Guidance

Homes England Nature Positive Plan — February 2026 (HTML)

Published 26 August 2026

Applies to England

February 2026

Cover image — Daisies

A meadow filled with ox-eye daisies, with white petals and yellow centres.

Foreword

Image — Alison Crofton

Image of Alison Crofton.

Chief Regional Delivery Officer, Homes England

The biodiversity crisis has received less attention than the climate crisis, despite both being inextricably linked. The issue of the depletion of the natural world is complex. Multiple dependencies within ecosystem services and the benefits we derive from natural resources have made it challenging to set measurable goals. But action to reverse the loss of nature is imperative. We should no longer take for granted an unending supply of natural resources.

As a housing and regeneration agency, taking actions to benefit nature and support ecosystems is an overarching element of our sustainable placemaking outcomes. Resilience to climate change includes using nature-based systems to help combat extreme heat and flooding. Creating healthy places to live means supporting communities that can grow food, meet socially and be active in pleasant green spaces. Fundamental to Nature Positive is, essentially, making nature improvements based on principles of social inclusion, equity and social value.

Natural England’s State of Natural Capital Report for England (2024) noted that ‘Many seemingly unrelated decisions impact on nature. We need to make natural capital central to decision-making’. As an agency of the government that signed up to Nature Positive to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030 for full recovery by 2050, we have our part to play. This is our first Nature Positive Plan. It is a beginning, recognising how we depend on nature, and playing our part in reversing its decline.

Alison Crofton, Chief Regional Delivery Officer Homes England

1. Introduction and legal framework

Image 1 — The Avenue

A row of modern red-brick and white houses sits behind a wide meadow of tall green grass under a blue sky with scattered clouds.

Image credit: Andy Tryner

Global biodiversity is declining, and we need to act now. Natural resources are being depleted faster than nature can recover. The quality of the world’s stocks of natural capital, such as soils and water, is diminishing. This is negatively affecting the ecosystem services provided to people by nature, such as climate regulation, soil stabilisation and air quality. We must also recognise that nature has intrinsic value, independent of its benefits to humans. Natural capital is a term used to describe the value of everything that comes from nature – soils, air, water and living organisms.

The Environment Act 2021 legislates for measures to improve the environment, including restoring habitats and increasing biodiversity. It includes a legally binding target to halt the decline of species by 2030, measures to prevent UK businesses from contributing to deforestation in sensitive locations overseas and the introduction of 10% biodiversity net gain (BNG) in England. It requires the government to publish an Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP), which is reviewed every 5 years. The Enviromental Improvement Plan (EIP) 2023, the first revision of the 25 Year Environment Plan, includes 10 goals. The overarching goal is ‘Restored nature’, recognising that ‘nature provides the essential services that support healthy and prosperous lives. Other complementary goals cover clean air, managing exposure to chemicals and pesticides, and mitigating and adapting to climate change.

Progress towards the EIP will help achieve “Nature Positive”, which is a global goal to halt and reverse nature loss for species and ecosystems by 2030 ^{[footnote 1]} . Addressing impacts on biodiversity encompasses measurable increases in the health, abundance, diversity and resilience of species, ecosystems and processes. Included within this is recognition of business-related material impacts and dependencies on nature, and strategic work to reduce negative impacts. The World Economic Forum found that over half the world’s total GDP is moderately or highly dependent on nature and its services, meaning that it is exposed to risks from nature loss.

If governments, businesses and civil society can halt the global decline in biodiversity and then achieve Nature Positive, the functioning of ecosystems on which the world’s population depends will be safeguarded for future generations. Everyone has a role to play and there is no time to lose.

What we do

We are the government’s housing and regeneration agency. Launched as Homes England in 2018, our role is to deliver the government’s housing, regeneration and economic growth ambitions, to create the high-quality homes and places that England needs. In doing so, we foster innovation and create market conditions to support a dynamic, diverse and sustainable built environment and housing sector, in line with the objectives of our Strategic Plan 2025 to 2030. Applying our Nature Positive Plan will enable us to introduce appropriate measures to protect and enhance biodiversity, while enabling the delivery of homes and communities.

