Local authority green belt: England 2022-23 - statistical release
Published 12 October 2023
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2023
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1. Main points
- The extent of land designated as Green Belt in England as at 31 March 2023 was estimated at 1,638,420 hectares, around 12.6% of the land area of England.
- Overall there was an increase of 860 hectares (0.1%) in the area of land designated as Green Belt between 31 March 2022 and 31 March 2023.
- In 2022-23, 10 local authorities adopted new plans involving changes to their Green Belt, with the result being a net increase of 870 hectares in the overall area of land designated as Green Belt compared to 31 March 2022.
- In addition, updates to the local authority district (mean high water mark) boundaries resulted in a net decrease of 10 hectares in the area of land designated as Green Belt.
2. Context
England has a land area of just under 13,046,230 hectares[footnote 1] of which 9% is of developed use[footnote 2] with around 11% being classified as ‘built-up’[footnote 3]. When including land designated as Green Belt, just over 37% of the area of England (4.9 million hectares) is protected against development by one or more protected area. ‘Protected areas’ for these purposes include land designated as Green Belt, and the protected areas and land designations identified by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee.
The National Planning Policy Framework states the Government attaches great importance to Green Belts. The fundamental aim of Green Belt policy is to prevent urban sprawl by keeping land permanently open; the essential characteristics of Green Belts are their openness and their permanence.
Green Belt serves five purposes:
- to check the unrestricted sprawl of large built-up areas;
- to prevent neighbouring towns merging into one another;
- to assist in safeguarding the countryside from encroachment;
- to preserve the setting and special character of historic towns; and
- to assist in urban regeneration, by encouraging the recycling of derelict and other urban land.
Once Green Belts have been defined, local planning authorities should plan positively to enhance their beneficial use, such as looking for opportunities to provide access; to provide opportunities for outdoor sport and recreation; to retain and enhance landscapes, visual amenity and biodiversity; or to improve damaged and derelict land.
Once established, Green Belt boundaries should only be altered where exceptional circumstances are fully evidenced and justified, through the preparation or updating of plans. Strategic policies should establish the need for any changes to Green Belt boundaries, having regard to their intended permanence in the long term, so they can endure beyond the plan period. Where a need for changes to Green Belt boundaries has been established through strategic policies, detailed amendments to those boundaries may be made through non-strategic policies, including neighbourhood plans.
Inappropriate development is, by definition, harmful to the Green Belt and should not be approved except in very special circumstances.
When considering any planning application, local planning authorities should ensure that substantial weight is given to any harm to the Green Belt. ‘Very special circumstances’ will not exist unless the potential harm to the Green Belt by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm resulting from the proposal, is clearly outweighed by other considerations.
2.1 Related publications
It is useful to consider this statistical release alongside other statistical releases published by the department. The Land Use statistical release provides a breakdown of land uses within the Green Belt at local authority level.
The Land Use Change statistics provide information on the proportion of new residential addresses created within the Green Belt and the previous use of the land on which the new residential addresses were created, also at local authority level. Land use change in terms of hectarage is also available within the Green Belt.
3. Extent of the Green Belt as at 31 March 2023
The extent of land designated as Green Belt in England as at 31 March 2023 is shown in Map 1, below. It was estimated at 1,638,420 hectares, around 12.6% of the land area of England. A regional breakdown of the number of hectares designated as Green Belt and the proportion of the total regional land area designated as Green Belt is shown below in Table 1. The table shows the South East has the largest area of land designated as Green Belt with 305,280 hectares, followed by the West Midlands with 264,510 and with 261,600 hectares. Out of the nine regions, London has the smallest area of land designated as Green Belt with 34,770 hectares but has the highest proportion of its total land area designated as Green Belt with 22.1%. The region with the smallest percentage of its land designated as Green Belt is the South West with 107,970 hectares, accounting for only 4.5% of its total land area.
Table 1: Regional breakdown of Green Belt land
| Region | Green Belt area (hectares) | Percentage of total land area |
|---|---|---|
| England | 1,638,420 | 12.6 |
| East Midlands | 77,410 | 4.9 |
| East of England | 233,990 | 12.2 |
| London | 34,770 | 22.1 |
| North East | 98,550 | 11.5 |
| North West | 254,350 | 18.0 |
| South East | 305,280 | 16.0 |
| South West | 107,970 | 4.5 |
| West Midlands | 264,510 | 20.3 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 261,600 | 17.0 |
Note: hectarage figures are rounded to the nearest ten hectares.
