1. The use of Greenfield and
Brownfield sites for
additional housing

2. Learning Objectives
• Understand why there is pressure to build
new homes in England
• Be able to describe the issues faced by
planners when deciding where to build new
houses
• Know the advantages and disadvantages of
building new homes on brownfield and
greenfield sites

3. The Background
• The government project that by 2012 there will be an
extra 3.4 million people living in the UK
• The number of households is expected to rise by 3.8
million
• Most new households want a housing unit of their own
which creates pressure on land
Causes
• Ageing population – 77% of growth in demand for
households is because of growth in adult population
• Changing lifestyles – more divorcees and later
marriages (71% of the new households will be single
person)

4. Solutions
• Increase the number of people living in homes
that already exist. There are 800000 empty
homes in England.
• Building new homes on brownfield sites in towns
and cities
• Building new homes near to work and leisure
activities
• Allowing building in rural areas and small towns
on land that has not been ‘previously developed’

5. Issues surrounding use of brownfield
sites
• Pressure on sites in urban areas – who will be allowed
to use them? Pressure from residential, retail, leisure
and industrial users. The local council must decide
who the land will be used by; what use will be of most
benefit to the local community?
• Private sector involvement is important – public sector
doesn’t have funding to pay for development of
brownfield sites
• New housing often gentrifies areas – incomers may be
in a higher socio-economic group so the area will
improve. Crime rates and other social problems will
decline.

6. • Local councils don’t want city centres to decay –
new resident will provide a larger threshold
population for businesses.
• The need for new housing is acute, especially in
the southeast. Using brownfield sites would help
revitalise areas in decline and slow down urban
expansion.
• Movement of people into central areas reduced
congestion. It is easier for councils to provide
public transport in inner cities where distances
are short and population density is high.
Issues surrounding use of brownfield
sites

7. • House prices can increase rapidly – this is a
negative issue for local people who are often
unable to afford the higher prices. This will
therefore affect local councils who need to
provide accommodation for poorer groups in
society.
• Issue of building on contaminated land and
the cost of making the land safe.
Issues surrounding use of brownfield
sites

8. Brownfield sites Greenfield sites
Derelict sites in urban areas New sites, usually on agricultural land
in greenbelts around urban areas
The land is available but can be costly
to reclaim if it has been polluted by
industrial use; this information may
not be readily available
Land is not available unless planning
permission has been obtained; there
is usually a public enquiry and a delay
of several years, adding to the costs
Housing is likely to be built at a high
density to reflect the high cost of land
Housing will be relatively low density
– there is high demand for such
housing
Infrastructure is already present,
though existing facilities could
becomes overloaded
Infrastructure costs are high as new
sewerage, water, gas and electricity
supplies have to be considered; new
schools and health facilities may be
needed too
Sites tend to be small patches of land Sites tend to be larger
The environment is generally
improved, especially visually
The environment is changed from
rural to urban use