To deliver on our mission, we deploy a diverse range of tools, including land, capital spend (loan, grant, equity and guarantees), statutory powers, and expertise. We broker private sector investment, convene stakeholders, facilitate collaboration, improve quality across the industry and champion good practice. In practice, this means that our activities are diverse. We de-risk sites, such as through remediation, to bring them to market to build homes.

For some large schemes, such as Northstowe in Cambridgeshire and Brookleigh in West Sussex, we act as master developer. We lend to small builders that can’t access finance through mainstream lenders, helping to diversify the market. We also provide finance for the infrastructure delivery necessary to make key locations suitable for development. We partner with institutional investors to improve the impact of our funding in increasing housing supply and we deliver the Social and Affordable Homes Programme on behalf of government.

Image — The Avenue

3 people walk down wooden steps towards a gravel path leading through a large green landscape with ponds, fenced walkways, and trees under a partly cloudy sky.

Image credit: Andy Tryner

Our mission

To harness our expertise, funding, resources and influence to enable the delivery of high-quality, safe and sustainable homes and vibrant, inclusive communities. Through collaboration with the housing sector and local leaders, we will unlock housing and regeneration opportunities, transform the housing market and drive innovation for lasting impact.

Our statutory objects

These are set out in the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008, and are:

• to improve the supply and quality of housing in England

• to secure the regeneration or development of land or infrastructure in England

• to support in other ways the creation, regeneration, or development of communities in England or their continued wellbeing

• to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development and good design in England

Why take action for nature?

2 of our 4 ‘statutory objects’, as set out in the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008, directly relate to the inclusion of nature through our developments. These 2 statutory objects emphasise the importance of:

• the wellbeing of communities
• the achievement of sustainable development and good design

As a government agency, we must take action to address the Greening Government Commitments (GGC) which set out how government departments and partners can reduce their environmental impacts. These commitments include the creation and delivery of a nature recovery plan by all departments in scope of the GGC reporting. This NPP fulfils the Nature Recovery Plan requirement.

An amendment to the original Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (NERC Act), made through the Environment Act 2021 (Section 102), extended the existing biodiversity duty on public authorities to include the enhancement of biodiversity alongside conservation, by way of creating the “general biodiversity objective”. This amendment includes a requirement for public authorities to take a strategic approach to determine policies and specific objectives for taking action to further this objective.

In summary, we have a remit encompassing sustainability and specific biodiversity duties, compelling us to contribute to nature recovery. Furthermore, we have a mission which sees protecting nature as a fundamental aspect of sustainability in creating new places.

Nature Positive

Image — Brookleigh

A close-up view of a tree trunk in a woodland, with moss growing around its base and dense green foliage in the background.

Image credit: Scott Ramsey

Nature Positive refers to actions that halt and reverse nature loss by 2030 (nature recovery), based on a 2020 baseline, with the aim of achieving full nature recovery by 2050 ^{[footnote 2]}. Businesses and other organisations on a journey to Nature Positive must recognise this goal and undertake their own actions to help achieve it. To get started, they need to assess their nature-related impacts and dependencies, and associated risks and opportunities, to understand how best to contribute towards nature recovery. A Nature Positive approach covers not just an organisation’s direct activities, but also those in its supply chain. Nature Positive extends beyond a site boundary to consider consequences on ecosystems far from a development site, such as through functional linkages via watercourses, materials extraction, and carbon emissions from transport of materials.

At the core of Nature Positive is the landmark Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) ^{[footnote 3]}, which was adopted by the UN Convention on Biological Diversity at the 15th Conference of the Parties meeting in December 2022. It has been described as the ‘Paris moment’ for the Nature Positive transition. The following year, an initiative by 27 of the world’s largest nature, business and finance organisations was launched to promote the Global Goal for Nature ^{[footnote 4]}. The initiative aimed at ensuring the integrity and use of the definition Nature Positive, by specifying measurable Nature Positive goals and detailing how organisations should achieve these. It also supported broader, longer-term efforts to deliver Nature Positive outcomes.

Diagram

Diagram showing that a Nature Positive approach covers an organisation’s activities within and beyond the site boundary, and in the supply chain.

Image — The Avenue

A calm waterway reflects the blue sky and clouds, bordered by grassy banks and trees, with people walking along wooden boardwalks on either side.

Image credit: Andy Tryner

2. Introducing our Nature Positive Plan

Image — Lowland Meadow

A wide meadow filled with tall green grasses and scattered yellow and white wildflowers, with trees and a distant town visible on the horizon under a clear blue sky.