Map 1: Extent of Green Belt as at 31 March 2023
3.1 Urban core areas
Land designated as Green Belt is distributed around sixteen urban cores. These are mapped using the teal areas in Map 1 and are listed in Table 4 which also shows the area of land associated with each urban core. The Metropolitan Green Belt (London) is the largest area of Green Belt surrounding an urban core and accounts for 31.0% of England’s total Green Belt area.
The ‘Area by LA’ table in the Accompanying tables shows estimates of the area of land designated as Green Belt within each of the 180 local authorities (out of 309 local authorities) that had some land designated as Green Belt as at 31 March 2023. The ‘Change in area by LA’ table in the Accompanying tables compares estimates as at 31 March 2023 with the revised estimates as at 31 March 2022 by local authority.
3.2 Changes in methodology
A methodological change was introduced as part of the 2019-20 statistical release providing general improvements to mapping accuracy, boundary definitions and area calculations. The area of land designated as Green Belt for each local authority was previously calculated by local authorities but is now calculated by DLUHC using the digital Green Belt boundary files provided by the local authorities. The local authority Green Belt boundaries are mapped against ONS local authority district (mean high water mark) boundaries[footnote 4] for the corresponding period. This results in greater accuracy in the delimiting of land designated as Green Belt where it meets coastal or estuarine areas and ensures a consistent national approach.
DLUHC applied the changes in methodology to the Green Belt data for previous years to ensure a consistent time series. Revisions were made to the hectarage figures from 2013-14 onwards allowing users to better track the changes to the Green Belt over time.
The ‘Net Changes’ section was amended to record the year on year net change made to the area of land designated as Green Belt resulting from local authority designation policies and net changes resulting from updates made to the local authority district (Mean High Water mark) boundaries for the corresponding period.
As part of the 2022-23 statistical release revisions were made to the hectarage figures with the above methodology being applied to the hectarage figures from 1997 onwards. In addition, the area of land designated as Green Belt is now calculated using R software as opposed to QGIS software with area figures calculated in R being approximately 0.06% lower than those calculated in QGIS. The largest revision due to the software change was a decrease of 0.08% for an individual authority.
4. Net changes
Overall, there was an increase of 860 hectares (0.1%) in the area of land designated as Green Belt in England between 31 March 2022 and 31 March 2023.
In 2022-23, 10 local authorities adopted new Green Belt boundaries, resulting in a net increase of 870 hectares in the overall area of land designated as Green Belt compared to 31 March 2022. The changes are set out in Table 2. There may be discrepancies between individual figures due to rounding, with all figures rounded to the nearest ten hectares.
Table 2: Local authorities which adopted new boundaries for designated land as Green Belt 2022-23
| Local authority | Area of designated Green Belt land 31 March 2022 (hectares) | Area of designated Green Belt land 31 March 2023 (hectares) | Change from 31 March 2022 (hectares) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bath and North East Somerset | 24,730 | 24,720 | -10 (0%) |
| Blackpool | 70 | 60 | -10 (-12%) |
| Calderdale | 22,810 | 22,330 | -480 (-2%) |
| Cheshire East | 40,130 | 40,140 | 10 (0%) |
| Epping Forest | 31,670 | 30,830 | -840 (-3%) |
| North Hertfordshire | 14,240 | 17,590 | 3,350 (24%) |
| St. Helens | 8,870 | 7,970 | -900 (-10%) |
| Watford | 410 | 380 | -30 (-7%) |
| Waverley | 20,840 | 20,840 | 0 (0%) |
| Wyre Forest | 11,210 | 10,980 | -230 (-2%) |
Note: hectarage figures are rounded to the nearest ten hectares
Of the 10 local authorities reporting changes to their Green Belt, eight authorities had a net decrease and two authorities had a net increase. North Hertfordshire had the largest net change with a net increase of 3,350 hectares, increasing the size of the authority’s Green Belt by 24%.
In recent years, about ten local authorities have made changes to land designated as Green Belt each year, albeit with the figure varying between years. Local authorities making changes to their Green Belt provide explanations for the changes on their annual Green Belt (AGB) return. These explanations are reviewed and supplemented by the Department where necessary and are available within Annex A.
Updates made to the local authority district (mean high water mark) boundaries resulted in a net decrease of 10 hectares in the area of land designated as Green Belt.
