Six months away from the new NPPF deadline, what do developers need to know and what actions should they take?

By Jason Lowes and Karen Jones, Partners in Planning at Rapleys

Whilst the final NPPF has not yet been published (expected this summer), we are six months away from the need to comply with its changes. As such, there’s a lot to prepare for and with the proposals clear and the consultation finished some months ago, now is the time to act.

Some of the key changes that need to be carefully considered when submitting applications either before or after the deadline:

What does this mean in reality and how should developers and other stakeholders prepare for these changes?

Local Authority engagement: Developers need to get to grips with how they engage with both Local Authorities and the wider community, particularly now that powers are being delegated away from planning committees as a general rule in parallel to the policy changes.  The new NPPF also creates strong incentives for LPAs to progress new local plans. As such, developers should engage early with LAs on plan-making.  Early pre-application engagement on site’s developers want allocated, particularly grey belt or station-adjacent land, is now more valuable than ever.

Developers should also audit their pipeline against the new policy geography. Sites near rail stations that were previously difficult in Green Belt terms may now be developable under the new clauses. Conversely, sites relying on viability assessments to reduce affordable housing obligations will need reappraisal.

However, the fundamental tension remains: while the planning system may become more predictable to navigate, the underlying economics of development: construction costs, finance rates and sales values, continue to challenge viability, and planning reform alone – however welcome – may not be sufficient to drive increased delivery without parallel improvements in market conditions.

The station-proximity density policy (40–50 dph minimum) aligns well with how build to rent schemes in particular are typically modelled. Such higher density schemes near well-connected rail stations should be assessed for eligibility now, ahead of the final NPPF, so that applications can be positioned correctly from day one.

The biggest winners from the new NPPF guidance are clearly those developers with medium sites and those with higher density needs such as build to rent. However, all developers can get ahead of the game by understanding the new architecture and applying it to their strategies before it lands.

As always, the ambition of this new NPPF is to unlock land and reduce uncertainty but its success will ultimately depend on whether this can align with economic reality and practical delivery. Our advice is to get ready and, if plans are on course, engage and submit early.