How could plans for new towns impact rural communities?

This consultation has now closed.

The NFU has submitted its response to the consultation.

We support the need for new housing but have emphasised that this must not come at the expense of productive agricultural land and UK food security. 

The NFU supports housing growth but insists that:

• Food security must be treated as a national priority.
• Agricultural land loss must be minimised.
• Farm businesses must be protected, properly engaged, and fairly compensated.

Key messages

1. Location of new towns

• New towns should prioritise brownfield and urban-adjacent sites rather than rural greenfield land.
• Developing in rural areas increases costs and complexity due to new infrastructure needs and causes greater disruption to farming and food production. 

2. Protection of agricultural land

• The NFU strongly opposes the loss of BMV (Best and Most Versatile) land (Grades 1–3).
• Loss of farmland is permanent and threatens food security, especially where large areas are affected.
• Agricultural land should be avoided wherever possible and minimised where used.

3. Environmental and infrastructure concerns

• The high-level SEA (Strategic Environmental Assessment) needs more detailed local analysis, particularly on:
  • Water stress (eg, Tempsford, Milton Keynes).
  • Flood risk (notably Tempsford).
• Infrastructure requirements (water, transport, utilities) may significantly affect cost and deliverability.

4. Impact on farming businesses

New towns could:

• Displace farms and reduce available land.
• Increase land prices due to scarcity.
• Permanently damage land used during construction.
• Some sectors (eg, glasshouse growers) may face closure if relocation is not feasible.
• Full assessment of affected farms and mitigation plans is essential.

5. Mitigation and design recommendations

• Prioritise brownfield development first.
• Use efficient land design, including integrating biodiversity net gain into existing space.  
• Plans should require soil management plans, codes of construction practice and measures to restore land after temporary use.

6. Planning policy concerns

• Concern that policy giving 'substantial weight' to economic and social benefits could override environmental and agricultural impacts without clear limits. 
• Support for using poorer quality 'grey belt' land, but strong opposition to inclusion of productive farmland.  

7. Land Acquisition and compulsory purchase

• Strong preference for voluntary agreements with landowners.  
• Compulsory purchase should be a last resort.
• Opposition to removing 'hope value' in compensation, this is unfair to farmers.

8. Delivery and engagement

• Early and meaningful engagement with farmers and landowners is critical.
• Recommends appointing ALOs (Agricultural Liaison Officers) for major developments.

9. Wider impacts

New towns will have broader regional effects on:

• transport
• services
• water systems.

These impacts must be assessed beyond the immediate site boundaries.  

The government has launched a public consultation on its new towns draft programme.

Subject to the outcome of the consultation, the government is proposing to take forward seven locations, scaled back from the initial twelve locations it had originally identified.

Where will the new towns be?

Three are brownfield sites in cities:

• Leeds South Bank.
• Manchester Victoria North.
• Thamesmead Greenwich.

The other sites will include some proportion of greenfield land (new towns sprouted on undeveloped land), with different levels of government support:

• Crews Hill and Chase Park, Enfield.
• Tempsford.
• Brabazon and the West Innovation Arc (South Gloucestershire).
• Milton Keynes.

The government is seeking views on these locations and is also conducting an environmental assessment before any final decisions are made. It has said this will be the first of many opportunities to shape the proposals under consideration. 

NFU position

The NFU has serious concerns that the construction of these new towns will have a significant impact on the British countryside and rural communities.

We are calling for transparency and for productive farmland to be protected wherever possible.

We will continue to raise the concerns of farmers and rural communities to ensure that their wishes and needs are met by the drive to deliver greater housing supply. We will also be engaging with the government, as well as national and regional stakeholders, to strive for the best outcomes for agricultural and rural communities.

The NFU has concerns over land acquisition and the use of compulsory purchase powers. The consultation document acknowledges that this is a way to acquire land at an early stage so that the government can capture some uplift in value.

Voluntary agreement with landowners should always be sought before any compulsory purchase powers are used. 

We strongly oppose removing ‘hope value’. Hope value refers to the uplift in land value based on potential future development.

 The NFU warns that giving authorities power to remove hope value could:

• reduce compensation for landowners,
• undermine fairness,
• and create significant financial risk for farmers.