An End to ‘Garden Grabbing’?
18 June 2010
Earlier this week, the Government announced changes to planning regulations which have been widely reported in the press as amounting to the end of the so-called controversial practice of ‘garden grabbing’ where developers are able to build houses and flats on suburban back gardens.
New regulations, set out in the Government’s Planning Policy Statement Number 3, have excluded ‘garden land’ from the classification of ‘brownfield land’, i.e. previously developed land, for which it is normally more straightforward to achieve planning consent for development. Removing garden land from this classification is in line with the Government’s general planning policy that, where possible, housing needs should be met from effectively re-using previously developed land instead of greenfield sites. The changes to the regulations will enable Councils to reject applications for infill projects where they are deemed to be unpopular locally.
However, for landowners with aspirations of developing their back gardens in order to provide a nest egg for retirement, the changes to the planning regulations should not be seen as the end of garden land development. Planning consent may be less straightforward to obtain, given considerations regarding density of housing, pressure on amenities and changes to an area’s characteristics, however in the right circumstances development will still be permitted.
If you have any queries regarding the above issue or on any other aspect of planning law, please contact:
Roger Curtis
Partner
Commercial Property
rogercurtis@cumberlandellis.com
