 75% |
| CoventryWest Midlands | 5.91 years | 47%Below 75% |
| CrawleyWest Sussex | No current figure | 36%Below 75% |
| DacorumHertfordshire | 1.2 yearsShort of five years | 52%Below 75% |
| DartfordKent | 5.84 years | 96% |
| DerbyDerbyshire | 2.39 yearsShort of five years | 71%Below 75% |
| Derbyshire DalesDerbyshire | 1.36 yearsShort of five years | 90% |
| DoverKent | 5.8 years | 108% |
| DudleyWest Midlands | 5.1 years | 92% |
| East CambridgeshireCambridgeshire | 6.17 years | 116% |
| East HampshireHampshire | 2.9 yearsShort of five years | 79% |
| East HertfordshireHertfordshire | 2.88 yearsShort of five years | 102% |
| East LindseyLincolnshire | 2.33 yearsShort of five years | 129% |
| East StaffordshireStaffordshire | 5.06 years | 181% |
| East SuffolkSuffolk | 3.07 yearsShort of five years | 91% |
| EastbourneEast Sussex | 1.4 yearsShort of five years | 23%Below 75% |
| EastleighHampshire | 4.2 yearsShort of five years | 94% |
| ElmbridgeSurrey | 1 yearShort of five years | 59%Below 75% |
| Epping ForestEssex | 4.22 yearsShort of five years | 66%Below 75% |
| Epsom and EwellSurrey | 1.49 yearsShort of five years | 33%Below 75% |
| ErewashDerbyshire | 1.6 yearsShort of five years | 49%Below 75% |
| FarehamHampshire | 2.99 yearsShort of five years | 60%Below 75% |
| FenlandCambridgeshire | 6.6 years | 117% |
| Folkestone and HytheKent | 3.1 yearsShort of five years | 57%Below 75% |
| Forest of DeanGloucestershire | 1.93 yearsShort of five years | 128% |
| GedlingNottinghamshire | 3.73 yearsShort of five years | 125% |
| GloucesterGloucestershire | 3.1 yearsShort of five years | 63%Below 75% |
| GosportHampshire | 1.87 yearsShort of five years | 25%Below 75% |
| GraveshamKent | 2.53 yearsShort of five years | 61%Below 75% |
| Great YarmouthNorfolk | 6.06 years | 92% |
| GuildfordSurrey | 2.98 yearsShort of five years | 102% |
| HaltonCheshire | No current figure | 170% |
| HarboroughLeicestershire | 3.1 yearsShort of five years | 139% |
| HarlowEssex | 4.9 yearsShort of five years | 91% |
| HartHampshire | 2.07 yearsShort of five years | 137% |
| HastingsEast Sussex | 1.65 yearsShort of five years | 44%Below 75% |
| HavantHampshire | 1.3 yearsShort of five years | 80% |
| HerefordshireHerefordshire | 2.81 yearsShort of five years | 96% |
| HertsmereHertfordshire | 0.98 yearsShort of five years | 26%Below 75% |
| High PeakDerbyshire | 2.78 yearsShort of five years | 121% |
| Hinckley and BosworthLeicestershire | 4.48 yearsShort of five years | 134% |
| HorshamWest Sussex | 1.7 yearsShort of five years | 44%Below 75% |
| HuntingdonshireCambridgeshire | 3.68 yearsShort of five years | 136% |
| IpswichSuffolk | 3.46 yearsShort of five years | 63%Below 75% |
| King's Lynn and West NorfolkNorfolk | 6.2 years | 100% |
| LeicesterLeicestershire | 5.16 years | 39%Below 75% |
| LewesEast Sussex | 2.73 yearsShort of five years | 60%Below 75% |
| LichfieldStaffordshire | 3.5 yearsShort of five years | 232% |
| LincolnLincolnshire | 7.1 years | 141%Joint area result |
| LutonBedfordshire | 4.64 yearsShort of five years | 54%Below 75% |
| MaidstoneKent | 4.5 yearsShort of five years | 93% |
| MaldonEssex | 4.1 yearsShort of five years | 143% |
| Malvern HillsWorcestershire | 5.48 years | 101% |
| MansfieldNottinghamshire | 6.59 years | 134% |
| MedwayKent | 3.1 yearsShort of five years | 60%Below 75% |
| MeltonLeicestershire | 7.6 years | 190% |
| Mid SuffolkSuffolk | 6.73 years | 227% |
