Metropolitan Green Belt
The Metropolitan Green Belt is a statutory green belt around London, England. It comprises parts of Greater London, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey, parts of two of the three districts of Bedfordshire and a small area in Copthorne, Sussex.[n 1][1][2] As of 2017/18,[update] Government statistics show the planning designation covered 513,860 hectares (1,269,800 acres) of land.[3]
History
For some years after 1580
The concept was also inspired by those elsewhere in Europe, one being inner
The first major proposals for a green belt were put forward from 1890 onward, but the first to garner widespread support was put forward by the
The first policy groundwork to the Metropolitan Green Belt was in Herbert Morrison's 1934 leadership of the London County Council. It was first formally proposed by the Greater London Regional Planning Committee in 1935, "to provide a reserve supply of public open spaces and of recreational areas and to establish a green belt or girdle of open space". The ongoing policy decisions made were approved and entrenched in an advisory Greater London Plan prepared by Patrick Abercrombie in 1944 (which sought a belt of up to six miles, 9.7 km wide). After passage of the Green Belt Act 1938, it took 14 years for the elected local authorities responsible for the area around London to define the area on scaled maps with some precision. Following the establishment of the belt around London, feedback being received, and statements and debates in the House of Commons, other authorities nationwide were similarly encouraged in 1955 by Minister Duncan Sandys to designate a belt of all undeveloped land. As to London it was idealised to extend to land not earmarked for building "7 to 10 miles deep all around the built-up area of Greater London".[6]
New provisions for compensation in the
.In the 1938–1950s period, earmarking of the Green Belt intra-London infill areas continued to be earmarked for housing and those to "round off" the shape of London as official policy. A direct consequence was that when London was redrawn (namely from the 1889 County of London to Greater London) its area in 1965 was made five times greater.[8] This selective and encouraged urbanisation, coupled with the New Towns, ensured authorities did not need to expect a shortage of housing and were centrally lobbied (and in some cases also locally lobbied) to designate land as Green Belt in order to offset congestion and pollution consequent upon their policies of growth.
As the outward growth of London was seen to be firmly repressed, residents owning properties further from the built-up area also campaigned for this policy of urban restraint, partly to safeguard their own investments but often invoking the paradigm English thinking running from John Ruskin to at least John Betjeman, a scenic/rustic argument which lays the blame for most social ills upon urban influences and which leads few retired people to live in London. In mid-1971, mindful of the new towns in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire, the government decided to extend the Metropolitan Green Belt northwards to include almost all of Hertfordshire. The Metropolitan Green Belt now covers parts of 68 different Districts or Boroughs.
Extension and reduction
London's green belt was extended after 1955, in places to a distance of 35 miles out. The belt is subject to minor annual variations, and covers an area approximately three times the size of London.
Extension has taken place to take in large parts of the
All Local Authorities have the option of limited green belt land release in their Local Plans, according to legally necessary "exceptional circumstances" envisioned by the 1955 Act.[9][10][11][12][13]
Debate and controversy
The London Society heightened debate about the city's green belt, in 2014 in its report entitled "Green Sprawl".[14][15][16][17][18] Other organisations, including the Planning Officers Society,[19] echoed with specific calls for a UK Governmental review and proposals to balance land release for with concepts to compensate habitat loss and mitigate pollution, restitutionally (as if never converted).[20][21][22]
The Adam Smith Institute wrote a paper under its core ethos of economic liberalism challenging the goals of nature and environmental protection groups who advocate greater urban density. The paper highlighted the Metropolitan Green Belt had land to build a million typical closer London fringe (low-to-medium) density homes within ten minutes walk (800m) of existing train stations, specifically circa 20,000 hectares (77 sq mi). It critiqued 10,000 hectares (39 sq mi) of golf course land.[23][24]
The Royal Town Planning Institute commissioned the Building In The Green Belt?[25] report to look into the commuting patterns in London's metropolitan green belt, to test the claims made in the Adam Smith report. Their study found only 7.4% of commuters, who lived near a railway station actually travelled to London by train on a regular basis with the vast majority (72%) travelling by private vehicle to jobs in their hometown and to other places not within London. Thus the proposal put forward in the Adam Smith report could result in 3.96 to 7.45 million additional car journeys per week on already congested roads around London. CPRE say it is a myth to connect green belts to rising house prices, since there is no clear difference in house prices between cities with green belts and cities without them, and both land and house prices are inflated by other factors such as investment.
