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National Land Use Database

Brownfield land across England has been successfully monitored via the National Land Use Database of Previously Developed Land and Buildings (NLUD-PDL) for the last ten years. It provides an inventory of the national stock of vacant and/or derelict land and buildings, and land and buildings in use either with planning consent/allocated or potential for redevelopment. It is the only countrywide source of information on brownfield land.

The NLUD is compiled annually, using five categories of previously developed land (PDL):

• A – Vacant land
• B – Vacant buildings
• C – Derelict land and buildings
• D – Land and buildings in use and allocated in local plan or with planning permission
• E - Land and buildings currently in use with redevelopment potential

Categories A-C are collectively referred to as derelict and vacant land and buildings, whilst categories D and E comprise ‘in use’ or latent brownfield land.

Individual site information on land ‘in use’ with development potential is not published as this information is either subjective or maybe commercially or politically sensitive.

Statistical analysis based on the grossed returns for 2007 can be found on the Communities and Local Government website. Between 2002 and 2007 the national stock of derelict and vacant land has been reducing year on year.  Over the same period the stock of latent brownfield land has been increasing, producing almost a mirror image of the change in the derelict and vacant stock.

NLUD-PDL scoping study

In 2007, it was realised that whilst the dataset has achieved much over the last decade, there was a case for readdressing its limitations and the ways in which the data are collected.  In recognition of this, The NLUD Partnership (presently consisting of English Partnerships and Communities and Local Government) commissioned a Scoping Study to analyse these issues and recommend a more effective way of tackling the changing needs of the wide range of stakeholders engaged in land supply and regeneration.

The study has now been completed, and the recommendations devised could have far reaching consequences for all Local Planning Authorities in England, with the most significant impacts amongst the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) community in local government and beyond. 

Download the Scoping Study report from our Publications page.

 

Why NLUD-PDL matters

NLUD-PDL data is primarily used to advise Government Ministers on the formulation of land use policies, ascertain trends/barriers in the recycling of land and to monitor the effectiveness of Government policies relating to land use.
Intelligence regarding the extent and distribution of brownfield land is critical as English Partnerships moves forward with the National Brownfield Strategy ensuring the continued success of dealing with the legacy of brownfield land throughout England.

Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessments (SHLAAs) and National Indicator 170 ‘Previously developed land that has been vacant or derelict for more than five years’ both stress the need for a robust database of PDL to assist Local Authorities with their local planning and performance targets. 

Furthermore, the Budget for 2008 outlined incentives under the Land Reclamation Tax Relief scheme whereby from April 2009, private developers can qualify for heightened tax relief if they develop on brownfield sites that have been registered on NLUD since 1998 (or demonstrably vacant since then).  This new initiative has the potential to unlock some of the most unappealing brownfield sites and allow the developer to qualify for the tax relief. 

The distribution of Brownfield land

The greatest concentrations of derelict and vacant land and buildings are in the former industrial cities and towns of the Midlands and northern regions of England.

Government policies aimed at reducing the stock of previously developed land are taking effect, with year on year reductions in derelict and vacant land being recorded since 2002.

The stock of land that is ‘in use’, or latent brownfield, is increasing.

A sizeable proportion of the sites in these categories have been on the NLUD-PDL database since 1998, which may be indicative of blockages in the market.

In 2007, the NLUD-PDL sites survey unveiled almost 31,000 sites, containing 55,326 ha of land.  This data was based on returns from over 95 per cent of local planning authorities in England, which showed significant differences in the incidence of PDL, across all land types throughout the nine Government Office Regions. See table below. 

Distribution of previously developed land by type and Government Office Region (area figures are in hectare)

Region	Vacant land	Derelict buildings	Derelict land	'in use' land with planning/ allocation	‘in use’ with potential	Grand Total
East Midlands	1008.10	362.34	1702.68	1278.04	908.11	5259.26
East of England	1102.61	272.30	1387.56	1495.46	1312.04	5569.97
London	395.12	134.27	189.45	1882.53	372.82	2974.20
North East	1317.95	180.20	981.76	710.40	453.71	3644.02
North West	2305.23	477.73	4357.51	1690.71	817.90	9649.08
South East	1386.15	371.65	1019.31	4601.13	1185.96	8564.19
South West	830.07	213.17	1386.70	1649.13	1190.42	5269.49
West Midlands	1124.85	238.55	1816.12	1598.43	422.47	5200.42
Yorkshire & Humber	2129.06	506.52	2164.74	1188.98	549.92	6539.22
Grand Total	11599.14	2756.74	15005.82	16094.81	7213.34	52669.85

Around 53 per cent of previously developed land in the 2007 survey was located in urban areas, as defined by the Department for Communities and Local Government, significantly less than was recorded in 2004.  The overall stock also reduced over the same period the results suggesting that brownfield land reuse policies are working, concentrating new development in urban areas.

Brownfield Land and Deprivation

Many brownfield sites are located in areas of acute market failure and there is clear evidence that the most deprived areas of the country are still blighted by high concentrations of unused, or under-used land.

In 2007, more than 20 per cent of recorded brownfield sites were found to be located in the ten per cent most deprived Super Output Areas (Index of Deprivation 2007) as shown on the graph below. 

 

Linking the Index of Multiple Deprivation and the prevalence of brownfield land

Number of sites

Super Output Areas (Thousand Groupings –
1 being the most deprived and 33 the least deprived).

Many of the sites in the most deprived Super Output Areas are of relatively small size, often less than one quarter of a hectare.