Table 3 shows the net charge reported for each year from 2013-14, broken down into changes resulting from designation policies and resulting from changes to digital boundaries. The figures reflect subsequent revisions made to the figures to improve accuracy.
Table 3: National summary of net changes to land designated as Green Belt
| Year | Number of local authorities changing their Green Belt | Net change from local authority designation policies (hectares) | Net change from local authority digital boundary (hectares) | Total net change (hectares) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-14 | 3 | -550 | 0 | -550 |
| 2014-15 | 11 | -1,890 | 0 | -1,890 |
| 2015-16 | 8 | -1,070 | 40 | -1,030 |
| 2016-17 | 8 | -1,190 | 10 | -1,180 |
| 2017-18 | 10 | -6,090 | -20 | -6,110 |
| 2018-19 | 13 | -3,850 | 0 | -3,850 |
| 2019-20 | 15 | -3,220 | -350 | -3,570 |
| 2020-21 | 11 | -1,750 | 10 | -1,740 |
| 2021-22 | 14 | 24,580 | 0 | 24,580 |
| 2022-23 | 10 | 870 | -10 | 860 |
Figure 1: National summary of net changes to land designated as Green Belt
Note: hectarage figures are rounded to the nearest 10 hectares
5. Revisions to 2021-22 estimates
Revisions are made each year to the published estimates for the previous year in order to accurately calculate the net change in Green Belt area. The revised Green Belt in England as at 31 March 2022 is estimated at 1,637,560 hectares. This is a decrease of 590 hectares on the previous estimate of 1,638,150 hectares published in September 2022.
17 authorities reported revisions with the majority of the change being due to the methodology changes introduced as part of this year’s release, performing the area calculation in R. A summary of the scale of revisions over the preceding statistical releases, is available under the ‘Scale of revisions’ heading in the Technical Notes Section.
6. Longer term changes
Statistics on the area of Green Belt are available back to 1997, in the ‘Area since 1997 – England’ table of the Accompanying tables. Figures are, however, available on a consistent basis only from 2007, following the designation of 47,300 hectares of Green Belt land as part of the New Forest National Park in 2005. Those from 31 March 2019 are set out in Table 4, broken down by urban core.
Table 4: Trend in the area of land designated as Green Belt as at 31 March since 2013-14
| Urban core | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | 1,618,290 | 1,614,720 | 1,612,980 | 1,637,560 | 1,638,420 |
| Bath and Bristol | 71,650 | 71,650 | 71,650 | 71,650 | 71,640 |
| Birmingham | 227,270 | 226,870 | 226,870 | 226,840 | 226,610 |
| Blackpool | 2,520 | 2,510 | 2,510 | 2,510 | 2,500 |
| Burton-upon-Trent and Swadlincote | 720 | 720 | 720 | 720 | 720 |
| Cambridge | 26,090 | 26,090 | 26,090 | 26,090 | 26,090 |
| Carnforth, Lancaster and Morecambe | 1,740 | 1,740 | 1,540 | 1,540 | 1,540 |
| Cheltenham and Gloucester | 6,190 | 6,190 | 6,190 | 6,190 | 6,190 |
| Derby and Nottingham | 60,460 | 59,900 | 59,900 | 59,900 | 59,900 |
| London | 511,110 | 508,910 | 507,930 | 506,040 | 508,510 |
| Merseyside and Greater Manchester | 249,170 | 249,110 | 249,120 | 248,650 | 247,740 |
| Oxford | 34,890 | 34,740 | 34,460 | 34,460 | 34,460 |
| South West Hampshire | 34,760 | 34,790 | 34,650 | 35,100 | 35,100 |
| South and West Yorkshire | 247,310 | 247,220 | 247,220 | 246,980 | 246,490 |
| Stoke-on-Trent | 44,410 | 44,410 | 44,380 | 44,380 | 44,410 |
| Tyne and Wear | 72,070 | 71,920 | 71,790 | 98,560 | 98,550 |
| York | 27,950 | 27,950 | 27,950 | 27,950 | 27,950 |
Note: figures are rounded to the nearest 10 hectares
Figures (in this publication) have been revised since the original estimates were published.
