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Nottinghamshire council area

Selling Land in Ashfield

Ashfield still decides applications against a local plan from 2002, while its replacement has spent more than two years before government inspectors. With the inspectors' changes consulted on in the summer of 2026, owners of land around Sutton, Kirkby, Hucknall and the western villages are close to finding out where they stand.

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Ashfield at a Glance

Ashfield District Council, based in Kirkby-in-Ashfield, covers the towns of Sutton-in-Ashfield, Kirkby-in-Ashfield and Hucknall, together with Selston, Jacksdale and Underwood in the west and Teversal, Stanton Hill and Skegby on the northern side of Sutton. The Robin Hood line runs through the district, and Hucknall is also served by the Nottingham tram.

  • 93% in the Housing Delivery Test 2025. The council built 1,262 homes against 1,359 needed, 97 short. That calls for an action plan but falls well clear of the 75% line where national policy treats housing need as unmet.
  • A plan from 2002. The Ashfield Local Plan Review, adopted on 22 November 2002, is still the council's main plan, alongside two neighbourhood plans.
  • A new plan for 2023 to 2040 nearly through examination. It was submitted for examination in April 2024, and the inspectors' main modifications were out for comment from 17 June to 30 July 2026.
  • Green Belt in the south and west. The Nottingham and Derby Green Belt surrounds Hucknall, Annesley and Selston. Sutton and Skegby are not among the settlements it encloses.

In short, Ashfield is not a council where a poor delivery score opens the door. The main questions are what the new plan will allocate, how much Green Belt it releases, and whether the council can show a five-year supply of land once it is adopted.

Ashfield in Figures

The government's latest figures for the council, and where its local plan stands.

  • Housing Delivery Test 2025

    93%

    Below 95%: the council must publish an action plan to improve delivery.

  • Homes built against homes needed

    1,262

    of 1,359 needed, April 2022 to March 2025

  • Most recent strategic plan adopted

    None listed

    The plan currently used to decide applications.

  • New plan progress

    Submitted for examination

    As at April 2024.

Sources: Housing Delivery Test: 2025 measurement, MHCLG, published 17 August 2026; Local plans: monitoring progress, Planning Inspectorate, August 2026. Local plans move quickly, so always check the council's own website for the latest position.

A Plan From 2002, and Why the Figures Show None

The figures panel above records no adopted strategic plan for Ashfield, yet the council's own website lists the 2002 Local Plan Review as part of its current development plan, with the JUS-t Neighbourhood Plan covering most of Selston parish and the Teversal, Stanton Hill and Skegby Neighbourhood Plan. Both are accurate. The 2002 document was prepared before the plan system introduced in 2004, so it is most likely not counted in the government's monitoring of plans made under that system. Its saved policies are still used locally, and the council says they carry due weight according to how far they agree with the National Planning Policy Framework.

What matters for a landowner is how little a plan of that age can now settle. Its housing figures and boundaries were drawn for a different era, so most decisions turn on national policy. Inside Sutton, Kirkby, Hucknall and the villages, policy S4 of the August 2026 framework supports development unless the harm would substantially outweigh the benefits, which suits yards, larger gardens and gaps in the built-up area. Outside them, the unmet need route in policy S5 needs evidence of unmet need. The delivery score does not provide it here, so any case rests on the council's land supply position or other clear evidence.

The neighbourhood plans matter in their own areas. The JUS-t plan in the west and the Teversal, Stanton Hill and Skegby plan to the north each form part of the development plan, and we read them before giving a view on land in those parishes.

More Than Two Years Before the Inspectors

Ashfield's new plan has had an unusually long examination, and the record shows where the pressure points have been. The main steps, from the council's published examination papers:

WhenWhat happened
April 2024The Ashfield Local Plan 2023 to 2040 was submitted for examination.
12 to 14 November 2024The first hearing sessions, covering the opening three matters.
3 December 2024The inspectors' interim findings identified a shortfall of 882 homes to 2040 against the submitted plan's own requirement.
20 February to 3 April 2025The council consulted on 13 additional housing sites across the plan period.
26 November 2025 to 14 January 2026Second stage hearings covered housing need, strategy, site allocations, transport and viability.
10 February 2026The inspectors' post-hearings letter set out the main modifications they consider necessary.
17 June to 30 July 2026Consultation on the main modifications, which the council said was without prejudice to the inspectors' final report.
September 2026The council published an updated local housing need calculation at the inspectors' request.

What the Inspectors Questioned

The interim letter is the clearest guide to the issues. The inspectors did not accept the council's revised windfall rate, doubting it would continue at that level through the plan period. They noted that by focusing on sites of fewer than 500 homes, the council may have passed over larger sites that could reduce the need to take land out of the Green Belt, and they found insufficient evidence at that stage of the exceptional circumstances needed to change Green Belt boundaries at a strategic level. They also warned that the shortfall would likely mean further Green Belt changes before 2040.

The council answered with the 13 additional sites. Which of those survive, and in what form, is for the inspectors' report to settle.

Green Belt in the South, Open Countryside to the North

Ashfield splits into two different planning landscapes. Around Hucknall, Annesley and Selston, the Green Belt applies, and new homes there generally need land to be released through the plan, to be previously developed, or to count as grey belt. Sutton and Skegby are not among the settlements the Green Belt encloses, so land on their edges is judged more on countryside, landscape and access, while around Kirkby we check the boundary field by field.

