Green Belt and Grey Belt in England: Exploring contestation in planning policy and delivery
Abstract
This paper reflects on the latest situation with regard to planning for and with the Green Belt in England, within the context of recent changes to national planning policy. The paper summarises those changes, with a particular focus on the Grey Belt, a new planning designation designed to facilitate the release of Green Belt land for (housing) development. It explores how the new Grey Belt designation is intended to work and seeks early evidence regarding how it is working in practice, querying whether it will have the effect the UK Government hopes. The paper situates these questions within broader ongoing debates regarding the relevance of Green Belt designations and issues related to power and influence over planning decisions. It concluded that a better evidence base is needed to inform decisions about the Green and Grey Belt, and that a decision-making process which moves away from a dichotomous and opposition-driven approach would allow for better-quality outcomes. This article is also included in The Business & Management Collection which can be accessed at https://hstalks.com/business/.
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Author's Biography
Ian Mell is Professor of Environmental and Landscape Planning at the University of Manchester. His research examines the role of green infrastructure in urban planning to evaluate how nature can be integrated into design, development and management. He is the author of Green Belts: Past, Present, Future? with John Sturzaker (Routledge, 2017), Growing Green Infrastructure in Contemporary Asia Cities (Routledge, 2025) and Rural Planning Futures (Routledge, 2025 with Scott et al.).
John Sturzaker is now Director of Careers and Education at the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI). This paper was written while he was with the University of Hertfordshire, where he continues to work as a visiting lecturer, and does not represent official RTPI policy. John is co-author of Rescaling Urban Governance: Planning, Localism and Institutional Change (Policy Press, 2020) and Planning in a Failing State: Reforming Spatial Governance in England (Policy Press, 2023).