In this document, we set out how we will play our part in halting and reversing biodiversity loss. Our Nature Positive Plan (NPP) is an iterative document presenting goals that will be measured, tracked and monitored on a regular basis to ensure that the transition towards ‘Nature Positive’ is taking place. We will report our progress on an annual basis, via our Annual Report and Accounts.

This NPP will set the scene for the housebuilding sector. Its wider importance within the UK and internationally should not be underestimated. As the UK government’s housing and regeneration agency for England, we will influence the housing sector using this NPP to contribute to reducing and reversing biodiversity loss. Interactions between people and nature require careful consideration, so that developments meet the needs of communities, while also having a positive outcome for nature. The NPP will include actions that take these actions into account and will ensure development becomes a driver for Nature Positive action.

We will set out our intentions and expectations of partners who work with us. We aim to provide Nature Positive housing and homes, landscapes, infrastructure, employment spaces and community buildings. This iteration of the NPP is to be in place for a minimum of 2 years. It will be regularly reviewed and updated to reflect our progression on our Nature Positive journey.

Image — Grass snake

A coiled grass snake lying in short green grass, its patterned scales visible and its head raised slightly with its tongue flicking out.

Creating this Nature Positive Plan

We started with a desk-based study of significant nature-related documents produced or held by Homes England, including relevant external publications. This literature review was followed by a detailed stakeholder engagement exercise, involving colleagues from teams across Homes England and a range of external contacts. Through a series of focus groups, this identified important nature-related risks and opportunities relevant to Homes England.

Through the analysis of the findings, we created a series of nature goals. These goals will be addressed through an internal action plan which will direct us to start our journey to becoming more Nature Positive, with actions to be completed over the next 2 years (refer to Section 6 for further detail). One of these goals is to improve our materiality assessment and understanding of nature-related risks, recognising nature-related repercussions in the work we have completed to date and ensuring we have robust foundations for our actions.

Selected comments from focus groups

We have an opportunity on our own assets and estates to make sure we are managing the land in a way that maximises biodiversity and positive impacts on nature.

I advocate for species diversity that is resilient to climate change. This can conflict with BNG when introducing more exotic species, as typical BNG habitats may not be as resilient to climate change. This can be a challenge as a landscape architect.

Homes England could hold a lot of sway over the practices of external partners, so could set a good example and lead to more focus on the environment.

Developing the narrative of what nature can deliver for people is important.

We should aim to integrate habitat features such as swift boxes and bat bricks into dwellings on every scheme.

Alignment with the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) Framework

International framework tools have been developed to assist partners and developers in providing data and disclosing metrics and strategies in public and transparent ways. One example is the disclosure recommendations and guidance published by TNFD. This framework guides organisations to assess, report and act on their nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities. Although we are not adopting the TNFD Framework yet, we expect to move towards reporting against this in future years. The improved evidence base produced as part of this NPP will also establish foundations for TNFD reporting.

Image — The Avenue

A row of modern red‑brick and white houses sits behind a wide meadow of tall green grass under a blue sky with scattered clouds.

Image credit: Andy Tryner

Nature Positive action in the built environment sector

The housebuilding and wider development sectors have the potential to impact on nature through a range of drivers. The ENCORE (Exploring Natural Capital Opportunities, Risks, and Exposure) tool ^{[footnote 5]} identifies these as:

• terrestrial ecosystem use

• greenhouse gas emissions

• non-greenhouse gas air pollutants

• water pollutants

• soil pollutants

• solid waste generation

At the same time, the sector is dependent on a range of ecosystem services provided by nature such as:

• groundwater

• surface water

• bioremediation

• filtration

• mediation of sensory impacts (such as noise)

• flood and storm protection

• mass stabilisation and erosion control

• a range of natural resources for the fabric and fabrication of building materials

Leading organisations in this sector have adopted nature as a strategic priority, integrating carefully designed green and blue infrastructure throughout their developments, to benefit both people and nature. They deliver strategic nature approaches in accordance with tools such as the Urban Greening Factor, Natural England’s Green Infrastructure Framework and the Building with Nature Standards. They take BNG beyond the mandatory levels to incorporate additional design features for key species. Their schemes are designed to meet the challenges of the future, such as climate change, and they can take an adaptive approach through robust monitoring and stewardship measures. An example of an initiative which encourages housebuilders to go further is the Homes for Nature initiative of the Future Homes Hub. More than 20 house builders have committed to installing a bird-nesting brick or box for every new home built, as well as introducing hedgehog highways as standard on every new development.

