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Brownfield Land Register

Local planning authorities in England are required to prepare, maintain and publish registers of previously developed (also known as 'brownfield') land.

The purpose of the Brownfield Land Register is to provide up-to-date and consistent publicly available information on sites that local authorities consider to be appropriate for residential development. Local planning authorities are required to review their registers at least once a year.

Definition of Brownfield Land

‘Brownfield' (previously developed land) land is defined in Annex 2 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) as:

"Land which is or was occupied by a permanent structure, including the curtilage of the developed land (although it should not be assumed that the whole of the curtilage should be developed) and any associated fixed surface infrastructure. This excludes land that is or has been occupied by agricultural or forestry buildings; land that has been developed for minerals extraction or waste disposal by landfill purposes where provision for restoration has been made through development control procedures; land in built-up areas such as private residential gardens, parks, recreation grounds and allotments; and land that was previously developed, but where the remains of the permanent structure have blended into the landscape in the process of time."

Criteria for the Brownfield Land Register

The Brownfield Land Register includes brownfield land that accords with the above NPPF definition and the following criteria:

  • 0.25ha. / 5 dwellings or more,
  • suitable in planning terms (in accordance with the National Planning Policy Framework and policies in the Development Plan),
  • available (the landowner / promoter has expressed an intention to sell or develop the land and there are no known impediments to it being delivered),
  • achievable (development is likely to start within 15 years).

View the register

The register is compiled in two parts:

  • Part 1 is a comprehensive list of identified brownfield sites.
  • Part 2 is a list of sites the Council considers appropriate to give ‘Permission in Principle’.

Brownfield sites that meet the relevant criteria must be entered in Part 1 of brownfield land registers. Sites entered in Part 2 of the brownfield land registers are granted permission in principle.

Brownfield Sites within North Hertfordshire District - polygon areas with codes.

You can download the Part 1 Brownfield Registers below.

Call for sites

We are looking for previously developed sites which have the potential to be redeveloped to homes in North Hertfordshire.

If you are a landowner or a prospective developer and you know of any sites that you think could be redeveloped for residential use, we would like to hear from you.

Please note that all submissions must meet the criteria set out above.

Please complete a new site submission form for each site you wish to submit for consideration.

The call for sites will take place between 1 November 2023 to 6 December 2023.

If you have any queries please contact the Planning Policy Team on 01462 474000 or you can email the team at planning.policy@north-herts.gov.uk