Basildon Planning Consultant
New Town, plotlands and Green Belt

Planning in Basildon Borough: an old plan and a pressured Green Belt

Basildon was designated as one of the first wave of post-war New Towns in 1949 and grew over the following fifty years. The borough today combines the New Town itself with the separate towns of Billericay and Wickford, several serviced villages, and a large rural belt that wraps around the urban areas.

The statutory development plan is still the Basildon District Local Plan adopted in 1998, operating through policies saved by direction in 2007. Basildon is one of a very small number of authorities that has not adopted a plan under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Officers therefore lean heavily on the National Planning Policy Framework alongside the saved BAS policies.

On 22 July 2026 the Housing and Planning Minister wrote to the council directing it to publish its Regulation 19 plan, submit it for examination by 31 December 2026 and not withdraw it. The emerging plan runs to 2043, and the debate over its housing numbers and Green Belt release will shape land promotion in the borough for years.

For applicants, this means two things. Weight given to 1998 policies is often contested, and the emerging plan carries limited weight until it progresses further. A good submission explains clearly how the scheme sits within both, rather than relying on either alone.

The policy framework for Basildon applications

Decisions in Basildon draw on the saved 1998 policies, national policy and supplementary guidance. The Green Belt chapter contains eight policies, BAS GB1 to BAS GB8, covering the boundaries of the Green Belt, the definition of a dwelling, replacements, extensions, agricultural workers' dwellings and the re-use of buildings. Some of these are now treated as inconsistent with national policy, so reports often explain which parts still carry weight.

For residential schemes inside the urban areas, Policy BAS BE12 is the usual starting point. It resists development causing material harm through loss of character, overlooking, noise, overshadowing or traffic danger. The Essex Design Guide is used across the county for layout, garden sizes and parking, and applications that follow it tend to face fewer objections.

Because the plan predates the NPPF, applicants should also be ready to discuss housing supply and whether the most important policies are out of date. We only rely on that argument where the evidence supports it.