Image — Brown long-eared bats

A cluster of brown long‑eared bats roosting tightly together in the corner of a wooden structure.

As a government agency operating in the development sector, we intend to step up action for nature, recognising the range of ecosystem services that our business activities depend on. We need to respond to the specific requirements of the Public Sector Biodiversity Duty and Greening Government Commitments, while adopting emerging best practice shown by the Nature Positive initiatives of leading organisations. The range of actions undertaken by similar organisations includes:

Managing land to improve biodiversity

Using maintenance strategies that avoid chemicals and planting approaches that support priority habitats and species.

Making space for wildlife

Designing features such as nest boxes for birds, bats and other animals; green walls or roofs on buildings; planting native and non-native trees and shrubs with a documented value for wildlife; planting nectar-rich plants for pollinators.

Pursuing nature-based solutions

Rather than engineered approaches to challenges such as site drainage, site-wide biodiverse Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) can help achieve restoration of natural processes and landscape recovery while improving resilience to climate change.

Educating and raising awareness

The importance of recovering nature, among staff, suppliers, customers and the general public. Methods include communications and educational materials featuring biodiversity actions and why they’re important, alongside ensuring biodiversity considerations are factored into decision-making for clients and service users.

Engaging with the supply chain

To identify and reduce embodied ecological impacts, such as by ensuring suppliers eliminate the purchase of timber from unsustainable sources.

Quantifying the scale of the Nature Positive opportunity

The degree to which the housing and regeneration sectors can work towards addressing this in the coming years.

Assessing the social value

Using knowledge of natural capital accounting and the environmental impact of new housing development to assess the social value of taking forward Nature Positive projects and partnerships.

Reviewing and improving internal policies

Around travel, water, waste, resources and carbon emissions, for example.

Images — Column 1

Image 1 — Heathland scene with purple heather, green ferns, and scattered tall pine trees, set against a backdrop of dense woodland under an overcast sky.

Image 2 — A SuDS pond with still water, algae, and tall reeds in the foreground, with a wooden footbridge, a nearby building, and overcast skies in the background.

Image 3 — An open landscape with rough grassland, stony soil, and shallow wet areas, featuring a long black amphibian‑exclusion fence curving through the site as part of Great Crested Newt mitigation, with scattered young plants and trees in the background under a cloudy sky.

Image 4 — A row of communal greenhouses built against a retained wall, with wooden raised planting beds filled with greenery in front, and a pathway running alongside under a cloudy sky.

Images — Column 2

Image 1 — A large bug hotel made from stacked wooden pallets, logs, sticks, and natural materials, with a small sign on top with “The Lodge Hotel” written on it, set in front of dense green trees.

Image 2 — A poplar hawkmoth resting on a person’s fingers, its brown patterned wings spread wide against a blurred pink background.

Image 3 — Aerial view of Victory Oak, showing a housing development with clusters of red‑roofed and white homes surrounded by open green space, with a main road running alongside and woodland stretching into the distance. Image credit: Mark Hitchings.

Image 4 — A fast‑flowing stream running through lush green vegetation, with wildflowers and tall grasses along the banks and leafy trees under a bright blue sky with scattered clouds. Image credit: Andy Tryner.

3. Our key risks

Image — Japanese knotweed

Japanese knotweed growing in a patch of rough grass at the edge of a derelict concrete site, with scattered vegetation and industrial buildings in the distance under a bright sky.

