The government is making it easier for developers to convert agricultural buildings into family homes.

Currently developers are permitted to create a maximum of three homes from agricultural buildings on farmland. This is set to rise to five.

It’s part of the government’s plan to meet local housing needs more efficiently.

The new measures will also increase the size limit of new agricultural buildings on larger farms from 465 square metres to 1,000 square metres.

Several hundred new homes each year are created through conversions of agricultural buildings; these changes are expected to boost these numbers further.

The government is also giving applicants an extra year to convert further storage and distribution buildings into new homes that will help relieve local housing pressures.

The changes will allow for:

• up to 3 larger homes within a maximum of 465 square metres or
• up to 5 smaller homes each no larger than 100 square metres or
• a mix of both, within a total of no more than 5 homes, of which no more than 3 may be larger homes

Housing Minister Dominic Raab said: “We need to be more creative if we are to meet the housing needs of rural communities.

“That’s why I’m changing planning rules so rural communities have more flexibility on how best to use existing buildings to deliver more much needed homes for families.

“This is part of our comprehensive reform programme to build the homes Britain needs.

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