Right now the drive to build new homes on a scale not seen for decades is dominating headlines, as the Government turbocharges plans for seven new towns. Each is expected to deliver at least 10,000 houses. Meanwhile, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Angela Rayner has ordered local authorities to “scale up” plans for increasing the supply of council accommodation.

All of this shines a strong spotlight on land stewardship – the governance, funding and management of Green Infrastructure, play areas, public open spaces, ecological assets and other communal facilities – as a critical part of this new town debate. 

Indeed, the Government’s own draft planning policy now explicitly calls for a long-term land management model to be established from the outset, with clear governance and funding structures for maintaining communal assets.

The ambition behind building new towns and, indeed, hundreds of new Garden Villages, is compelling. Shared by housebuilders and home buyers, it is inspired by a shared goal: the creation of homes within multi-functional landscapes that together encourage community cohesion.

It’s a worthy aspiration with a long pedigree, originating in the late 1800s with architect of the movement Sir Ebenezer Howard. His Garden City Association would become The Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA), one of today’s leading advocates for the principles of social justice, good quality housing and sustainable development. 

However, directly set against these tenets, the challenges of successfully creating the modern town or Garden Village are many and varied. They range from land assembly and planning complexity to major upfront costs for infrastructure build-out and adherence to new biodiversity regulation.

Homes England’s guidance states stewardship and management arrangements for community assets should be planned as part of the masterplan itself. It also stresses the integration of Green Infrastructure with the built environment and highlights the need to create places capable of adapting to changing circumstances. This shifts stewardship from the margins of development policy to its very heart.

It also has implications for the wider housebuilding industry. If the sector is expected to deliver larger developments, it will need to demonstrate not simply that homes can be built but the infrastructure and places surrounding them can remain functional and attractive over decades.

Robin Waddell, Development Director at Greenbelt Group, the UK’s leading land steward on new home developments, notes:

“The danger here is when choosing a way forward becomes polarised: councils versus developers, developers versus homeowners and public versus private management. The more useful question, surely, is whether the proposed arrangements are actually capable of delivering the outcomes promised by the development, with the most formidable challenge being centred on the big question of  long-term care: who will look after these much sought after environments long after the housebuilders have gone?

“This fundamental pillar of establishing long-term stewardship is increasingly significant as the UK seeks to expand our housing supply while delivering developments that are Biodiversity Net Gain-compliant, environmentally sustainable and capable of supporting communities for many decades.”

This significance is also referenced in the long awaited and newly published National Planning Policy Framework, which makes direct reference to good stewardship (though perhaps not often enough!) as a pivotal “green thread”. Moreover, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s new Design and Placemaking guide emphasises the need to bring stewardship decision making much earlier into the procurement process. This is now an official Planning Policy Guideline that all Local Authorities in the UK will be expected to follow.

When considering viable solutions, it’s important to note Garden Village communities are by their nature more complicated than conventional housing estates. Their masterplans often incorporate parks, play areas, public realm, important ecological features including Sustainable Drainage Systems, community facilities and other shared assets. 

For Homes England, these assets should be identified and arrangements for their long-term care considered early in the planning process. It also underlines costed funding, agreed governance and the involvement of existing and future residents should form part of this work.

“This guidance is hugely significant because the responsibilities created by a new development do not end when houses are bought,” says Robin Waddell. “While developers are primarily in the business of delivering homes, local authorities must weigh the costs of adoption and maintenance of infrastructure against already considerable demands on public finances. Homeowners, meanwhile, cannot reasonably be expected to possess the expertise or experience required to manage complex landscapes or communal assets themselves.

“The end result is a gap between construction and long-term management that must be filled if the Garden Village model is to work. This is precisely why the ability of a professional organisation to provide a management structure that is properly designed, adequately funded and is fully accountable to the people who ultimately pay for it is so pivotal.”

While Homes England does not prescribe a single management model, it identifies a range of possibilities, including charitable trusts, community interest companies, co-operatives, community benefit societies and resident-owned management companies. Where it is explicit in its guidance is the appropriate model depends on the circumstances of the individual community.

This is an important qualification. The future of Garden Villages does not necessarily depend on private companies simply assuming control; instead, it is founded on establishing a credible and cohesive community stewardship model with developers, local authorities and homeowners.

This approach offers considerable advantages to housebuilders. A clear long-term management structure establishes who is responsible for maintaining shared infrastructure as different phases are completed and different developers become involved. It also helps provide greater certainty about the costs and obligations attached to a scheme.

Of course, any discussion of privately managed estates must acknowledge there has been criticism of some around charges, transparency and the ability of homeowners to influence decisions affecting their properties. These concerns cannot and should not simply be dismissed as resistance to paying for services. If residents are obliged to contribute to the maintenance of communal land and infrastructure, they have a legitimate interest in understanding what they are paying for, how charges are calculated and who is accountable for performance.

Robin Waddell points out:

“This is where the hugely important distinction between responsible private stewardship and poor private stewardship matters. A professional management organisation can provide specialist expertise and continuity – and this must include transparency.

“Residents should be able to identify assets covered by an arrangement, understand the basis of charges, see what maintenance is undertaken and know how shortcomings or failures can be satisfactorily addressed.

“The same principle applies to governance. Homes England states effective governance should provide clarity over roles and responsibilities and involve all relevant stakeholders in decision-making. Its guidance identifies local authorities, landowners, developers and local communities among those who may have a role, suggesting the most durable model may not be one in which a management company simply operates at arm’s length from residents. Rather, it is one in which professional management is combined with appropriate community involvement and clear accountability.”

For housebuilders, this means looking beyond the point at which a property changes hands. For councils, it means being explicit about what they are willing to adopt. For homeowners, it means assurances of transparency and having a meaningful voice. For those who are entrusted with land stewardship, it means recognising the new town and new Garden Village is not only a vibrant green space but a living community.