Businesses, financial institutions and other organisations can experience nature-related risks of 3 ^{[footnote 6]} broad types:

• physical — such as the decline in significant timber species due to unsustainable harvesting

• transitional — such as the introduction of new laws to ensure timber production is undertaken more sustainably

• liability — such as legal action by communities affected by illegal logging

These risks can be experienced by companies through various means — for example:

• disrupting activities and supply chains
• the need to relocate activities or price in externalities
• the loss of capital
• stranded assets

We recognise that our business activities are exposed to nature-related risks. For example, we own land in areas that are subject to Natural England advice on nutrient neutrality, which was not in place when we acquired the sites. This means that we must now demonstrate and secure a nutrient neutral approach to development when submitting a planning application for those sites. The advice has been issued in response to ecological data showing that designated habitats sites are in ecologically unfavourable condition due to nutrient pollution. Our affected sites are “functionally linked” to these habitats sites through the sewerage system and watercourses. To comply with the advice, we need to ensure that we do not add further nutrient pollution to these sites via the discharge of wastewater. In some cases, we need to pay for offsite mitigation or nutrient credits to achieve a neutral impact.

Homes England has adopted risk categories as part of its Risk Management Framework, which is a systematic and structured framework for classifying and categorising risks. The approach enables a common understanding of risks, enables effective risk management and supports decision-making processes. “Sustainability”, which is intended to encompass nature-related risks, is categorised as a secondary risk under the primary risk of “Regeneration and housing delivery risk”. Sustainability is also deemed a principal risk, being one of the agency’s most material risks which could significantly impact our strategic objectives. This recognition allows us to go beyond generic guidance and develop a deeper understanding of sustainability-related risks specific to our activities, considering factors like:

• preventative measures and recovery actions for development projects

• regulatory compliance for both interventions and corporate health

• wider business goals and potential risk interdependencies

4. Our key opportunities

Image — Dingy skipper

A dingy skipper butterfly with mottled brown patterned wings rests on a rusty metal surface in bright sunlight.

We have significant opportunities to act for nature, both directly and through working with our partners. Our sustainable placemaking outcomes can be used to avoid unintended consequences by not looking at solutions for nature in isolation. Nature, 1 of the 9 outcomes, impacts on and is impacted by the others:

• movement
• wellbeing
• economy
• character
• accessibility
• stewardship
• resources
• climate

The 9 outcomes are being implemented and tracked across Homes England using the Sustainable Placemaking Passport. This is the mechanism for enabling implementation and achievement of our outcomes, supporting new and already established projects and programmes to document what we can achieve and how this will be delivered in practice. This approach provides a consistent framework for understanding how effectively we are delivering against the outcomes and how we can continuously improve.

Diagram — Our 9 sustainable placemaking outcomes

The 9 Homes England Sustainability and Design outcomes are presented as a wheel of coloured wedges, interconnected through the principles of healthy, resilient and inclusive. The nature outcome wedge is emphasised and states ‘nature thrives, is protected and accessible to all’.

Nature

Nature thrives, is protected and accessible to all

Movement

Walking, wheeling, cycling and public transport are being prioritised

Wellbeing

Homes and places support belonging, wellbeing and safety for all

Character

Homes and places are desirable, have a strong identity and sense of place

Accessibility

Homes and places are accessible and functional to all

Economy

Places support a thriving local economy with jobs and local services near where people live

Stewardship

Homes and places are made to last and well looked after

Resources

Homes and places are net zero carbon and resource efficient

Climate

Homes and places respond to the impact of climate change

Homes England sustainability and design outcomes

Healthy

Resilient

Inclusive

We have identified opportunities across the agency. These are:

Commercial activities

Making use of our influence within the supply chain to promote Nature Positive principles, such as procuring goods and supporting practices which have less impact on nature. This could include supporting partners to examine and map where materials such as concrete, steel, timber, asphalt and earth are sourced from and their embodied biodiversity. We could encourage our partners to use circular economy principles, reducing the amounts of raw materials needed in construction, prioritising reused materials, sourcing low-carbon materials from suppliers and considering the certifications of materials ^{[footnote 7]}.

Where we have direct influence, using commercial policy and contract clauses to ensure that suppliers contribute to the delivery of our Nature Positive goals. When we are providing land opportunities, or finance, asking partners to fulfil nature-related criteria to achieve higher standards. We can work with partners to respond to new requirements and promote innovations relevant to nature and the sector, for example, new products (such as innovations in bat mitigation methods promoted by the Bat Conservation Trust Roost project) and processes (such as the implementation of mandatory 10% BNG in England under Schedule 7A of the Town and Country Planning Act ^{[footnote 8]} as inserted by Schedule 14 of the Environment Act 2021 ^{[footnote 9]} ).

