Selling land in South Gloucestershire
A plan in examination, a council short of housing land and Green Belt round the edges. What that means for your land.
The local plan
A plan in examination, a stated shortfall
The adopted plan is the Core Strategy of December 2013 and the Policies, Sites and Places Plan of November 2017. The Local Plan 2026 to 2041 was submitted on 24 October 2025 and hearings began on 19 May 2026. A further hearing was set for 7 October 2026 and the council is waiting for the inspectors' next step, with a consultation on main modifications to follow (South Gloucestershire Council examination page, read October 2026). The council's own programme looked towards adoption in December 2026, but that date is not confirmed. The plan provides for 22,573 homes against a stated need of 20,423 and names allocations at Thornbury, Yate, Chipping Sodbury, Winterbourne, Frampton Cotterell and a number of villages.
What that means for an owner. The council's 2025 annual monitoring report, updated in June 2026, claims 3.93 years of housing land. Below five years the national framework tilts decisions towards approval, though Green Belt policy still weighs heavily. Green Belt covers 43 per cent of the district and the plan proposes to release 2.53 per cent of it (Green Belt Topic Paper, October 2025; council newsroom, February 2025). The Housing Delivery Test result was 138 per cent for 2025, so past delivery is strong and the shortfall is in the forward supply. The route for a small site is often a full application or permission in principle for up to nine homes and the council's register shows how recent ones fared.
We buy or sell to builders who want small village and town edge sites in a district with good values and a council that has admitted a shortfall. We have read the plan, the monitoring report and the council's own supply figures.
South Gloucestershire Council's online planning register shows every application by postcode or address, including permission in principle applications, with the officer's report and the decision.
What we are looking for here
Village edges, infill and sites in the plan
Beside a village or town boundary
One to six acres touching Thornbury, Yate, Chipping Sodbury, Winterbourne, Frampton Cotterell and the larger villages, outside the Green Belt or at the edge of the proposed release.
Inside the boundary
Large gardens, yards and paddocks within a settlement, where the principle of homes is already accepted.
Small sites for permission in principle
Up to nine homes on land with a road and services, where the council's permission in principle route can settle the question early.
Questions landowners ask
Straight answers
Has the South Gloucestershire local plan been adopted?
My land is in the Green Belt. Can it be built on?
What is permission in principle?
Free land review
Tell us about your land
Tell us the postcode. We do the checks at our cost and telephone you within ten days.