7. Accompanying tables and spatial boundary files
Additional tables, on total area and changes to land designated as Green Belt (annual), are available to download alongside this release. The tables are as follows:
| Table name | Table description |
|---|---|
| Area by LA | Land designated as Green belt - area by local authority as at 31 March 2023 |
| Change in area by LA | Change in Green Belt area between 31 March 2022 and 31 March 2023 |
| Area since 1997 | Area of Green Belt land since 1997, England |
| Area by PCON | Land designated as Green belt - area by parliamentary constituency as at 31 March 2023 |
| Land designations by LA | Land designated as Green Belt and other designations including National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Sites of Special Scientific Interest - area by local authority as at 31 March 2023 |
| Area by LA 1997 to 2022-23 | Designated Green Belt land - area by local authority from 1997 to 31 March 2023 |
They are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/green-belt-statistics.
In addition, spatial data files setting out Green Belt area boundaries are available at English local authority Green Belt dataset.
8. Uses of the data
The local authority Green Belt spatial boundaries, collected as part of this release are used in the preparation of other statistical releases published by DLUHC. The Land Use Change statistics (LUCs) use the Green Belt boundaries to determine the proportion of new residential addresses created within the Green Belt, and the previous land use those addresses were created on. The Land Use statistics use the Green Belt boundaries to calculate proportions of various land use classes within the Green Belt.
The summary statistics for the Land Use Change statistics and the Land Use statistics within land designated as Green Belt are as follows:
- In 2021-22, 2% of new residential addresses created were within the Green Belt. This is unchanged from the 2020-21.
- In 2021-22, 51% of new residential addresses created within the Green Belt were built on previously developed land. This is an increase on the 47% recorded in 2020-21.
- In 2022, 9% of land designated as Green Belt in England is of developed use with 91% of land of non-developed use.
- Of land designated as Green Belt, 0.3% is of a residential use with residential gardens accounting for a further 2.9%.
Detailed statistics on changes within the Green Belt can also be found in the Land Use Change Live Tables, numbers P310, P311 and P380 to P383, accessible from the below link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/land-use-change-statistics.
Detailed statistics on land uses within the Green Belt can also be found in the Land Use in England 2018 Live Tables P401a and P401b, accessible from the below link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-land-use.
Green Belt statistics are often quoted alongside statistics for other designations. These designations are often considered constraints on development with the statistics providing the amount of land ‘protected’ against development.
The Green Belt boundaries and statistics are closely aligned with local plans and local planning. The Green Belt boundaries were used to help determine Local Housing Need numbers and feed into a number of other related housing and development related projects.
8.1 Annex A: explanation of changes in 2022-23
Local authorities making changes to their Green Belt provide explanations for the changes on their AGB return, for which the guidance notes encourage them to include references to their Local Plan. These explanations are presented here for users’ information, with some minor amendments for clarity only. If any figures within these explanations differ from the statistics, we advise users to use the statistics because they are produced using a consistent methodology for processing the data provided by local authorities.
Bath and North East Somerset
The Local Plan Partial Update (PDF, 7.8MB) was adopted on 19 January 2023. Policy SB26 (on pages 193 to 197) allocates three park and park and ride sites for use as Transport Interchanges, following their removal from the Green Belt.
We were also alerted to a technical error by our GIS colleagues regarding land adjacent to Keynsham train station. This land is now included in the GIS layer and has increased the overall figure.
Blackpool
Policy DM8 is on pages 38 and 39 of Blackpool Local Plan Part 2: Site Allocations and Development Management Policies (PDF, 18.3MB). In particular, within Policy DM8 on Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone:
- The Council supports the sustainable development of the Enterprise Zone (EZ) to create more businesses and jobs and attract international investment with positive benefits for the sub-regional economy and increasing the contribution to national growth.
- To enable the objective of the EZ to be delivered, the Green belt boundary is amended as identified in Appendix E to release around 10.3 hectares of land to allow the first phase of development to be undertaken by 2027.
A map is at Appendix E: Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone Green Belt Release map.
Calderdale
Paragraph 22.11 of the Calderdale Local Plan, adopted on 22 March 2023: The boundaries of the Green Belt were established in previous Local Plans. The NPPF makes it clear that once established, the Green Belt should only be changed in exceptional circumstances. A number of changes have been made to Green Belt boundaries in this Plan to enable development to come forward in a measured way, as set out in other areas of this document and in accordance with the NPPF.