Increasing the quality and resilience of planting designs through the procurement process, by screening landscape consultant portfolios prior to work being awarded, to ensure that all consultants commissioned are sufficiently knowledgeable to provide the highest quality designs for nature. BNG is a mandatory tool using habitats as a proxy for all biodiversity. While it helps ensure more nature after development than before, it isn’t a design tool. Good landscape consultants collaborate with ecologists to achieve the best outcomes for nature. They need to be fluent in how to maximise planting in their designs for nature and people and wider environmental benefits.

Sector influence

Seeking to work with and invest in partners with credible plans and standards in place to deliver projects which contribute to Nature Positive goals.

Playing an active role in industry and government stakeholder forums focusing on promoting best practice for nature recovery in development. This includes contributing time and expertise to initiatives such as the Future Homes Hub, Supply Chain Sustainability School, British Standards Institute and BNG Implementation Board.

Decision-making on development and investment opportunities

Setting criteria to avoid investing in sites or other opportunities which have an unacceptable impact on nature.

Promoting Nature Positive practices in the housebuilding sector through requirements embedded in site disposal evaluations and grant or loan funding criteria.

Designing and delivering development

Continuing to use Building for a Healthy Life, a design tool used to create places that are better for people and nature. We have used this tool since 2019 for design quality assessment. We use external assessors to ensure that the quality of design sought at the outset is maintained throughout the disposals process.

Enhancing the wellbeing of communities by designing and promoting sufficient, high-quality greenspaces that incorporate features supporting a stronger connection to nature. We can focus on design quality and features that can support natural habitats and benefit wider biodiversity goals. 3 of our schemes have already achieved Building with Nature Design Awards, gaining external recognition of the quality of the green infrastructure they will deliver.

Achieving greater climate and biodiversity resilience through Nature Positive solutions, aligning our nature-focused efforts with broader sustainability and design aspirations. We will prioritise nature-based solutions (NbS) in designs, before considering hard engineering methods.

Increasing ‘eco-friendly’ ^{[footnote 10]} solutions and integrating biodiversity into designs. Landscapes should have a full range of planting structure and habitats, building on site assets. When creating habitats, species compositions should be selected on a site-by-site basis, determined by soil character and existing habitat types to ensure that created habitats align with the character of the local area. Provision of wildlife ‘furniture’ should also be included, such as swift bricks, bat boxes, hedgehog highways, insect hotels and bird boxes.

Estates management

Protecting and enhancing the protected sites under our ownership through the implementation of comprehensive and effective management plans.

Reducing the environmental impacts of estates management activities, for example by looking for ways to reduce pesticide use.

Surplus land

Using sites that have no potential for built development to deliver environmental benefits. These could include BNG or carbon sequestration, providing benefits to our own development schemes or those of third parties.

5. Our Nature Positive goals

Image — House sparrow

A male house sparrow perched on a brick ledge, with green foliage blurred in the background.

Recognising our significant risks and opportunities, actions for delivering our commitments to nature are set here as goals. Our internal action plan expands on the goals, identifying the specific actions we will take to deliver against the goals over the next 2 years, including the timescales and required resources.

Our objective is to implement practical actions that will make a measurable difference. This includes our organisational aims, resourcing and upskilling, data, procurement, and business relationships, as well as approaches to minimise negative and ensure positive impacts. Our journey towards Nature Positive will be an iterative process, with the goals detailed below forming the first stage. The outcomes and lessons learnt from the implementation of these actions will inform future iterations of the NPP and updates to the associated goals.

The Nature Positive Plan goals

Nature in our strategy

Goal 1 — Understanding our nature-related issues and impacts

Goal 2 — Accounting for nature in our commercial activities

Goal 3 — Endorsing and promoting Nature Positive initiatives in the sector

Nature in our places

Goal 4 — Selecting the right development and investment opportunities

Goal 5 — Designing homes for nature and people

Goal 6 — Managing sites for nature

Goal 7 — Making the best of our non-development sites

Nature in our capabilities

Goal 8 — Improving our internal capabilities

Goal 9 — Improving our spatial and management information data

Nature in our strategy

Goal 1 — Understanding our nature-related issues and impacts

We have started a process of engagement across Homes England and in the wider industry, to better understand our nature-related impacts and dependencies, risks and opportunities. We have also carried out a detailed assessment using recognised industry guidance. We will feed the findings into our action plan reviews and use them to inform the next review of the goals. They will be shared with our Board and Executive Leadership teams, then integrated into our existing risk management mechanisms, working with our in-house risk team.

