National parks need ‘steady supply’ of homes

Residents of protected areas must accept that more houses are required, says government adviser

PEOPLE living in the countryside have to accept that a “steady supply” of new homes needs to be built in national parks, the Government adviser in charge of a major review has said.

Julian Glover, who is examining whether to add to England’s 10 national parks, said more homes should be built in these protected areas.

Mr Glover said his review had identified “pressures” in national parks, adding: “Local people need jobs and housing, farmers who look after the landscapes need help to survive.”

He also raised the prospect that national parks could be created on the edge of major cities such as Birmingham so people who live in urban areas can easily get to them.

Mr Glover was speaking as Michael Gove, the Environment Secretary, issued an appeal for the public to send in ideas for new national parks. As part of Mr Glover’s review, people will be asked whether housing and transport can be improved.

A survey last year found the average price for a detached house in the South Downs National Park is £674,268, well above the £487,926 average in the rest of west Sussex.

Mr Glover told The Daily Telegraph: “Almost all people who run national parks want houses – but you want the right kind.

“What we need are houses that people can afford, that are designed properly, in relatively small numbers, not big developments in one place but adding three or four houses into one village – and keeping a steady supply.

“The populations in national parks vary – they are not all places with huge populations. They don’t need lots of new houses every year but they might need one or two.”

Mr Glover added that he wanted small developers to be interested in building new homes on small plots in national parks.

“I don’t think there is a widespread block on building in national parks – the trick is to make sure they are the right things,” he said. “What people want is national parks to be beautiful places, living places for people, and environmentally alive.”

Mr Glover also suggested that new national parks could be created on the edge of cities.

He said Andy Street, the mayor of Birmingham, was “pitching really hard to think about how you take the landscape of the West Midlands … into the countryside to the east of Birmingham”.

“Getting out enjoying the countryside, walking, cycling – near cities that can be a bit hard,” he added. “You go out of the city and reach the countryside but that is not always the bit that people are used to enjoying. People have got the idea that you go to the Lake District or the Peak District.”

Emma Marrington, senior rural policy campaigner at the Campaign to Protect Rural England, said: “Access to these landscapes can have a profoundly positive effect on our physical health and mental wellbeing.

“We hope the review will look at ways to increase opportunities for everyone to enjoy the benefits that they can bring by promoting affordable and accessible ways to explore these places, such as sustainable public transport.”