Agricultural Diversification & Planning - The Key Issues in Practice

Introduction

Significant challenges facing the agricultural industry in England and Wales are leading to an increased need for farm businesses to diversify. With such projects come challenges for land use planning in terms of, on the one hand, supporting sustainable rural and farming enterprises as part of positive planning and, on the other hand, protecting often countryside locations from inappropriate development and use.

This webinar will consider national law and policy which interact with agricultural diversification projects, examining the acceptability and material considerations which prove influential in the planning determination process. We will look at specific types of projects including camping and other holiday accommodation, farm experiences and the onsite manufacture of farm produce.

Recent case law will be explored for further insight and differences between land use policies in England and Wales will be highlighted for those who interact with both jurisdictions.

What You Will Learn

This webinar will cover the following:

• Outline of the drivers for farm diversification and types of projects
• What constitutes an agricultural use (and what doesn’t)
• Consideration of the scope to diversify within permitted development rights (and the constraints/conditions imposed)
• National policies underpinning the rural economy and agricultural diversification
• Sustainability - balancing development in the open countryside with supporting rural enterprise (material considerations typically shaping the assessment)
• The interaction of agricultural diversification and constraints for tenants (Agricultural Holdings Act 1996 and opportunity under Agricultural Holdings (Requests for Landlord’s Consent or Variation of Terms and the Suitability Test) Regulations 2021

This webinar was recorded on 3rd July 2023