Yesterday, I was asked a crucial question during the Housing Committee evidence session: Is the construction sector equipped to deliver 1.5 million new homes?
My answer is that while this target is ambitious and should aim to be achieved, several necessary changes need to be implemented to support the scale of this ambition.
First, we need to address the well-worn and continually relevant point the RTPI has raised time and again on resourcing.
Findings from our State of Profession 2023 report revealed a 16% contraction in public spending on planning between 2009 and 2022. We often hear that the planning system isn’t working, but the truth is, it works well – it will just be slower without the necessary number of public sector planners to deliver the projects England needs. That’s why we’re calling for a comprehensive, long-term resourcing and capacity strategy to be published alongside the Planning and Infrastructure Bill.
But we also need to consider why planners are key to delivering the Government’s ambitious housing target. This shouldn’t be just a race to numbers. While we are eager to see the housing target met, we must remember that we’re building communities, not just houses. To ensure these communities are connected to the parks, playgrounds, schools, and hospitals they need to function daily, we need an infrastructure-first approach.
It's about road capacity, rail capacity, and essential infrastructure. As our Location of Development 4 report shows, homes are still being built without sufficient access to key amenities – or, as I pointed out to the Committee, sometimes in areas that are "in the middle of nowhere."
But to do this, we first need to address capacity.
Our resourcing issue has been widely recognised by the government, who have promised to add an additional 300 planners to the planning system. However, the concerning reality is that we could be missing out on many more planners if the government moves forward with the removal of the Level 7 Apprenticeship scheme. This was a point raised by the Committee. As I highlighted then, almost 800 apprenticeship planners are currently progressing through the system – nearly three times the number the government has promised to add.
Level 7 Apprenticeships offer a fast-track route to Chartership and into the planner pipeline. These apprentices bring the opportunity for future planners from diverse backgrounds to learn and grow through on-the-job experience, helping to represent and shape the places they come from while building out their communities.
