Neighbourhood Plans v Housing

As the need for housing gains increasing traction, to what extent are neighbourhood plans having to take a back seat? Lucy McDonnell investigates some recent decisions.

Six years after they were introduced by the Localism Act 2011, neighbourhood plans have surprised many commentators with both their level of take-up by communities, and the importance afforded to them by the government.

However, as the need for housing has taken on increasing public importance, becoming a key electoral policy in both the 2015 and 2017 general elections, and a focus of recent Budgets, questions are being raised about the weight afforded to neighbourhood plans when balanced against the imperative of increasing housing supply. There is conflicting evidence on this.

October 2017 analysis of the 69 called-in applications and recovered appeals decided since Sajid Javid was appointed Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government found that 14 developments were refused by the Secretary of State against the recommendation of the planning inspector. Of these 14 developments refused against recommendation, eight involved a conflict with a neighbourhood plan (www.legalease.co.uk/housing-objectives) .

This perhaps demonstrates the government's localism focus, with importance afforded to the views of local people in planning development in their area. Neighbourhood plans were supported by the December 2016 written ministerial statement, which strengthened their position, providing protection for plans in areas where local planning authorities can demonstrate a three-year housing land supply, and not the normally required five-year housing land supply (see box at top of p25).

This was justified on the basis that neighbourhood plans were helping to boost housing land supply, and so proactive communities who had worked hard to prepare neighbourhood plans should not have their plans undermined by a lack of five-year housing supply by their local planning authority. Earlier in the December 2016 written ministerial statement Gavin Barwell, the then Minister of State for Housing and Planning, stated that:

Recent analysis suggests that giving people more control over development in their area is helping to boost housing supply - those plans in force that plan for a housing number have on average planned for approximately 10% more homes than the number for that area set out by the relevant local planning authority. However, the government's claim that neighbourhood plans planned for approximately 10% more homes than local planning authorities was successfully challenged by Richborough Estates in October 2017 (Richborough Estates Ltd v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government [2017] - see box at bottom of p25).

In connection with the judicial review, Richborough Estates applied for disclosure of documents connected to the written ministerial statement. Gilbart J found that the statement that neighbourhood plans on average planned for approximately 10% more homes misdescribed the situation, and the average plan did not plan for 10% more homes. The statement was based on a sample of neighbourhood plans only. It was necessary to disclose the matters that had been put before the Minister.

A shift in balance

There have, however, been two notable decisions where the Secretary of State's position on applications in relation to neighbourhood plans has changed due to a shift in the balance between neighbourhood plans and a lack of housing land supply.

In Yapton, West Sussex, an application for 100 homes south of Ford Lane was rejected by Arun District Council in October 2014. The Secretary of State then dismissed the appeal in September 2016, disagreeing with his inspector (who had...