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New permitted development rights homes must meet space standards, government says
Homes created through permitted development rights (PDR) in England must meet the nationally described space standard, the government has announced.
Housing secretary Robert Jenrick confirmed today that homes created via PDR, which does not require planning permission, must meet the standard of 37m2 of floorspace for a one-bed flat with a shower room.
The government said this would put an end to developers delivering homes that are too small to live in.
The new measure comes amid growing pressure from Conservative backbench MPs, such as Robert Halfon and Sir Peter Bottomley, who have expressed their opposition to the use of PDR.
Announcing the new rule, the government said the homes delivered through permitted development have “little difference in quality” compared with homes built via planning applications. However, this contradicts a government-commissioned report from July which found the method creates “worse-quality residential environments”.
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The government argued that the “prior approval” process has sped up the delivery of new homes, with more than 60,000 homes produced in the past four years.
Mr Jenrick said: “Permitted development rights are helping to deliver new homes and making an important contribution to our economic recovery from the pandemic, supporting our high streets by encouraging the regeneration of disused buildings and boosting our housing industry to safeguard the jobs of builders, plumbers and electricians.
“The pandemic has further highlighted the importance of having somewhere secure and comfortable to live. While most developers deliver good homes and do the right thing, I’m tackling the minority of developers abusing the system by announcing that new homes delivered will have to meet space standards.”
The expansion of PDR was announced by prime minister Boris Johnson in July as part of ‘Project Speed’ which was aimed at providing economic recovery from the pandemic. Legislation on the subject laid before parliament made slight improvements about light standards to ensure “adequate natural light to all habitable rooms”.
A legal challenge has also been launched by campaign group Rights: Community: Action concerning the expansion of the method, with campaigners arguing that parliament has not had adequate time to scrutinise legislation.
