Government launches “national conversation” on land use

The Government has launched a consultation on a new approach to Land Use empowering decision makers with the toolkit to protect the most productive agricultural land and boost food security.

In doing so, it will support the Government’s Plan for Change, which includes new housebuilding, energy infrastructure and new towns.

Using the most sophisticated land use data ever published, the Land Use Framework will provide the principles, advanced data and tools to support decision-making by local government, landowners, businesses, farmers, and nature groups to make the most of our land. This will help deliver the different objectives we have for England’s finite land, including growing food, building 1.5 million homes this parliament, and restoring nature.

As part of a national conversation, there will be workshops across the country, bringing farmers and landowners to the table, to put the insights of the people who manage our landscapes at the centre of our work to develop a final Land Use Framework.

What it means for the countryside

For CPRE, the framework offers an exciting opportunity to get more holistic and integrated policy in several important areas of land use, particularly bringing together farming and planning policy interventions. These include better management of river environments and Green Belt land; stronger protections against development for high quality farmland; and a more efficient use of land and stronger brownfield first approach to minimise the loss of countryside for development.

The National Land Use Framework consultation is an opportunity for you to shape the future of our land

We encourage farmers, landowners, businesses, and nature groups to take part in the consultation and help create a balanced and sustainable approach to land use. Your input can directly influence decisions on food security, clean energy, nature restoration, and housing.

To participate, you can respond directly through the online questionnaire. Additionally, if you are a member of CPRE PDSY or Friends of the Peak District, you can share your thoughts with us to help inform CPRE’s collective response.

Your voice is crucial in building a framework that reflects the diverse needs and aspirations of our communities and ensures our countryside thrives for generations to come.

Respond to the Land Use Framework Consultation

The online consultation is open now and runs until 25th April 2025.

Initial Response from CPRE National

Land is a finite resource. However, this simple truth rarely seems to influence how we use the limited supply we have.

Our land is under more pressure than ever, with demand set to soon outstrip supply, unless ill-judged decision making is replaced by a more strategic and joined-up approach. This will be the measure of the new Land Use Framework’s success.

Land provides us with food, homes, energy and countless other things our society depends on. The framework should guide sustainable decisions that balance each of these demands. This will require a truly cross-government approach that gives the framework the teeth it needs to hold decision makers to account.

If the government is serious about tackling the competing crises this country faces, the framework must not be allowed to sit on a shelf, gathering dust. It must have a clear plan for implementation and be regularly reviewed, as is the case with the Land Commission in Scotland.

Done well, the new framework could help us build new homes and infrastructure in the most suitable and strategic locations, support nature’s recovery and help to tackle the climate crisis.

Land is critical to economic growth, but our finite land should not needlessly be scarified in the name of growth.