The purpose of Green Belt is to prevent urban sprawl by keeping land open. The value of a parcel of land within the Green Belt is tested against its performance against 5 purposes:
(a) to check the unrestricted sprawl of large built-up areas;
(b) to prevent neighbouring towns merging into one another;
(c) to assist in safeguarding the countryside from encroachment;
(d) to preserve the setting and special character of historic towns; and
(e) to assist in urban regeneration, by encouraging the recycling of derelict and other urban land.
Land can be released from Green Belt if there are exceptional circumstances that justify its removal (this might include the council not having enough land to meet its housing needs) or when reviewing the local plan.
Grey belt is land in the Green Belt comprising previously developed land and/or land that does not strongly contribute to the following Green Belt purposes*.
(a) to check the unrestricted sprawl of large built-up areas;
(b) to prevent neighbouring towns merging into one another; or,
(d) to preserve the setting and special character of historic towns.
Currently grey belt excludes land where a strong reason for refusing or restricting development may arise as a consequence of the presence of potential or designated Special Protection Areas, possible or designated Special Areas of Conservation, listed or proposed Ramsar sites, Sites of Special Scientific Interest, Green Belt, Local Green Space, National Landscape, National Park, irreplaceable habitats, designated heritage sites, undesignated heritage sites equivalent to Scheduled Ancient Monuments and areas at risk of flooding. These restrictions are currently under review.
In addition, any application within grey belt should make contributions to a set of golden rules (see FAQ below).
* The 5 purposes are explained in the Green Belt FAQ.
The golden rules set out contributions that a site consented in grey belt (see Grey Belt FAQ) should make towards affordable housing, necessary infrastructure and green space, as listed below.
(a) An uplift towards affordable housing of 15%, up to a maximum of 50%;
(b) necessary improvements to local or national infrastructure; and
(c) the provision of new, or improvements to existing, green spaces that are accessible to the public.
A 5 year land supply is a supply of specific and deliverable sites that provide sufficient land to facilitate at least 5 years’ worth of new housing against the required number of houses set out in an adopted local plan.