RURAL FOCUS

BY PAUL MILLARD CLA SOUTH WEST

Housing is in the headlines pretty regularly these day – whether it’s the lack of it, the location of it or the cost of it, there are clearly major challenges in meeting demand and nowhere more so than in rural areas.

That’s the result of a number of complex issues – reconciling the conservation needs of some rural settlements with the desire to preserve villages rather than let them evolve plus the availability – or rather lack of - appropriate land to build on. Both of these have an impact on the viability of rural communities and the ability to maintain essential services in rural areas.

It’s a theme the CLA has visited frequently over the years and one which we have returned to this month with the announcement by Housing Minister, Dominic Raab, that he is going to extend permitted development rights - the right to convert buildings without having to seek a full planning permission - and allow for more options to convert existing farm buildings into family homes.

Converting farm buildings into homes has the potential to be a real success story and the Minister’s commitment to permitted development rights is a further breakthrough in the effort to ensure the policy works for rural landowners and farmers.

Landowners have always been willing to play their part in the solution – they, after all, own the essential raw material of change and the CLA has been setting out the details of this mounting crisis for about as long as it has been building. But the warnings have largely fallen on deaf ears as we are confronted with a planning system which has frequently sought to prevent development in rural areas all the while pleading for sustainable rural communities.

There is no escaping the fact that, despite the potential to ease rural housing shortages by using permitted development rights, problems remain - with significant local authority resistance to the use of these rights.

In spite of the clear policy direction given by the Government, too many applications are still being refused. The CLA wants to see a planning system which is easier, faster and more cost effective - and the ball is now firmly in the planning authorities’ court.

Alongside the housing issue, permitted development rights relating to agricultural buildings are also being changed with an increase in the size of building farmers are allowed to erect without going through the planning process. It is a realistic reflection of the needs of modern farming and removes a bit more red tape enabling our farmers to create more profitable businesses which, in turn, helps to build a stronger, more sustainable countryside.