A survey in 2016, by
Designated area
The table lists the areas designated as the Metropolitan Green Belt in 2014. Between 2009 and 2014 there was a reduction of 435 hectares (1,070 acres; 1.68 sq mi). By 2014 the only Inner London Borough to have had Green Belt, Greenwich, had lost its few acres of green belt designation.[27]
Every borough or equivalent district of the reduced counties of Surrey and Hertfordshire has Green Belt as does Bedfordshire, a county which has never contributed to present definition of London and has just 3 local government units. Four of five districts in Buckinghamshire, 4 of 6 in Berkshire, 9 of 14 in Essex, 7 of 13 in Kent, 18 of the 32 London boroughs, and 1 of the 13 Sussex districts/boroughs/unitary authorities has Green Belt.
District (planning authority) | Region of England | Ceremonial county | Area | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Hectares | Acres | Sq miles | |||
Aylesbury Vale | South East | Buckinghamshire | 4,800 | 11,900 | 18.5 |
Barking and Dagenham | London | Greater London | 530 | 1,310 | 2.05 |
Barnet | London | Greater London | 2,380 | 5,880 | 9.19 |
Basildon | East | Essex | 6,950 | 17,200 | 26.8 |
Bexley | London | Greater London | 1,120 | 2,770 | 4.32 |
Bracknell Forest | South East | Berkshire | 3,840 | 9,490 | 14.8 |
Brentwood | East | Essex | 13,700 | 33,900 | 52.9 |
Bromley | London | Greater London | 7,730 | 19,100 | 29.8 |
Broxbourne | East | Hertfordshire | 3,310 | 8,180 | 12.8 |
Castle Point | East | Essex | 2,750 | 6,800 | 10.6 |
Central Bedfordshire | East | Bedfordshire | 28,220 | 69,730 | 109.0 |
Chelmsford | East | Essex | 12,850 | 31,800 | 49.6 |
Chiltern | South East | Buckinghamshire | 17,380 | 42,900 | 67.1 |
Croydon | London | Greater London | 2,310 | 5,710 | 8.92 |
Dacorum | East | Hertfordshire | 10,690 | 26,400 | 41.3 |
Dartford | South East | Kent | 4,110 | 10,200 | 15.9 |
Ealing | London | Greater London | 310 | 766 | 1.20 |
East Hertfordshire | East | Hertfordshire | 17,530 | 43,300 | 67.7 |
Elmbridge | South East | Surrey | 5,620 | 13,900 | 21.7 |
Enfield | London | Greater London | 3,060 | 7,560 | 11.8 |
Epping Forest | East | Essex | 31,680 | 78,280 | 122.3 |
Epsom and Ewell | South East | Surrey | 1,560 | 3,850 | 6.02 |
Gravesham | South East | Kent | 7,670 | 19,000 | 29.6 |
Guildford | South East | Surrey | 24,040 | 59,400 | 92.8 |
Haringey | London | Greater London | 60 | 150 | 0.23 |
Harlow | East | Essex | 640 | 1,580 | 2.47 |
Harrow | London | Greater London | 1,090 | 2,690 | 4.21 |
Havering | London | Greater London | 6,010 | 14,900 | 23.2 |
Hertsmere | East | Hertfordshire | 8,040 | 19,900 | 31.0 |
Hillingdon | London | Greater London | 4,970 | 12,300 | 19.2 |
Hounslow | London | Greater London | 1,230 | 3,040 | 4.75 |
Kingston upon Thames | London | Greater London | 640 | 1,580 | 2.47 |
Luton | East | Bedfordshire | 140 | 350 | 0.54 |
Maidstone | South East | Kent | 530 | 1,310 | 2.05 |
Medway | South East | Kent | 1,340 | 3,310 | 5.17 |
Mid Sussex | South East | West Sussex | 20 | 50 | 0.08 |
Mole Valley | South East | Surrey | 19,640 | 48,500 | 75.8 |
Newham | London | Greater London | 80 | 200 | 0.31 |
North Hertfordshire | East | Hertfordshire | 14,250 | 35,200 | 55.0 |
Redbridge | London | Greater London | 2,070 | 5,120 | 7.99 |
Reigate and Banstead | South East | Surrey | 8,890 | 22,000 | 34.3 |
Richmond upon Thames | London | Greater London | 140 | 350 | 0.54 |
Rochford | East | Essex | 12,570 | 31,100 | 48.5 |
Runnymede | South East | Surrey | 6,140 | 15,200 | 23.7 |
Sevenoaks | South East | Kent | 34,400 | 85,000 | 132.8 |
Slough | South East | Berkshire | 860 | 2,130 | 3.32 |
South Bucks | South East | Buckinghamshire | 12,350 | 30,500 | 47.7 |
Southend-on-Sea | East | Essex | 610 | 1,510 | 2.36 |
Spelthorne | South East | Surrey | 3,320 | 8,200 | 12.8 |
St Albans | East | Hertfordshire | 13,140 | 32,500 | 50.7 |
Stevenage | East | Hertfordshire | 260 | 642 | 1.00 |
Surrey Heath | South East | Surrey | 4,190 | 10,400 | 16.2 |
Sutton | London | Greater London | 620 | 1,530 | 2.39 |
Tandridge | South East | Surrey | 23,300 | 57,600 | 90.0 |
Three Rivers | East | Hertfordshire | 6,840 | 16,900 | 26.4 |
Thurrock | East | Essex | 11,920 | 29,500 | 46.0 |
Tonbridge and Malling | South East | Kent | 17,060 | 42,200 | 65.9 |
