Research unveiled by charity CPRE has found that there are enough brownfield sites in England to build 1.49 million new homes – within a whisker of the government’s new build target by 2030.
The State of Brownfield 2025 report gathered data from Local Authority brownfield registers up to 2024, the most recent years for which figures are available. It shows that the number of brownfield sites registered as suitable for development increased by 16% over the time period, with 55% of brownfield sites across the country having received some full or in-principle planning permission in 2024.
This would allow over 800,000 new homes could be built quicker timelines compared to greenfield developments as well as minimising the environmental impact associated with building on undeveloped countryside.
CPRE (formerly known as Campaign to Protect Rural England) believes that the UK’s huge supply of brownfield land should be the first choice for building England’s much-needed homes.
It says that these sites are typically located near existing public transport, education, and healthcare facilities – infrastructure that makes them “ideal for development” and attract new residents and businesses to urban areas.
The CPRE report goes on to says that despite official policy prioritising brownfield development, almost half of all housing development in 2021/22 were completed on greenfield land. According to figures from the Local Government Association (LGA) in 2021, there are likely to be an additional 500,000 planning permissions for development on greenfield sites.
It concludes by calling on the government to enforce its brownfield-first policy for new housing, including by focusing Homes England investment on brownfield sites and rejecting speculative greenfield development. It sould set ambitious and enforceable targets for both affordable and social homes on “shovel-ready” brownfield sites and regularly update its brownfield registers to ensure land can be redeveloped.
CPRE chief executive Roger Mortlock said: “The government has pledged a brownfield-first approach to new housing, but the reality is more unnecessary development on green fields. A new approach to local housing numbers has massively increased the target in many rural areas without any evidence of local need and without the infrastructure to support new communities. We know that large developers favour building on the countryside, while the number of brownfield sites continues to grow. More identikit, car-dependent executive homes needlessly built on the countryside.
“The recent brownfield passports are a great first step, but if the government is serious about a brownfield-first approach, it needs more teeth. We need targets for brownfield sites, up-to-date brownfield registers, and investment in genuinely affordable and social homes on brownfield land. If we want homes that tackle the housing crisis, revitalise our towns and cities, and create vibrant, sustainable communities close to existing infrastructure, then these unused brownfield sites have to be the place we start.”