Cheshire East
Policy PG 11 in Green Belt and safeguarded land boundaries sets out that, in addition to the land detailed in LPS Policy PG 4 ‘Safeguarded land’, the following sites are designated as safeguarded land and have been removed from the Green Belt:
- ALD 1 ‘Land at Ryleys Farm, west of Sutton Road’, Alderley Edge (2.32 ha);
- BOL 1 ‘Land at Henshall Road’, Bollington (1.48 ha);
- BOL 2 ‘Land at Greenfield Road’, Bollington (0.26 ha);
- CFD 1 ‘Land off Knutsford Road’ Chelford (0.58 ha);
- CFD 2 ‘Land east of Chelford Railway Station’, Chelford (4.63 ha);
- DIS 1 ‘Land off Jacksons Edge Road’, Disley (2.43 ha);
- PRE 1 ‘Land south of Prestbury Lane’, Prestbury (1.84 ha); and
- PRE 2 ‘Land off Heybridge Lane’, Prestbury (0.94 ha).
Epping Forest
Para 2.140 of Epping Forest District Local Plan 2011-2033: The general extent of the existing Green Belt will be maintained, but to achieve sustainable development patterns and meet development needs for the Plan period, alterations to the detailed boundaries around settlements have been necessary. This has been undertaken in line with the national planning policy regarding the definition of boundaries and purposes of the Green Belt. Pages 27 and 50 to 53 of Part One are relevant.
Epping Forest District Local Plan 2011-2033 Part One (PDF, 47.6 MB)
Epping Forest District Local Plan 2011-2033 Part Two (PDF, 17.1 MB)
North Hertfordshire
Before the North Hertfordshire Local Plan was adopted, the total Green Belt figure was approximately 14,250 hectares which equates to 38% of the District. The pre-adoption Green Belt was located around the A1(M) corridor (10,000 ha) and the East of Luton (4,200 ha).
The North Hertfordshire Local Plan was adopted in November 2022. The Local Plan allowed for approximately 1,000 hectares of Green Belt to be removed for a combination of reasons including: site allocations; ‘insetting’ of villages that were previously in the Green Belt; safeguarded land West of Stevenage; and boundary amendments around towns and previously inset villages.’
However, the Local Plan has added approximately 4,350 ha of land to the Green Belt by filling the gap between the A1(M) corridor and Luton. The total area of the Green Belt post Local Plan adoption is approximately 17,600 ha which equates to 47% of the District area.
North Hertfordshire Local Plan Policy : Policy SP5: Countryside and Green Belt (page 53) (PDF, 11.2 MB)
St. Helens
On 12 July 2022, the St Helens Borough Local Plan was officially adopted. This Plan released land from the Green Belt to enable the needs for housing and employment development to be met in full over the Plan period up to 31 March 2037, in the most sustainable locations. Other land is removed from the Green Belt and safeguarded to allow for longer term housing and / or employment needs to be met after 31 March 2037.
Page 16, Core Policies 4.1.5 gives an overview for the need for Green Belt release in the Local Plan Document (PDF, 12.1 MB).
Watford
The Watford Local Plan 2018-2036 Plan removes a limited amount of land from the Green Belt in five locations.
Justification for the alteration can be found in pages 15 to 17 of the Inspector’s Report (PDF, 390 KB).
Waverley
Waverley Borough Local Plan Part 2 (March 2023) (PDF, 8 MB) makes detailed amendments to Green Belt boundaries in the locations as described in Policy DM13A (on page 67) on Detailed Amendments to Green Belt Boundaries. These are set out in Table 2 (also on page 67 and as shown on the policies map). These are required firstly, as a result of settlement boundary changes; secondly, to ensure that Green Belt boundaries are clearly defined using physical features that are readily recognisable and likely to be permanent; and thirdly, so that Green Belt boundaries do not include land which does not need to be kept permanently open.
Wyre Forest
Policy SP.7 on the Strategic Green Belt Review is set out at page 41 of Wyre Forest District Local Plan (2016 to 2036). These are Changes to Green Belt boundary to enable sustainable development at two strategic allocation sites at the north of Kidderminster to enable the Lea Castle Village development and the eastern edge of Kidderminster urban area; changes to Green Belt boundary will also be made at locations around Kidderminster, Stourport-on-Severn, Bewdley and Blakedown.
9. Technical Notes
Please see the accompanying technical notes document for further details.
10. Enquiries
Date of next release: September/October 2024
Media enquiries: 0303 444 1209 [email protected]
Public enquiries and responsible statistician: Alex Reynolds
Email: [email protected]
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