Can you build on greenfield land

We strongly suggest you take advice from a specialist solicitor at this point to protect your further investment, no matter how honourable the friendly landowner seems right now. Once you have an option agreement signed, we would recommend to anyone considering a greenfield development that they have a Phase 1 Site Investigation survey carried out on the plot of land. This will be a desk-top report that includes previous uses of the land under consideration or land nearby or adjacent to it, and will identify potential sources of contamination, receptors and pathways.

It is important to identify all past uses of the site since previous intensive industrial uses — even if the land looks full of nature these days — could have left the ground contaminated and disturbed beneath the covering of vegetation.

Various pollutants have the potential to travel away from the source, depending on the geology, groundwater and surface water of the area, while a history of mining activities on the site may affect the stability of the ground or even leave shafts and cavities that are invisible from a surface. One example of what a surveyor would do is to consult British Coal maps to make sure there are no records of previous coal workings or mine shafts that could adversely affect your ability to develop the site.

The local planning authority LPA will ask for a Phase 1 survey as part of the planning application and probably a Phase 2 report too, which would carry out invasive site investigations involving taking and analysing soil samples. An example of a greenfield previously undeveloped site in Sheffield, with a proposed Ecclesall Design development underneath:. A greenfield site in Sheffield, prior to development.

A greenfield site in Sheffield, with proposed development. When the time comes to submit plans and other drawings to set out your new development, the local planning authority LPA will expect cross sections of the proposed scheme showing the context of the new roads and houses, business units etc within the surroundings.

The Land Registry title plan is accurate only to within a metre or so depending on the size of the site and should never be used as a key source of data from which to draw up development plans — the evidence on the land eg fence posts, walls, streams etc are what counts regarding the boundaries and these will be precisely identified on the topographical survey. Following the completion of Phase 1 and 2 Site Investigation surveys and a topographical survey a drainage survey should come next.

If it is probable that the road leading into your greenfield site will be required by the local planning authority to be adopted by the Council it will need to conform to the various applicable standards such as widths, turning circles and splays at junctions with main roads so it makes sense that this provisional layout is available and agreed in principal with the local planning authority via a Pre-application Enquiry — which we would make on your behalf — before anyone starts fine-tuning architectural design.

At some point, an ecological survey will need to be carried out as the local planning authority will require this prior to planning permission being issued on a greenfield site.

In the hopefully unlikely event that protected creatures such as great crested newts or bats are identified this would effectively stop the project, certainly for a number of years, although a number of developers may not consider obtaining this survey until forced to by the LPA.

Sometimes would-be developers invest an awful lot of money before the planning application then come unstuck at the last minute as a result of a lack of thorough investigation and research during the early stages. Alongside the ecological survey a tree survey will also be required by the local planning authority, and you might as well do it at this stage as it will allow informed decisions to be made as to whether certain trees need to be incorporated into the development.

Please get in touch by simply filling in the form below. We are on a mission to unlock the hidden potential of your site and deliver you a successful transformational change. You prefer a custom, one-size-does-not-fit-all approach and you are passionate about good design. You are interested in massively effective projects that are delivered on time and need minimal revisions.

You need an expert, strategic, multidisciplinary chartered architecture firm, and not just the cheapest provider. Got a question for us? Your name. Your email. Your phone number. Your project address. Is this realistic for you? Yes No. What would you like us to accomplish for you? They then guide their site through the planning process. Once planning permission is granted they either develop the site themselves or sell it on the market. When it comes to navigating land types, there are three main terms to be aware of to navigate the Green Belt and find high-margin sites:.

Why would I want to develop on the Green Belt? To give you an idea how cheap, let's take an example. Of all the Green Belt land in England, the two largest areas account for almost two-thirds of the total area between them.

Both of these areas are growing rapidly and severely stressed for housing. Local planning authorities are extremely cautious about their Green Belt areas and if there is brownfield or greenfield land available that could potentially fulfil the development requirements, they will not grant permission to build on the Green Belt. Want to learn more about how your areas of interest are faring for housing targets? Check out the heatmap. Although the market is smaller, sustainable homes that push the envelope in terms of design fetch premium prices.

As more environmentally-conscious millennials enter the home buying stage of life, there is reason to believe that the demand for eco-homes will only increase. Credit: Keith Hunter, Homebuilding. The process of promoting the land takes a long time and is expensive. Land promoters take a five-ten year view when they take on a site for promotion. But there has been a sharp rise in such applications in the past years and several councils are now reviewing their Green Belt allocation as a whole.

Promoting Green Belt land takes expertise in planning and needs a long-term vision. However, there are thousands of greenfield and brownfield development opportunities that could be much simpler to unlock than the Green Belt is.

If you are looking for a traditional development opportunity with a shorter time frame, consider greenfield land. The rewards might not be as high, but they can still be substantial. Of course, that means that securing land and waiting for the local planning policies to move in your favour.

And this type of deal — called Strategic Land deal — can be an excellent play for savvy developers.