| Mid SussexWest Sussex | 3.75 yearsShort of five years | 104% |
| Milton KeynesBuckinghamshire | 5.47 years | 142% |
| Mole ValleySurrey | 5.3 years | 72%Below 75% |
| New ForestHampshire | 1.53 yearsShort of five years | 48%Below 75% |
| Newark and SherwoodNottinghamshire | 3.84 yearsShort of five years | 139% |
| Newcastle-under-LymeStaffordshire | 7.57 years | 94% |
| North East DerbyshireDerbyshire | 4.47 yearsShort of five years | 268% |
| North East LincolnshireLincolnshire | 3.6 yearsShort of five years | 244% |
| North HertfordshireHertfordshire | 2.6 yearsShort of five years | 75% |
| North KestevenLincolnshire | 7.1 years | 141%Joint area result |
| North LincolnshireLincolnshire | 5.07 years | 137% |
| North NorfolkNorfolk | 7.3 years | 54%Below 75% |
| North NorthamptonshireNorthamptonshire | 4.6 yearsShort of five years | 108% |
| North WarwickshireWarwickshire | 1.5 yearsShort of five years | 164% |
| North West LeicestershireLeicestershire | 5.1 years | 184% |
| NorwichNorfolk | 4.85 yearsShort of five years | 111%Joint area result |
| NottinghamNottinghamshire | 6.57 years | 108% |
| Nuneaton and BedworthWarwickshire | 10.2 years | 221% |
| Oadby and WigstonLeicestershire | 6.68 years | 152% |
| OxfordOxfordshire | 2.88 yearsShort of five years | 65%Below 75% |
| PeterboroughCambridgeshire | 4.38 yearsShort of five years | 100% |
| PortsmouthHampshire | 2.4 yearsShort of five years | 11%Below 75% |
| ReadingBerkshire | 3.55 yearsShort of five years | 136% |
| RedditchWorcestershire | 3.11 yearsShort of five years | 129% |
| Reigate and BansteadSurrey | 4.08 yearsShort of five years | 102% |
| RochfordEssex | 1.97 yearsShort of five years | 111% |
| RotherEast Sussex | 3.04 yearsShort of five years | 35%Below 75% |
| RugbyWarwickshire | 3.4 yearsShort of five years | 187% |
| RunnymedeSurrey | 2.89 yearsShort of five years | 94% |
| RushcliffeNottinghamshire | 5.1 years | 172% |
| RushmoorHampshire | 4.74 yearsShort of five years | 176% |
| RutlandRutland | 4.34 yearsShort of five years | 89% |
| SandwellWest Midlands | 1.86 yearsShort of five years | 34%Below 75% |
| SevenoaksKent | 3.59 yearsShort of five years | 25%Below 75% |
| ShropshireShropshire | 4.61 yearsShort of five years | 124% |
| SloughBerkshire | 2.51 yearsShort of five years | 54%Below 75% |
| SolihullWest Midlands | 2.13 yearsShort of five years | 53%Below 75% |
| South CambridgeshireCambridgeshire | 7.83 years | 148% |
| South DerbyshireDerbyshire | 5.27 years | 195% |
| South GloucestershireGloucestershire | 3.93 yearsShort of five years | 138% |
| South HollandLincolnshire | 4.6 yearsShort of five years | 161% |
| South KestevenLincolnshire | 4.07 yearsShort of five years | 97% |
| South NorfolkNorfolk | 4.85 yearsShort of five years | 111%Joint area result |
| South OxfordshireOxfordshire | 3.98 yearsShort of five years | 171% |
| South StaffordshireStaffordshire | 0.87 yearsShort of five years | 171% |
| SouthamptonHampshire | No current figure | 30%Below 75% |
| Southend-on-SeaEssex | 1.3 yearsShort of five years | 20%Below 75% |
| SpelthorneSurrey | 5.3 years | 33%Below 75% |
| St AlbansHertfordshire | 1.12 yearsShort of five years | 46%Below 75% |
| StaffordStaffordshire | 1.95 yearsShort of five years | 149% |
| Staffordshire MoorlandsStaffordshire | 2.95 yearsShort of five years | 160% |
| StevenageHertfordshire | 5.49 years | 78% |
| Stoke-on-TrentStaffordshire | 3.73 yearsShort of five years | 66%Below 75% |
