We consider each one on its merits and ask: it is appropriate? Is it needed? What impact will it have on our countryside and our communities?

There is increasing evidence that planning reforms are not working. The Green Belt, protected areas and other parts of the countryside are all threatened with serious damage. CPRE recognises the need for new housing and infrastructure, but this should be located in the right places, well-designed to fit with the landscape, and planned with long-term vision.

Changes in national policy have resulted in greenfield sites being used when suitable brownfield sites are available. As the affordable housing crisis deepens, CPRE's 2022 State of brownfield report released in December 2022 has found – yet again – that the number of new homes that could be built on brownfield land remains high. In fact, it has reached record levels, with more than half a million homes with planning permission waiting to be built.

New empty homes stats by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) released in January 2023 also underlines the fact that loss of green land is not that necessary! It states that England has 248,633 "Long Term Empty Homes" of which Dorset Council has 1,132 and BCP Council has 2,127. We know that 'probate' can take a while but planning for our future needs should not exclude recognizing the benefit to Dorset of re-opening 3,259 existing dwellings. 

A ‘clear prioritisation’ of brownfield
Recent changes to the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, including emphasising brownfield over greenfield, are welcome but vague. CPRE is calling for broad amendments to the National Planning Policy Framework, which is being reviewed in 2023 with the consultation open until 2nd March 2023, to include a clear prioritisation of brownfield development over greenfield sites.