Tunbridge Wells | South East | Kent | 7,130 | 17,600 | 27.5 |
Uttlesford | East | Essex | 3,810 | 9,410 | 14.7 |
Waltham Forest | London | Greater London | 840 | 2,080 | 3.24 |
Watford | East | Hertfordshire | 410 | 1,010 | 1.58 |
Waverley | South East | Surrey | 21,080 | 52,100 | 81.4 |
Welwyn Hatfield | East | Hertfordshire | 10,250 | 25,300 | 39.6 |
Windsor and Maidenhead | South East | Berkshire | 16,480 | 40,700 | 63.6 |
Woking | South East | Surrey | 4,030 | 9,960 | 15.6 |
Wokingham | South East | Berkshire | 2,900 | 7,170 | 11.2 |
Wycombe | South East | Buckinghamshire | 15,630 | 38,600 | 60.3 |
TOTAL | 514,060 | 1,270,300 | 1,984.8 |
Notes and references
Notes
- ^ The adjoining counties fall in the South East and East of England regions which are not units of local government and have certain strategic central governmental uses.
References
- ^ "Area of Designated Green Belt Land". London Datastore. Greater London Authority. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
- ^ "Mid Sussex Local Plan, May 2004"
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
- ISBN 0-7509-3843-9.
- ^ Paris et le désert français, 1947
- ^ Annex to Circular 42/55 — the Statement to the House of Commons by Rt. Hon. Duncan Sandys, Minister for Planning on 26 April 1955
- ^ "Past, The last 80 years". Beyond the Green Belt. The Building Centre. 16 March 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
- ^ See the size of the County of London, 74,903 acres (303.12 square km); compare Greater London
- ^ National Planning Policy Framework 2018, paragraph 136
- ^ R (Hunston Properties Ltd) v SSCLG and St Albans City and District Council [2013] EWCA Civ 1610 (12 December 2013):
- ^ Gallagher Homes v Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council [2014] EWHC 1283. (Admin) (30 April 2014)
- ^ R(IM Properties) v Lichfield DC and others [2014] EWHC 2440 (Admin) (18 July 2014)
- ^ Plan Making Case Law Update published by and for the Local Government Association No. 5 Chambers Planning Advisory Service, Paper 4: Green Belt, November 2014
- ^ Manns, J., "Green Sprawl: Our Current affection for a Preservation Myth?", London Society, London, 2014
- ^ Prynn, Jonathan (9 December 2014). "'London's green belt isn't sacrosanct … we need to build homes on it'". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
- ^ "Peter Murray: Is London's Green Belt overprotected?". onoffice magazine. 4 February 2015. Archived from the original on 22 February 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
- ^ Cheshire, Paul (22 May 2015). "Are they Green *Belts* by Accident?". CEP Urban and Spatial Programme Blog. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
- ^ Lambert, Mike (4 February 2015). "Why we need reform of the green belt in London and the South East". Homes For Britain. Archived from the original on 3 December 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
- ^ "Planning for a Better Future: Our planning manifesto for the next government" (PDF). Planning Officers Society. March 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
- ^ "The Green Belt: A Place for Londoners?", London First, London, 2015
- ^ "Delivering Change: Building Homes Where we Need Them", Centre for Cities, London, 2015
- ^ "AECOM" (PDF). Aecom.com. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
- ^ "Press Release: New paper reveals where London's Green Belt must be built on to curtail housing crisis". Adamsmith.org. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
- ^ Tom Papworth. "a garden of one's own : Suggestions for development in the metropolitan Green Belt" (PDF). Static1.squarespace.com. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
- ^ Building in the green belt: A report into commuting patterns in the Metropolitan green belt (PDF), 15 August 2015
- ^ a b "Londoners back limit on skyscrapers as fears for capital's skyline grow". the Guardian. 27 August 2016. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
- ^ "Area of designated Green Belt land 1 by local planning authority as at 31 March 2014" (XLSX). Gov.uk. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
- Outskirts, by John Grindrod
External links
- London Green Belt Council - Interactive Map Archived 12 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine