Managing Director, Alastair Crowdy, reflects on the Mayor of London’s Green Belt announcement:

“Five months after the Government released its updated National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), the Mayor of London has signalled a shift in approach – with his recent announcement that City Hall will actively explore the release of parts of London’s Green Belt for housing. It’s a notable alignment with national policy, where previously there had been firm resistance to Green Belt release at this scale.

This comes despite there being around 300,000 consented homes in London – as the Mayor himself highlighted last summer – that remain unbuilt. The reason is clear: many of these schemes are no longer viable. Rising build costs, second stair core requirements, higher interest rates, and a rigid adherence to the 35% Affordable Housing target – increasingly weighted towards social rent – have all contributed to this. Where schemes are coming forward into build, delays are compounded by the Building Safety Regulator.

The result is visible: stalled schemes, fewer cranes in the sky, and persistently low delivery of Affordable Housing across the capital. In 23 Boroughs not a single housing unit was delivered in the first Quarter of 2025. Something had to give. A pragmatic solution may be for the GLA to signal greater flexibility on Affordable Housing requirements, or payments in lieu to unlock these already consented developments. That may make progress on delivery but would do little to meet the desperate need for affordable housing.

Turning attention to the Green Belt makes some sense. The economics are different. Land values are lower, and the revised NPPF builds in the expectation of upto 50% Affordable Housing for these sites by default. The market is already starting to pivot to these locations. If Registered Providers can mobilise, this could drive a new wave of Affordable Housing delivery.

Hopefully this doesn’t signal a retreat from urban delivery  But  rather if the Mayor can support increased development on Green Belt land and apply greater flexibility to inner-city schemes, we may finally see the logjam begin to clear.

The question, of course, is whether the Affordable Housing ends up in the right places. But one thing is certain: unless momentum is created soon, the unacceptable reality of near-zero Affordable Housing delivery in London will continue.