"In order for the Government to achieve its 1.5 million housing target, many options are required to support housing delivery"
- Victoria Yeandle - Lanpro
Labour’s manifesto pledged to build 1.5 million new homes across the Parliamentary term. One of the ways of achieving this is through the creation of new towns, comprising at least 10,000 new dwellings and essential infrastructure, such as public transport and schools. In February 2025, the Housing Minister, Matthew Pennycook, confirmed that more than 100 locations across England had been submitted to the Government and that the taskforce would identify specific locations and funding options in the summer.
Pennycook also announced that the aim was to start construction of these new towns by 2029. He acknowledged that new towns would not make up the bulk of the 1.5 million manifesto pledge. However, there is a debate as to whether any new towns will contribute towards Government’s 1.5 million target as sites of over 1,000 dwellings typically take at least five years to obtain detailed planning permission and then a further year / 18 months to deliver the first dwelling.
In light of the above, in order to meet the Government’s target, other options will need to be considered and delivered. In Labour’s manifesto, there was a commitment to a brownfield-first approach through the fast-tracking approval of urban brownfield sites.
In theory, this sounds like a sensible approach. The ‘brownfield first’ approach in urban areas is widely supported: it was a not only a Labour manifesto pledge but a Conservative, Liberal Democrat and Reform UK one too. The intention is that brownfield development would be primarily focused within urban areas, which benefit from better public transport links. This approach is also supported by the public.
A recent poll of residents in Cambridge, Manchester and the London Boroughs of Camden and Newham found that 75% of respondents wanted brownfield development to be prioritised over other forms of development. Research by Commonplace, which accompanied the findings from the above poll, demonstrated that a focus on brownfield urban regeneration sites in 16 UK cities could deliver at least 1.3 million new homes by 2035, substantially contributing towards the Government’s housing ambitions.
An example of potential brownfield development which would deliver on several of the Government’s aspirations is Southend-on-Sea, where the Council allocated an area adjacent to Southend Victoria Railway Station, known as ‘Better Queensway’ for regeneration. The majority of the land is Council owned, and the proposals included the demolition of 1960s tower blocks and maisonettes and the removal of the 1960s Queensway underpass, to create approximately 1,700 new dwellings, commercial space and new parks and the creation of a tree-lined boulevard along Queensway itself. The application was supported by £15 million of Government Housing Infrastructure
Funding to enable the delivery of new infrastructure to support the housing. The proposals sought to provide 312 affordable homes. The proposed development also gave first refusal to existing residents on the estate and there was positive engagement with residents throughout the design process.
The Council entered into a Joint Venture with a Housing Association in 2019 and planning permission was granted in September 2021.
However, since the granting of planning permission, the Housing Associations, have withdrawn from the project. The Council has committed to continuing the delivery of the scheme, whether on its own, finding an alternative partner to deliver the project or delivering an alternative scheme. Despite this commitment, no housing has been delivered since the granting of planning permission almost four years previously.
The willingness of councils to deliver these regeneration projects for their residents is undeniable, as shown in Southend-on-Sea. However, there are concerns about whether these can be delivered in reality due to financial pressures. The principal concern for developers is the cost of remediating brownfield land in towns and cities, causing viability concerns, with developers reducing the amount of affordable housing as a result. In addition, brownfield land can also harbour high ecologically important habitats, and reaching therefore, achieving the mandatory 10% biodiversity net gain requirement can come at a cost.
In October 2024, the Government announced a Brownfield Land Release Fund to provide £68 million to 54 councils to enable them to unlock disused brownfield sites. This includes £467,000 to Southend-on-Sea but there are concerns as to whether this will enable the Council to deliver the Better Queensway regeneration project. The Government also published a White Paper, inviting views on whether a ‘Brownfield Passport’ could support the development of brownfield land in urban areas. The Passport would set out clear parameters for schemes to adhere to, such as density, scale and form, thereby making planning approval the default outcome.
Developers will require reassurances on how the Government could help lower costs, increase revenue and be certain of planning approval. This could be through additional public funding or through the Brownfield Passport.
We await the Government’s response to the feedback on the White Paper as to next steps. However, in order for the Government to achieve its 1.5 million housing target, many options are required to support housing delivery. This should include Government funding for brownfield sites to enable the regeneration of towns and cities and greater incentives and certainties for developers to build. However, development on greenfield sites will be necessary on smaller sites to kickstart delivery and contribute towards the Government’s target.