Goal 2 — Accounting for nature in our commercial activities

We will promote Nature Positive outcomes in our supply chain and commercial activities through the development of our sustainable commercial policy.

Where we have direct influence, we will use commercial policy and contract clauses to ensure that suppliers contribute to the delivery of our Nature Positive goals.

When we are providing land opportunities we will ask partners to fulfil nature-related criteria to achieve higher standards.

We will work with partners to adopt Nature Positive approaches. We will particularly focus on landscaping quality, recognising the importance of good-quality design and robust delivery to achieve the best outcomes for nature.

Goal 3 — Endorsing and promoting Nature Positive initiatives in the sector

Where we recognise that some of our partners are much further advanced on Nature Positive than we are, we want to learn from them. For others who are not so far on this journey, we will use our ‘soft power’ to educate and inform these organisations, encouraging them to become Nature Positive proponents.

Nature Positive initiatives in the development sector will be endorsed by the agency where appropriate, such as the Homes for Nature initiative.

On our sites which are promoted for development, we will continue to promote the use of tools such as Natural England’s Green Infrastructure Framework and the Building with Nature standards. We will expand our participation in industry forums, such as those run by the Supply Chain Sustainability School and the Future Homes Hub, to both learn from and contribute to best practice in the sector.

Image — Victory Oak

Large leafy tree in the foreground with houses and a wooden fence visible behind it on a residential street.

Image credit: Mark Hitchings

Nature in our places

Goal 4 — Selecting the right development and investment opportunities

We will not acquire sites for built development that are identified for their ecological importance, avoiding those that are statutorily or locally designated for nature conservation, or those where built development will need to directly impact on irreplaceable habitat. “Statutorily or locally designated for nature conservation” means:

• sites that have been designated as habitats sites (SPAs, SACs, and Ramsar sites)
• Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs)
• Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC), which may be known as Local Wildlife Sites

“Irreplaceable habitats” are defined in the BNG Regulations and include ancient woodland.

Where we already own such sites, we will maintain effective management plans which focus on achieving and maintaining sites in favourable condition. We will look beyond site boundaries to understand how our sites are functionally connected to others that are formally recognised for their nature value, for example, areas listed in Local Nature Recovery Strategies. We will ensure nature is addressed through the life cycle of a development project through effective use of the internal Sustainability and Design Passport. When investing, we will prioritise proposals that show innovation, productivity, nature or wider sustainability benefits. For the Social and Affordable Homes Programme, we will encourage providers to meet the aspirations of the Strategic Plan, using our grant to deliver more sustainable homes and places.

Image — Victory Oak

Conservation grazing.

A horse grazing on rough grassland and scrub as part of conservation management, with houses partly visible behind the vegetation under a grey, overcast sky.

Goal 5 — Designing homes for nature and people

We will design opportunities for nature recovery enhancements into each of our own schemes from the earliest stages of planning. Every developer that builds on our sites will identify and deliver a suite of features to support all native species with a focus on strategies for habitats in the built environment to foster their resurgence — for example, thorny scrub at peripheries, as well as supporting important species such as bats and invertebrates. Each solution will be tailored to the scheme’s location and other characteristics. We will protect and enhance pollinator-friendly habitat, with suitable planting being a requirement of detailed design. We will also protect existing woodland cover and deliver enhancements including tree planting where appropriate to the ecology and site context. We will embed nature-based solutions into design, identify how schemes can contribute to emerging local nature recovery strategies and pursue more opportunities to connect people with nature.

We have reviewed our approach and developed principles which promote the consideration of long-term stewardship on a holistic basis which goes beyond the basic maintenance of assets. A live workstream is taking action to embed this approach from the outset of delivery and recognise stewardship as a vital placemaking and long-term place-keeping tool to support activities which create a vibrant community and environment.  We prioritise the adoption of assets by organisations with the necessary skills, experience and focus and pursue a site-wide approach to stewardship to ensure a financially sustainable solution.

