This strong level of delivery reflects the council’s long-term approach to strategic and sustainable growth, working with communities, developers and partners to bring forward new homes in the right locations.

Alongside these positive delivery figures, the council has published its latest five-year housing land supply position, which stands at 2.81 years. While this is below the national requirement of five years, it is important to understand that the change is primarily the result of significant changes to national planning policy.

In December 2024, the Government introduced a revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and a new method for calculating housing need. This increased Herefordshire’s annual housing requirement from 773 homes to 1,362 a year – an increase of more than 75 per cent.

As a result, the amount of land the council must demonstrate is available for housing development increased significantly overnight. Prior to the introduction of the revised NPPF, Herefordshire’s five-year housing land supply stood at 5.73 years and had consistently remained above the national requirement.

The latest position has also been affected by changes to what can be counted towards housing supply. For example, around 250 homes on the allocated Hardwick Bank site in Bromyard can no longer be included following the refusal of a planning application. National policy has also introduced stricter requirements around when proposed housing sites can be counted as deliverable.

Councillor Elissa Swinglehurst, Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning, said:

"Herefordshire continues to deliver new homes, with 677 net additional homes completed last year. This is important because delivering new housing helps meet local demand, supports economic growth, provides homes for current and future generations, and contributes to thriving and sustainable communities across Herefordshire.

"While the latest five-year housing land supply position is below the national requirement, it is important to understand the context behind the figures. This is largely the result of a significant increase in the housing target we are expected to meet, together with changes to national policy and assessment rules, rather than a sudden failure to deliver housing in Herefordshire.

"Like many areas of the country, we face challenges that can affect the pace of development, including phosphate constraints in parts of the River Lugg catchment and national rules that limit how quickly larger strategic developments can be counted within the five-year supply calculation. We remain committed to supporting sustainable growth and will continue working closely with developers, landowners and partners to address barriers to development and bring forward new homes for local people."

The annual position on our Five Year Housing Land Supply is now available on our website.