| Stratford-on-AvonWarwickshire | 2.21 yearsShort of five years | 202% |
| StroudGloucestershire | 3.24 yearsShort of five years | 85% |
| Surrey HeathSurrey | 7.17 years | 98% |
| SwaleKent | 3.48 yearsShort of five years | 70%Below 75% |
| SwindonWiltshire | 4.9 yearsShort of five years | 87% |
| TamworthStaffordshire | 1.6 yearsShort of five years | 220% |
| TandridgeSurrey | 2.17 yearsShort of five years | 38%Below 75% |
| Telford and WrekinShropshire | 6.02 years | 309% |
| TendringEssex | 3.52 yearsShort of five years | 152% |
| Test ValleyHampshire | 2.54 yearsShort of five years | 64%Below 75% |
| TewkesburyGloucestershire | 3.65 yearsShort of five years | 219% |
| ThanetKent | 3.7 yearsShort of five years | 70%Below 75% |
| Three RiversHertfordshire | 1.2 yearsShort of five years | 47%Below 75% |
| ThurrockEssex | 1.02 yearsShort of five years | 29%Below 75% |
| Tonbridge and MallingKent | 2.89 yearsShort of five years | 63%Below 75% |
| Tunbridge WellsKent | 4.7 yearsShort of five years | 93% |
| UttlesfordEssex | 4.77 yearsShort of five years | 108% |
| Vale of White HorseOxfordshire | 5.26 years | 192% |
| WalsallWest Midlands | 1.97 yearsShort of five years | 56%Below 75% |
| WarringtonCheshire | 5.13 years | 134% |
| WarwickWarwickshire | 1.96 yearsShort of five years | 128% |
| WatfordHertfordshire | 5.44 years | 95% |
| WaverleySurrey | 1.28 yearsShort of five years | 117% |
| WealdenEast Sussex | 3.65 yearsShort of five years | 89% |
| Welwyn HatfieldHertfordshire | 1.8 yearsShort of five years | 46%Below 75% |
| West BerkshireBerkshire | 5.7 years | 114% |
| West LindseyLincolnshire | 7.1 years | 141%Joint area result |
| West NorthamptonshireNorthamptonshire | 4.3 yearsShort of five years | 104% |
| West OxfordshireOxfordshire | No current figure | 104% |
| West SuffolkSuffolk | 6.02 years | 89% |
| WiltshireWiltshire | 2.8 yearsShort of five years | 93% |
| WinchesterHampshire | 5.5 years | 174% |
| Windsor and MaidenheadBerkshire | 4.04 yearsShort of five years | 74%Below 75% |
| WokingSurrey | 8.1 years | 97% |
| WokinghamBerkshire | 2.5 yearsShort of five years | 100% |
| WolverhamptonWest Midlands | No current figure | 59%Below 75% |
| WorcesterWorcestershire | 5.48 years | 88% |
| WorthingWest Sussex | 6.9 years | 142% |
| WychavonWorcestershire | 5.48 years | 103% |
| Wyre ForestWorcestershire | 8.8 years | 212% |
Sorted by council, A to Z.
Five-year land supply: each council's latest published statement, or the latest figure tested at appeal, linked from its own page. Housing Delivery Test 2025: MHCLG, published 17 August 2026. Under policy S5 of the NPPF, a result below 75% means unmet housing need is treated as shown, and a supply short of five years is evidence of it; either is weighed with everything else about a site, and S5 does not apply in the Green Belt.
Why the Council Matters as Much as the Land
Two identical fields can have very different prospects depending on which side of a council boundary they sit. The planning rules are national, but they are applied council by council, and each council is at a different point with its local plan and its housing delivery.
Two figures tell you a great deal. The first is the council's result in the government's Housing Delivery Test, which compares the homes actually built over three years with the number that were needed. The second is how old the council's local plan is and whether a new one is on the way.
