To feel really upset about the lack of scrutiny on new housing development in the countryside

[DazedAndConfused2024]

Please don’t call me a NIMBY, but I’m really upset about the likelihood of housing development in the countryside and the likely lack of scrutiny for inappropriate development.
I accept there are housing targets to be met. This isn’t the issue.

However, where I live there is a small group of local town councillors who are adamant that all housing will be placed in areas other than behind their homes. It’s not localism…it really is as is.

By way of example; one potential development site has been reviewed to be suitable for approx 100-120 dwellings, yet the town council have tried to push double that onto the site (going against the borough’s own landscape reports on site suitability).
It is very depressing.

Given the current political atmosphere and rampant desire for more development, I am really worried that there will be no possibility to sensibly and logically critique proposals for over development, such as these, especially when the 5 year land supply is not being met.
I am concerned that scrutiny will be forgotten in the mad rush to build.

If there was more supply then the prices should come down. It doesn't work like that. Houses are built and released at a rate which maintains the price.

It's not just NIMBYs holding up development. They are just a convenient scapegoat.

In my experience it's rare for local opposition to stop housebuilding. A success is when you can get the plans changed to something a bit less damaging.

How will thousands of new houses help people who don't currently have anywhere to live? Won't they all be expensive?

Everyone needs an home. I imagine there were Tudor, Stuart, Queen Anne, Victorian, Georgian nimbys too. Those houses are listed now. Very much of Britain is not built on.

TBH I think it’s the BTL people that have brought this about. Blame them.

England is one of the world's most densely populated countries.

BTL people?

Buy to let.

I can't see how these houses are going to go to people who are really in need. They've just built a development near us, 80 homes. They start at 500k up to 1.1 million.

Yes no thought about environment yet we are being told we have to be net zero by 2040

It's not adding up

but it also raises questions on why it’s not been built on previously - the new housing area near me that’s being built on is on a flood plan. I doubt anyone would knowingly choose to live in an area that’s going to be a bog half the year . I suspect it will be left out of the advertising.

since the work started, two of the roads have been virtually impassable some days because all the natural drainage is gone- and one of them is the primary road to the nearest hospital. It actually terrifies me to think there won’t be hospital access during winter.

EdithStourton
**
England is one of the world's most densely populated countries”

Have you flown over it recently? Mile upon mile upon mile of untouched countryside.

Around 9% of the UK is built on. The populations of other countries is irrelevant.

Let it stay that way for environmental reasons and the water supplies

And in many areas they are just bought as second homes.

Starter homes or flats are what I think we need (round here anyway). Get younger people into the housing ladder. But no money in them, so dont get built.

Permission for new homes was agreed in our village. They created the access (cut down a hedge) and nothing has happened for over a year. Won’t get built till developer feels like it. That’s the other problem - there are loads of existing planning permission where the developer has just not built the houses because of random reasons (guess money). Build what’s been approved - that will help.

More sweatboxes for those of us who havent reproduced. Yay

If we build thousands of houses in the countryside, and lots of solar farms, we aren't going to have much farmland left. So we'll end up importing more and more which could cause a lot of problems down the line.

Untouched? Do you mean farmland?

They've just built on historic woodland near me. We thought that it was going to be just houses. Upto now we have had a petrol station, Starbucks, Asda express etc and there's an aldi going up. None of these were needed and there were unused and never will be used again, factory land withinten minutes. But were they could have built, people don't want that postcode. Our bird population has really declined the last eighteen months because there's nowhere for fledglings to learn to fly and the cats are getting them. I completely agree OP.

Exactly. There is a housing development in the market town near me. It was earmarked for over 400 houses. The town simply does not have the infrastructure to support the number of people who want to live there. The schools are oversubscribed, the secondary school has been extended to accept another 250 pupils, but it won't be enough and the two GP practices and the dentist don't have enough spaces for the extra residents.

That makes me so angry! The wildlife habitat is being destroyed. People just won’t stop until there is nothing left 🥵

@MrsSkylerWhite

"Around 9% of the UK is built on. The populations of other countries is irrelevant."

Actually it's way less than that and is 5.9%:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42554635.amp

My brother in law has had his old factory site up for sale for 2 years. No developer is interested as it costs too much to build on brownfield apparently. They've built next door instead, on woodland. It's absolutely nuts.

And in many areas they are just bought as second homes.

Do people really buy a new build on a new estate as a second home? I can understand them being bought as a buy to let but surely second home owners are buying cute fishermen’s cottages or swanky sea front apartments not family new builds in suburbia?

where I live there is a small group of local town councillors who are adamant that all housing will be placed in areas other than behind their homes

I'd expect nothing else
A dear friend bought a lovely house backing onto farmland in an exclusive village, and the first thing I said was "What if that's all sold for housing?" until I realised half the councillors live there too

I'd suggest asking what infrastrfucture's being planned for all these homes except it'll be a waste of time - depressing really

If only it was that easy!

The town I live in has had an extra 5 developments with 1400 additional houses built in the past 4 years. All on greenfield sites. And despite promises of extra primaries and a secondary school, new GP and dentist and pubs, shops , playgrounds and parks there has been zero actual extra infrastructure

Yes you did read that right and yes those figures are correct. Once the development has begun the developers give zero fucks about fulfilling any S106 promises !

Have you flown over it recently? Mile upon mile upon mile of untouched countryside.

It's not "untouched". It's the bit that produces the food.