46th Report - Improving local areas through developer funding

The government agrees and acknowledges the scale of the unsold Section 106 homes problem and the limited uptake of the Homes England Clearing Service. It is "progressing work at pace on a holistic policy package, to be confirmed shortly," to address both existing and recurring issues, aiming for a clearer understanding of underlying problems within the next few months.

The government agreed to explore proportionate and efficient ways of collecting and analysing data from infrastructure funding statements, alongside other relevant sources of evidence, to improve understanding of how the developer contributions system is working by Autumn 2026.

The government agrees to explore proportionate and efficient ways of collecting and analysing data from IFSs, alongside other relevant sources of evidence, with a target implementation date of Autumn 2026. They have reminded LPAs of their statutory duty and will continue to support LPA capacity and capability through the PAS.

The government agrees to provide further details of how it will use its statutory powers to ensure LPAs produce up-to-date local plans. It is providing a minimum of £14 million funding to help LPAs get plans in place and has asked all local authorities producing plans in the current plan-making system to review and update their plan- making timetables and send a copy of their timetable to the department by the end of 2025.

The government agrees to examine the local plan making system to make it simpler and shorter, drawing up a revised local plan. They published the government response to the July 2023 consultation on the implementation of reforms to the plan-making system in February 2025, and more detailed information in November 2025.

The government agrees to work more proactively with the Planning Advisory Service to identify LPAs where CIL ought to be viable and encourage wider take-up of the CIL where this is appropriate, with a target implementation date of Autumn 2026. They will continue ongoing work with PAS to consider ways in which it can support local authorities make best use of the tools available to them, including CIL, and to support the implementation of the government’s planning reforms.

The government agreed to strengthen planning capacity and capability across local authorities through the Planning Capacity and Capability (C&C) Programme. This includes expanding the pipeline of new planners, retaining and developing experienced planners, and supporting planning reform. An additional £28.8 million is dedicated to the C&C Programme.

The government agrees to provide the Committee with details on how the Capacity and Capability Programme will improve the pipeline of new planners and help LPAs retain experienced planners, with a target implementation date of March 2026. They will strengthen planning capacity through the Planning Capacity and Capability (C&C) Programme, including £48 million of additional investment, enabling them to fund 350 additional planners.

The government agreed to consult on a revised National Planning Policy Framework and publish updates to viability planning practice guidance by Summer 2026. The existing PPG already states that the role for viability assessment is primarily at the plan making stage.

The government agrees to ensure that its revised guidance on viability balances the need for site-by-site flexibility in negotiations with the need to dissuade developers from gaming the system, with a target implementation date of Summer 2026. They will be consulting on a revised National Planning Policy Framework before the end of this year and intends to publish updates to viability planning practice guidance (PPG) alongside the consultation.

The government agrees to set out how it will diagnose the extent of the Section 106 affordable housing problem more confidently, and how it will ensure the Section 106 Affordable Housing Clearing Service is working much more effectively, with a target implementation date of Spring 2026. They are progressing work at pace on a holistic policy package, to be confirmed shortly, that will deal with the legacy problem of existing uncontracted S106 units and also, prevent the problem recurring.

The government agrees to provide further details of how it will sponsor more effective communication between government departments, local planning authorities, and the devolved nations, and states that this recommendation is implemented. They will look to build upon and extend existing channels of engagement and will continue to sponsor PAS to provide expert support to LPAs.

The government agreed to build upon and extend existing channels of engagement with LPAs, while noting developer contributions remain a locally-led process. It will also continue to sponsor PAS to provide expert support to LPAs on a range of planning matters.

The government agrees to provide further details of how it will sponsor more effective communication between government departments, local planning authorities, and the devolved nations, and states that this recommendation is implemented. They will look to build upon and extend existing channels of engagement and will continue to sponsor PAS to provide expert support to LPAs.

The government agrees and states it has implemented reforms to the plan-making system, including new legislation for a simpler 30-month timeline for plan preparation and a standardised structure. It also committed £48 million additional investment to strengthen planning capacity, funding 350 new planners.

The government agrees and details its Planning Capacity and Capability Programme, which aims to expand the planner pipeline through schemes like Pathways to Planning and a new Planning Careers Hub, and retain experienced planners with £2.8 million for PAS training. An additional £48 million investment was announced, with £28.8 million dedicated to funding 350 more planners, bringing the total to around 1,325 by the end of this Parliament.

The government agrees and intends to publish updates to its viability planning practice guidance (PPG) alongside a consultation before the end of the year, seeking further views on proposed changes. It also reiterates the existing PPG clarifies viability assessment's primary role at the plan-making stage.

The government agrees and states it will build upon and extend existing channels of engagement, such as the Planning Advisory Service (PAS) support and resources for LPAs, and regular meetings between the Chief Planner and devolved administrations. However, it does not detail new specific initiatives to sponsor more effective communication beyond these existing mechanisms.

The government agrees to ensure that LPAs produce an up-to-date local plan and continues to work with local authorities and other stakeholders to identify and resolve blockers to getting up-to-date local plans in place, providing tailored support to target specific issues. A minimum of £14 million funding has been announced for this financial year to help local planning authorities get ambitious plans in place as soon as possible.

The government will strengthen planning capacity and capability across local authorities through the Planning Capacity and Capability (C&C) Programme, including expanding the pipeline of new planners, retaining and developing experienced planners, and supporting planning reform, with additional investment to fund 350 additional planners.

The government agrees with the committee’s recommendation to improve the pipeline of new planners and help LPAs to retain experienced planners through the Planning Capacity and Capability Programme. £48 million of additional investment will strengthen planning capacity across the public sector, enabling the funding of 350 additional planners, on top of the original commitment to recruit 300, bringing the total to around 1,325 planners by the end of this Parliament.

The government will consult on a revised National Planning Policy Framework and publish updates to viability planning practice guidance (PPG) alongside the consultation to seek views on further changes to support revised policy.

The government launched the Homes England Clearing Service to connect buyers and sellers of S106 homes and gather data on delivery challenges and is progressing work at pace on a holistic policy package to deal with the legacy problem of existing uncontracted S106 units and prevent the problem recurring.

The government agrees to diagnose the extent of the Section 106 affordable housing problem more confidently, and ensure the Section 106 Affordable Housing Clearing Service is working much more effectively. They are progressing work at pace on a holistic policy package, to be confirmed shortly, that will deal with the legacy problem of existing uncontracted S106 units and also, prevent the problem recurring.

The government agrees to diagnose the extent of the Section 106 affordable housing problem more confidently, and ensure the Section 106 Affordable Housing Clearing Service is working much more effectively. They are progressing work at pace on a holistic policy package, to be confirmed shortly, that will deal with the legacy problem of existing uncontracted S106 units and also, prevent the problem recurring.