Reading the Housing Delivery Test
The Housing Delivery Test is published each year by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. The latest, the Housing Delivery Test 2025 measurement, was published on 17 August 2026 and covers the three years from April 2022 to March 2025.
| Result | What it means |
|---|---|
| 95% or more | No action required. |
| Below 95% | The council must prepare an action plan explaining how it will improve delivery. |
| Below 85% | A 20% buffer is added to the council's five-year housing land supply requirement. |
| Below 75% | Under policy S5 of the August 2026 NPPF, the council is treated as having evidenced unmet housing need, one of the routes to approving homes outside settlement boundaries. |
Of the 301 councils measured in the latest release, 93 scored below 75%. In those areas, well-located land on the edge of a town or village has a clearer route to planning permission than it had before, provided the site itself is suitable. A strong result does not rule land out, but it usually means the council expects housing to come through its local plan allocations.
Reading the Local Plan Position
A local plan sets how many homes a council needs and where they should go. Plans are meant to be reviewed at least every five years. Where a plan is older than that, the council's housing requirement is usually worked out using the government's standard method, which in many places gives a higher number than the old plan did.
A council that is preparing a new plan is usually looking for land. Its call for sites is the moment to put land forward, and later consultation stages are the chance to support it. Our guide to call for sites and local plans explains each step. Councils in England are moving to a new, faster plan-making system, which began on 25 March 2026, with plans expected to be prepared within 30 months.
A Regional View
South East
High land values, a lot of Green Belt and strongly protected landscapes, and some of the weakest housing delivery in the country. In parts of Surrey, Kent and West Sussex, councils have delivered well under half of the homes they needed. Grey belt policy has opened new possibilities on the edge of towns and villages, but constraints such as the Surrey Hills and High Weald National Landscapes remain powerful.
Hampshire is split down the middle. Winchester, Rushmoor and Hart delivered well above their requirement, while Gosport (25%), New Forest (48%), Fareham (60%) and Test Valley (64%) are all below 75%. The New Forest and South Downs National Parks cover large areas, and concern about nutrient pollution in the Solent has held up housing approvals in parts of south Hampshire in recent years.
In Berkshire, Slough (54%) and Windsor and Maidenhead (74%) are the two councils below 75%, and both are tightly bounded by Green Belt. Reading, West Berkshire, Bracknell Forest and Wokingham all met their requirement.
East of England
A mix of fast-growing places, such as the Cambridge area and parts of Essex, and districts with very weak delivery, particularly in south Hertfordshire and south Essex where Green Belt is extensive. The corridor between Oxford, Milton Keynes, Bedford and Cambridge remains a focus for growth.
Midlands
Many Midlands councils are building well above their requirement, which means the route to planning is more often through local plan allocations than through a shortfall. Several councils are preparing new plans now, including a joint South Warwickshire plan published in July 2026.
The exceptions are Erewash (49%), Bromsgrove (58%) and Charnwood (62%). Erewash and Bromsgrove both have a lot of Green Belt, so the grey belt tests usually decide what is possible there. Charnwood adopted a new local plan in January 2026, so its allocations are the starting point.
South West
Gloucestershire has a clear split between councils delivering strongly and those well below target, including Cheltenham, Gloucester and the Cotswolds. Wiltshire and Swindon are both preparing new plans, and the Cotswolds National Landscape covers a large part of the region.
North West
The Cheshire councils and Warrington are all delivering well above their requirement, so the route to planning is usually through allocation or through sites that meet one of the other tests in national policy.
Where a Low Score Helps, and Where It Does Not
A score below 75% opens the unmet need route in policy S5, but that route has limits. It does not apply in the Green Belt, and several of the lowest-scoring councils have a large share of their land in the Green Belt, including Hertsmere, Three Rivers, Basildon, Sevenoaks and Tandridge. There, land outside a town or village usually has to qualify as grey belt, or be released through the local plan. Our guide to grey belt land explains the tests, and our guide to the August 2026 NPPF covers S5.
National Parks need the same care. New Forest scored 48%, but a large part of the district lies in the New Forest National Park, which has its own planning authority. The low result speaks for the land outside the park.
