East Hampshire faces planning and housing target challenges

Damian Hinds MP has raised concerns regarding the Government’s latest National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and its impact on rural communities, specifically within East Hampshire. While the framework includes adjustments to minimum housing densities near well-connected railway stations—reducing them from 40 to 35 homes per hectare, and from 50 to 45 for the busiest stations—critics argue these levels still exceed what is appropriate for rural character.

Furthermore, Hinds highlighted a significant challenge regarding housing targets. Despite requests to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to reconsider the ‘standard method’ for calculating these targets, the method remains in place. For East Hampshire, this has resulted in the local housing target effectively doubling, creating a substantial burden for the District Council to identify suitable sites for the required number of new homes.