About Grey Belt
An independent guide to Green Belt and grey belt land in England, for landowners, communities and anyone trying to follow the rules.
Policy sources
- NPPF Chapter 13: Protecting Green Belt land (GB1–8), August 2026
- NPPF Annex B: Glossary (grey belt, previously developed land, well-connected station, major development)
- NPPF Annex E: Green Belt assessments
- NPPF Annex A: Implementation
- December 2024 NPPF (paragraphs 142–160 and Annex 2) and the February 2025 Green Belt Planning Practice Guidance, for the earlier rules
- Local authority Green Belt statistics for England 2024–25
Appeals and courts
Appeal summaries are compiled from published decisions and reputable summaries, including Urbanist Architecture's appeal digest, Planning Geek, Burges Salmon, Lichfields and Local Government Lawyer. Each record links to its source. For launch, every record will link to the decision letter on the Planning Inspectorate's casework portal.
Council assessments
Taken from council websites, committee papers and local press, with the date and status shown. Inclusion means a document has been found, not that it has been adopted as policy.
Homes estimate
Our model multiplies England's Green Belt area by a grey belt share, a take-up share, a net developable ratio and a density. The starting values come from LandTech, Lichfields, the GLA's London assessment and Sandwell's 2026 figures. It is illustrative, not a forecast.
Coming next
- A searchable database of all grey belt appeal decisions, updated weekly from the Planning Inspectorate.
- Every Green Belt authority's assessment, with parcel maps and grey belt ratings where councils publish GIS data.
- Alerts when your council publishes or updates its Green Belt assessment.
- Assessment requests delivered by email, with a privacy notice.