  • Grey belt. A field that contributes little to checking Nottingham's spread, or to keeping towns apart, may count as grey belt. National policy then allows homes where there is unmet need and the Golden Rules on affordable housing, infrastructure and green space are met. Our grey belt guide sets out the tests.
  • Previously developed land. Former yards, depots and similar sites have their own route in Green Belt policy and are welcome in Ashfield's towns too, as our page on brownfield land and yards explains.
  • Allocation. Land the new plan removes from the Green Belt comes forward as an allocation, which is the most direct route of all.

In the north, land against the edge of a town is the natural candidate for the next plan and, where supply evidence supports it, for an application under S5.

Rail, Tram and Where Growth Fits

The Robin Hood line has stations at Hucknall, Newstead, Kirkby-in-Ashfield and Sutton, and the single-track section south of Hucknall was arranged to make room for the tram, which gives Hucknall an interchange with Nottingham Express Transit. A further idea, the Maid Marian line, would restore passenger trains on the freight line from Kirkby-in-Ashfield towards the closed Pye Bridge station, and received government funding for a feasibility study in November 2020.

National policy favours homes within a reasonable walk of a well served station, so land near these stops deserves a careful look. The Maid Marian proposal is not committed, and we would not value land on the hope of it, but it shows the direction local authorities want to take the network.

The Land We Look for in Ashfield

  • Land against the edges of Sutton-in-Ashfield, Kirkby-in-Ashfield or Skegby, outside the Green Belt.
  • Sites considered at the examination, including those among the additional sites consulted on in 2025.
  • Green Belt land around Hucknall, Annesley or Selston that is enclosed, previously developed or plays a weak Green Belt role.
  • Yards, depots and former commercial sites within the towns and villages.
  • Fields within walking distance of a Robin Hood line station or the tram at Hucknall.
  • Holdings with a road frontage, or a practical way to create one.

Where land is harder, for instance open Green Belt with a strong role, we will say so after our review. Where it suits us, we fix the price at the outset, carry the full cost and risk of the planning work, and contribute to your own solicitor and land agent so the paperwork costs you nothing.

The Next Twelve Months in Ashfield

The Inspectors' Report

With the main modifications consultation closed on 30 July 2026, the comments go to the inspectors, who will then report on whether the plan is sound. The updated housing need calculation the council published in September 2026 shows that the housing figure was still being checked after the consultation closed. The council has not published a date for the report, and we will not guess one. If the plan is found sound and adopted, Ashfield would have its first new local plan since 2002, the figures panel would change, and the plan would need to show a five-year supply of land from adoption.

The Next Housing Delivery Test

The government publishes the test once a year, and the Housing Delivery Test 2025 came out on 17 August 2026. At 93%, Ashfield's only obligation is an action plan. Slipping under 85% would bring a 20% buffer into its five-year figure, and under 75% the S5 unmet need route would open on the delivery score alone. A score of 95% or higher would release the council from that obligation. The council's Housing Land Monitoring Report for April 2026, published in June, should record completions for 2025/26 and is the first place to look for an early sign.

Land Supply

The same monitoring report sets out the council's land supply position each year from a 1 April base date. We read the current edition for every Ashfield site, because under S5 a shortfall is evidence of unmet need and on land outside the Green Belt that can change the route we take.

Reorganisation on Hold

The council's timetable had elections to a shadow authority in May 2027, the current councils abolished on 31 March 2028 and new unitary councils from 1 April 2028. On 7 September 2026 the council reported that the government is reviewing reorganisation nationally and that the Nottingham and Nottinghamshire programme is paused while it does so. Adopted plans normally stay in force until a successor council replaces them, so a plan adopted before any change would still guide decisions afterwards.

What This Means for Timing

For land already in the plan, the practical step is to prepare an application so it is ready soon after adoption. For land outside it, the council's call for sites remains open for its long-term land assessment, and the evidence we prepare can go into it. How long each stage then takes is covered in our guide to how long planning takes.

Questions From Ashfield Landowners

Ashfield scored 93%. Can I apply on land outside a town now?

Sometimes, but the score does not help on its own. S5 needs evidence of unmet need, and above 75% that has to come from the council's land supply or other clear evidence. Inside a town or village, S4 is on your side regardless of the score.

My land was among the additional sites consulted on in 2025. What happens next?

The inspectors' report will say which sites the plan should include. If yours is kept, the next step is an application, and we can start the survey work before adoption so little time is lost.

I own Green Belt land near Hucknall. Is grey belt relevant?

It can be. The test is how much the land contributes to checking Nottingham's spread and keeping places apart. Enclosed or previously developed land is the likeliest to qualify, and we assess it parcel by parcel.

Why is a plan from 2002 still in use?

Because no replacement has yet been adopted, and the new plan is still at examination. Saved policies stay in force until replaced, with weight depending on how well they fit national policy.

Does the pause in reorganisation affect my land?

Not directly. Ashfield District Council decides applications today, and the new plan is being examined now. More about the rest of the county is on our Nottinghamshire page.

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Sources

Figures on this page come from the Housing Delivery Test 2025 (published 17 August 2026) and the Planning Inspectorate's local plan monitoring to August 2026, with newer plan milestones checked on 24 September 2026. We update the page when new results or plan milestones are published. Planning positions change quickly, so always check the council's own website before relying on it.