Goal 6 — Managing sites for nature

Our estates management practices will protect and, where appropriate, enhance nature. We are committed to protecting and enhancing all protected sites under our management. These include a significant Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Kent. We will carry out a review of how we look after sites, with a particular focus on opportunities for reducing unnecessary use of pesticides and controlling invasive and non-native species.

Goal 7 — Making the best of our non-development sites

We have already surveyed over 30 of our non-development sites to identify how they could deliver BNG and other environmental benefits. We will take forward the most suitable sites providing nature benefits to agency-led schemes, or to those of partners. Where conditions align, we will also consider carbon sequestration opportunities on these sites in tandem with the delivery of nature benefits.

Nature in our capabilities

Goal 8 — Improving our internal capabilities

We will provide training to all colleagues on the basics of biodiversity. We will enhance the tailored training we already provide on key topics, expanding this to cover colleagues who are involved in planning, site management, sustainability, development finance, affordable housing and other roles with the greatest opportunities and risks for nature.

Goal 9 — Improving our spatial and management information data

We will work with our geospatial, estates and project teams to capture spatial data covering ecological and environmental information across our portfolio. This will include features such as habitats, protected species and invasive species. The data will be used to inform our management and monitoring work. We will support colleagues in the Investments team to evaluate the nature and wider sustainability credentials of our development loans and equity investments. We will review and learn from this data to improve our measurement framework over time.

Image — Ecologist and a great crested newt

A gloved hand gently holding a small Great Crested Newt.

Image — Public engagement for south east Warrington

People viewing information boards at a public engagement event in a community hall.

Image — Worcestershire Parkway (Wychavon Town) – town centre (local context)

Aerial view of Worcestershire Parkway showing surrounding farmland, with the proposed town centre boundary outlined in red.

6. How we will deliver the plan and monitor progress

Image — Linnet

A linnet perched on the top of a spiky plant against a clear blue sky.

Responsibilities

The senior responsible officer for successful delivery of the NPP is the Chief Regional Delivery Officer. Their role is to ensure that the NPP is adequately resourced, for example that the Sustainability and Design Team has the capacity to lead on operational delivery and that other teams across the Agency are playing their part. They will also ensure that the buy-in of the board and Executive Leadership Team, which is crucial to the NPP’s delivery, is maintained.

To mitigate key risks and embrace opportunities for nature improvement, the internal action plan includes short- and medium-term measures to make meaningful progress. Actions have been assigned to colleagues and the associated resources identified.

Diagram showing hierarchy of responsibilities

Diagram showing the hierarchy of responsibilities for NPP accountability, ownership, delivery and reporting within Homes England.

Team	Action	Flow of information
Executive leadership team and board	Informed of progress against NPP goals.	Receives sustainability reporting from sustainability and design team.
NPP senior responsible officer	NPP owner endorsing implementation of NPP actions across the agency.	Up to executive leadership team and board. Down to Sustainability and design team.
Sustainability and design team	Nature team leading NPP goals, coordination and reporting.	Down to regional delivery teams, central support teams. Up with sustainability reporting to executive leadership team and board.
Regional delivery teams and central support teams	Operational teams NPP action implementation.	—

Monitoring and review of progress

We will report our progress on achieving goals on an annual basis, through our Greening Government Commitment reporting and through the Sustainability Report within our Annual Report and Accounts. Progress on the Action Plan will be tracked internally on a quarterly basis and reported to senior management, as part of the review process in place for our wider environmental management system.

enquiries@homesengland.gov.uk

0300 1234 500

gov.uk/homes-england

1. Leaders’ Pledge for Nature: United to Reverse Biodiversity Loss by 2030 for Sustainable Development ↩

2. Nature Positive — News IUCN ↩

3. United Nations (2023) Global Biodiversity Framework — 23 Adopted Targets ↩

4. African Natural Capital Alliance, BirdLife International, Business for Nature et al. (2023). A Global Goal for Nature ↩

5. ENCORE encorenature.org ↩

6. Cambridge Institute For Sustainability Leadership (2021). Handbook for Nature-related Financial Risks: Key concepts and a framework for identification. ↩

7. Expedition, ICE (2023). The Embodied Biodiversity Impacts of Construction Materials ↩

8. UK Government (1990). Town and Country Planning Act ↩

9. UK Government (2021). The Environment Act ↩

10. Cambridge dictionary definition - Not harmful to the environment or trying to help the environment. ↩