ABSTRACT
An important function of the land-use planning system in England is to evaluate development proposals according to societal priorities and identified needs. One long-standing objective has been to protect the open countryside from urban sprawl. Reasons include the importance given to safeguarding agricultural land in the postwar period and the cultural significance attached to the countryside. National government policy support has come in the form of green belts, the nationalisation of development rights and a plan-led approach to rural development (Cullingworth and Nadin, 2007). The heavily centralised nature of the planning system in England stands in stark contrast to the local authority encouraged sprawl that currently grips many European countries (Hoggart, 2005) and the diverse array of policy innovations that have been adopted across the United States to deal with stronger individual property rights (Daniels, 1999). The strength of implementation in England further reflects opportunities for local participation and strong resistance to rural change (Murdoch and Marsden, 1994). Yet where the development of open space around urban areas has been constrained the resulting outcome has not always been positive (see also Kartez, 1982). Criticism has emerged where the quantity of land protected is prioritised over its quality or management. Furthermore, in search of rural housing, urban households have either purchased existing housing in rural villages or looked further afield, often beyond green belts, for new dwellings. Resulting policy dilemmas have included how to provide affordable rural housing and how to manage long-distance commuting (Hoggart and Henderson, 2005). Attempts to expand existing urban areas by adding new outer layers have also experienced difficulty, not least the entrenched desire of rural lobby groups and suburban interests to protect the existing countryside, including those areas protected by green belt designations. Common suburban complaints relate to how the countryside is becoming more distant, the lack of community services in new housing estates and inadequate road infrastructure. Despite national forecasts indicating that a vast number of
new dwellings are needed, house building on the edge of urban areas remains problematic and is often subject to delay (Henderson, 2005, 2006). Responding to the difficulties experienced in developing rural land, national policy makers have given greater importance to house building within existing urban areas (Murdoch and Abram, 2002). Further policy support has come from a sustainable planning perspective oriented towards limiting the need to travel long distances in privately owned vehicles. The additional benefit of emerging land-use priorities is that further protection is provided for rural land and regional open space in England. The outstanding question that this chapter answers is whether or not development constraints in the countryside can also result in new dilemmas and policy requirements in urban areas.
