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‘The government’s proposed planning policy will strike a fatal blow to the creation of new village greens and does nothing to safeguard and improve people’s vital access to nature.’ So declares Helen Monger, one of our case officers.
Building site near Goring-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, in 2024. A new village green here would have protected the open space for ever. Photo: Open Spaces Society
The society, which is Britain’s oldest national conservation body, has responded to the Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government’s consultation on the National Planning Policy Framework. It has called for amendments to the draft framework.
Helen explains: ‘The government proposes a new category of “safeguarded land” to be identified in Local Plans as part of its proposals to erode the green belt—but that land is to be safeguarded for (not from) development. Such designation on land used for public recreation would prevent local people from registering it as a town or village green to secure its protection and their rights there. We have called for the removal of this pernicious provision.
‘We also want to see it made a condition that the developer voluntarily registers green space within the development as a town or village green, so that it remains protected as public open space in perpetuity.
‘Additional amendments sought by the society include a request for greater clarity on definitions provided in the glossary which are critical to the protection of open space.
Helen continues: ‘The National Planning Policy Framework will influence building development for many years to come. Yet it pays insufficient attention to the government’s Environmental Improvement Plan, published only last December, which has as a central aim “to make sure that everyone has access to green or blue spaces within a 15-minute walk from home”. Figures from Natural England show that the most deprived neighbourhoods have the least access to open space—that must be remedied. Unless green spaces are protected and improved as part of planning policy, the government’s “15-minute” aim can never be met.
‘The new framework is designed to be “pro-growth”. We urge the government to see access to nature and outdoor recreation as integral to the mix needed for sustainable development and not a “blocker” or a “nimby” interest. Liveability and pride in place are part of delivering healthy communities in the future, and it is crucial that government recognises this,’ Helen concludes.