First Environmental Delivery Plan with 15,000 New Norfolk Homes Published

Plans to unlock up to 15,780 new homes in Norfolk will be published today in a first test of a new government approach to winning public consent for housebuilding.
The plans, drafted by Natural England under the Nature Restoration Fund, include wetlands and waterways alongside new housing developments.
Rather than paying for piecemeal and costly nature mitigations as required under previous regimes, the scheme in Norfolk will see developers fund large scale improvements to rivers and wetlands in the county, which are home to otters, water voles and wetland birds, and visited by millions of people each year.
The first local blueprint, known as an Environmental Delivery Plan (EDP), will be published for consultation today by Natural England. It is designed to tackle pollution in Norfolk rivers and waterways which has been a barrier to building new homes because developers had to commission costly surveys and mitigation measures.

Nature Restoration Fund Levy

The plan gives developers a cost-effective way to deliver nature restoration through a levy payment. Administered by Natural England which has recently published guidance on the levy, it will be used to deliver conservation measures at scale, improving water quality and wetlands in Norfolk, including in the iconic Norfolk Broads.
The plan will also create new opportunities for Norfolk farmers, landowners, and private organisations to work with Natural England to support nature recovery.
The area earmarked for new homes and nature restoration includes the River Wensum, Bure Broads and Marshes, and Yare Broads and Marshes catchments, covering a substantial part of central and eastern Norfolk.
Housing and Planning Minister Matthew Pennycook said: ”The Nature Restoration Fund established by our landmark Planning and Infrastructure Act will move us beyond the sub-optimal status quo and unlock a win-win for development and nature.
“Today’s publication of the first draft Environmental Delivery Plan demonstrates in practice how the Fund will unlock and accelerate development while going beyond neutrality to drive nature recovery.”
The consultation is open for 28 working days, and Natural England is inviting responses to help shape the final EDP before it is submitted to the Secretary of State.
Natural England is also developing EDPs for other areas of the country where housebuilding is impacted by nutrient pollution in rivers, which will be published shortly.