Councils provide update on planning targets for housebuilding in Greater Cambridge

New housing targets and Government planning guidance could impact planning decisions for housebuilding.

Local councils with planning responsibilities are required by the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) to have a sufficient supply of sites – with planning permission and likely to be built within five years – to achieve their local planning targets for housebuilding.

In December 2024 the Government published new planning policy along with new planning targets for housebuilding for every Council. The new housebuilding targets came into effect immediately.

The joint housing target for Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire was increased by around a third, from 1,726 to 2,309 homes per year. A buffer has also been introduced which, combined with the increase, means the Greater Cambridge Shared Planning (GCSP) service needs to be able to demonstrate a supply of just over 12,100 homes in Greater Cambridge over five years.

GCSP reported in April 2024 that the housing trajectory for the five-year period from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2029 was 11,190 homes, equating to a demonstrated supply of 6.5 years prior to the changes in December 2024. However, with the new target set by Government increasing to 12,100, effective immediately, the supply has fallen to just under 5 years.

National planning rules mean this housing land supply position of under 5 years becomes a factor when making decisions on planning applications, with the balance “tilted” to favour giving planning permission where the development is of high quality and in sustainable locations.

Cambridge City Council’s Executive Councillor for Planning, Building Control and Infrastructure, Cllr Katie Thornburrow, said: “We welcome the government’s ambition to increase the rate of building new homes as we are acutely aware of the housing affordability crisis which greatly affects Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire in particular. We have some of the highest housing costs in the country and delivering new homes is one of the key ways to improve the situation.

“Changing the target for new homes with immediate effect creates some challenges for us but we are confident we can meet them. As part of preparing our next housing trajectory report to be published in April 2025, planning officers will explore options to remove barriers and speed up the delivery of the 36,000 new homes that already have planning permission in Greater Cambridge, as well as identifying suitable future developments – such as the Council’s own housebuilding programme – in order to meet the new target.

“We are confident that we will be able to demonstrate a 5-year land supply so that we remove or reduce the significance of the ‘tilted balance’ applying to planning applications for new homes and ensure our Local Plan policies are not affected.”

South Cambridgeshire District Council’s Lead Cabinet Member for Planning, Cllr Dr. Tumi Hawkins, said: “The new Government guidance has been implemented too fast. That is frustrating for us and our communities as we called for a transition period. The immediate change means that there are many other councils across the country now in in this position too. The gap we need to fill is relatively small bearing in mind the significant number of planning permissions already granted by the two Councils for new homes in Greater Cambridge.

“We’re already acutely aware of the need to help bring forward more high-quality housing for our children and grandchildren as shown in our emerging joint Local Plan. This is very important in light of the Government’s focus on the Greater Cambridge economy as the engine to national growth, a situation that would otherwise see housing affordability continue to reduce. We are working with strategic partners to overcome the significant infrastructure challenges the area currently faces to enable the delivery of the housing already granted planning permission under the current adopted policies.”