A strong score is not a dead end either. In Warwickshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire, several councils have new plans out for consultation or at examination, and a plan in preparation needs land. In those places the local plan is usually the better route, and timing matters more than housing numbers.
How to Check Your Own Council
You can do most of this yourself in an evening. It is also part of our free review.
- Find the right council. Enter your postcode on GOV.UK's find your local council service. Where there is a county council and district councils, housing applications go to the district or borough council.
- Look up its Housing Delivery Test result. The latest measurement is a spreadsheet covering every council. Our county pages show the result for each council in the counties above.
- Check the age of its local plan. The council's planning policy pages show when the current plan was adopted and the timetable for the next one.
- Look at the land put forward to it. Most councils publish the sites submitted in a call for sites, often in a housing and economic land availability assessment. Check whether your land, or a neighbour's, is already in it.
- Read its housing land supply position. This is usually in an annual monitoring report or a five-year housing land supply statement. A shortfall is also evidence of unmet need under S5.
- Search nearby decisions. The council's online planning register shows applications near your land. Appeal decisions show how an inspector weighed the same policies, and are worth reading where a nearby scheme was refused.
None of this tells you whether your own field will work. Access, flood risk, landscape and the shape of the site matter just as much. Ask for a free review and we will put the council picture and the site together.
Guides to Read Alongside Your Council's Figures
The figures show where a council stands. These guides explain what that means for a field, a paddock or a yard, and how land is brought forward through a local plan or an application.
Planning Policy · 11 min read
How to Get Your Land Allocated in a Local Plan: The Call for Sites Explained
How the new local plan system works from March 2026, how councils assess land put forward in a call for sites, and how to make a submission that counts.
Subhan Property Group · Updated 5 November 2026
Planning Policy · 23 min read
Is My Land in the Local Plan or the SHLAA? How to Check and What It Means
How to find your land in the SHLAA or HELAA, the brownfield register and the local plan, and what an allocation, draft allocation or rejected site means.
Subhan Property Group · Updated 5 November 2026
Planning Policy · 23 min read
What Is a Settlement Boundary, and Is My Field Inside It or Outside It?
A settlement boundary is the line a plan draws around a town or village. How to find it for your field, and how planning treats land on each side.
Subhan Property Group · Updated 5 November 2026
Planning Policy · 14 min read
Grey Belt Land Explained: Could Your Green Belt Field Be Developed?
What grey belt is after the August 2026 NPPF, which Green Belt purposes count, the tests for housing, the Golden Rules, and what it all means for land value.
Subhan Property Group · Updated 5 November 2026
Planning Policy · 12 min read
The New NPPF (August 2026): What It Means for Landowners
The National Planning Policy Framework was rewritten in August 2026. What changed, the new rules for land outside settlements, and what it means for your land.
Subhan Property Group · Updated 5 November 2026
Planning Policy · 12 min read
How Long Does Planning Take? Realistic Timescales for Landowners
Realistic timescales for getting planning on land: decision periods, appeals, Section 106, conditions and local plans, from first call to completed sale.
Subhan Property Group · Updated 5 November 2026
Read more in our guides for landowners, or see how it works from a first conversation to completion.
Questions About Areas
Do you buy land outside these counties?
Yes. These are the counties we have researched in depth, but we review land anywhere in England.
Does a low Housing Delivery Test result guarantee planning permission?
No. It strengthens the case for well-located housing, but flood risk, landscape, heritage, access and Green Belt policy still apply to every site.
How often do these figures change?
The Housing Delivery Test is published once a year and covers the previous three financial years. A council just above 75% can fall below it the following year, and the reverse, so a result is a snapshot rather than a verdict.
My land is in the Green Belt and my council scored below 75%. Does that help?
Not through the unmet need route in policy S5, which does not apply in the Green Belt. A shortage of homes can still count as evidence of need under the grey belt tests, but the land has to qualify as grey belt first.
My council is reorganising. Does that matter?
It depends where you are. Surrey moves to two new unitary councils in April 2027. On 7 September 2026 the government withdrew its decisions for Essex, Hampshire, Norfolk and Suffolk and paused plans for many other areas while it carries out a review, and the May 2027 elections there will use existing boundaries. Either way, your current council keeps deciding applications for now, and adopted local plans stay in force until they are replaced.
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