Government unveils ambitious new towns programme

The UK government's New Towns Draft Programme represents the most ambitious attempt to create new settlements in England since the New Towns Act 1946.

Its central aim is to address the entrenched housing shortage by enabling a new generation of large-scale, infrastructure-first communities. Each new town is expected to deliver a minimum of 10,000 homes and several locations have potential capacity far beyond that threshold.

The government hopes that the programme could unlock hundreds of thousands of new dwellings over the coming decades, forming a critical component of the wider national housing and economic strategy.

That report emphasised the need for:

• strategic, long-term delivery vehicles such as development corporations
• a comprehensive suite of placemaking principles, including a commitment to 40% affordable housing and
• a model of stewardship that supports well-designed, well-connected places over multiple generations.

In response, the government has set out a programme that combines coordinated land assembly, targeted public investment, bespoke planning policy and cross-Whitehall governance in an attempt to deliver truly integrated places rather than isolated housing schemes.

At the heart of the draft programme are five objectives.

1. A requirement for scale, with each new town expected to provide at least 10,000 homes, and preferably considerably more, to achieve economies of scale in infrastructure and placemaking. 
2. Support economic growth by directing new towns to areas where housing shortages are constraining productivity or where new settlements could reinforce high-value economic clusters. 
3. National geographic balance, ensuring that new towns are not concentrated solely in the South East but spread in a way that supports regional development.
4. Clear routes for land assembly, governance, funding and long-term stewardship to be demonstrated by promoters.
5. Exemplary placemaking standards, aligned with sustainability, net zero commitments and genuine community inclusion.

Tempsford, Crews Hill and Chase Park in Enfield, and Leeds South Bank have been designated as priority intervention sites due to their potential scale and alignment with major infrastructure programmes.

Tempsford in particular represents one of the most ambitious proposals: a standalone settlement of more than 40,000 homes located at the junction of East West Rail and the East Coast Main Line.

The Crews Hill and Chase Park site is considered an opportunity with high potential for land value capture (LVC) due to its low-quality agricultural land and could deliver up to 21,000 homes to help meet London's acute housing need.

Leeds South Bank would enable the creation of a dense, transit oriented urban neighbourhood that can leverage the city's transport and economic investment programmes.

Four further locations – Manchester Victoria North, Thamesmead in Greenwich, Brabazon and the West Innovation Arc in South Gloucestershire, and an expanded Milton Keynes – are identified as sites requiring targeted support. These locations either have well-established regeneration frameworks or present significant opportunities for scaling up existing plans.

In Manchester Victoria North and Thamesmead, most development is on brownfield land, which the strategic environmental assessment (SEA) suggests will generate substantial long-term benefits through land renewal and improved visual amenity.

In Brabazon and the West Innovation Arc and Milton Keynes, the government highlights the strategic potential for large-scale expansion linked to innovation clusters, major employers and planned local transport improvements.

Alongside the preferred locations, the government has also identified six alternative sites, including Adlington in Cheshire East, Heyford Park in Cherwell, Marlcombe in East Devon, Plymouth, South Barking, and Wychavon Town.

The SEA Environmental Report concludes that, while all locations would deliver long-term social and economic benefits, there would be inevitable challenges associated with large-scale housing development.

For example, several sites face short-term negative impacts on air quality and health during construction, although these are expected to be offset over time as infrastructure, green space and sustainable transport provision are delivered.

Greenfield sites present risks to biodiversity and landscape character, though the statutory requirement for at least 10% biodiversity net gain will provide a mechanism for mitigation.

Flood risk is a significant consideration for sites such as Thamesmead and Tempsford, meaning that development cannot proceed until substantial mitigation and infrastructure upgrades are in place.

The SEA also identifies heritage impacts in some locations, though it notes that 'positive integration of heritage assets and features of the historic environment' could contribute positively to placemaking.

This offer is designed to ensure that new towns benefit from early and sustained investment in infrastructure and are supported by central expertise throughout their development.

In addition to the National Planning Policy Framework and Design and Placemaking Planning Practice Guidance, the proposed New Towns Planning Policy will clarify plan-making requirements, decision-making principles and the treatment of new towns in the green belt.

Notably, the government indicates that the strategic importance of new towns is likely to constitute 'very special circumstances' when considering green belt release – an important consideration for surveyors advising on land value, viability and planning strategy.

The planning policy will also address how new towns interact with local housing need calculations, with the intention that housing delivered through new towns contributes to meeting the needs of affected authorities.

The government will consider whether further policy or guidance is required to clarify how housing need should be calculated where a new town proposal is brought forward by a development corporation with full plan-making powers.

Additional details on the government offer will be provided in the full response to the New Towns Taskforce report later this year, along with official confirmation of the new town locations.

Last year, RICS provided expert evidence to the House of Lords on new town delivery, highlighting the need for improved public-private sector cooperation.

RICS' new towns viability report, created at the request of the taskforce, outlines the necessity of a structured, long-term infrastructure strategy to ensure successful town planning and integration.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is inviting responses to its consultation on the draft programme – either by completing the online survey or submitting an online form using the dedicated consultation email address – until it closes on 19 May.