Community volunteers are being asked to help develop a new database of brownfield sites overlooked for development in Gloucestershire, with a view to protecting more of the county's 'threatened' countryside.
CPRE Gloucestershire, the local group of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, has been awarded £16,500 from the National Lottery Community Fund together with £2,576 from The Summerfield Charitable Trust to launch its 'ambitious' new project, LandWise.
Aiming to give communities a stronger voice in shaping development across the county, the charity says the volunteer-led project will champion a 'brownfield first' approach to planning and policy, with government-set housing targets placing 'increasing pressure' on the countryside.
Using a dedicated volunteer toolkit, LandWise will welcome submissions of overlooked and unregistered brownfield sites in Gloucestershire, which will be carefully reviewed and compiled into a 'comprehensive' county-wide database and digital map.
The evidence base will then be shared with local authorities to support sustainable planning decisions, and encourage greater prioritisation of previously developed land.
It comes with CPRE’s State of Brownfield 2025 report showing there is enough brownfield land across England to support at least 1.41 million homes – a figure that has increased by 16 per cent in just one year – with more than half of those homes already having planning permission. The charity says that despite this, national data shows that brownfield land is still being under used, while pressure continues to mount on greenfield and rural sites.
CPRE Gloucestershire launches its LandWise project with national findings showing that nearly 40 per cent of local planning authorities do not have up to date brownfield registers, with almost one in 10 not updated for over five years.
Louise Chandler-Mullins, director of CPRE Gloucestershire, said: 'We know how much people in Gloucestershire care about our countryside, and our LandWise project will give that care and passion a practical outlet. It’s a way for communities to get involved and advocate for the future of our countryside.
'There is untapped potential of brownfield sites across the county that could play a much bigger role in meeting development needs. LandWise will help collate that evidence into one place, so it can be properly considered in key development decisions.'
The charity is now recruiting volunteers to help deliver the project, with details of how to get involved available on the CPRE Gloucestershire website.
