24 March 2015
The Government is calling on councils in England to recognise the demands of people who wish to build their own homes.
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Writing to all Council Leaders and Chief Executives of English local authorities, the Housing Minister Brandon Lewis suggests that, under the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), local planning authorities should identify and plan for local demand for custom and self build housing. If councils are not producing custom/self build friendly policies then their local plans could be challenged.
In his letter, Mr Lewis claims that steps are being taken to tackle barriers to custom and self build housing, as part of an overall aim to deliver more housing. He also suggests that “we all need to do more to address the lack of suitable plots of land being made available, and we believe that local planning authorities have a vital role to play.”
Michael Holmes, Chair of the National Custom & Self Build Association (NaCSBA), indicated – in an email to its members – that the letter “could be used by individuals, planning consultants, self build companies and custom build enablers to help them get plots of land for projects”.
