Selling land in Hart, Hampshire

A council short of housing land, a plan years away and a buyer who wants land here. What that means for your land.

By Iain Forster, The Land Buyer. Last reviewed 2026-10-05.

In shortHart District Council was found at a planning appeal in August 2025 to have about 1.8 years of housing land against the five it should hold, so the presumption in favour of sustainable development applies to applications there. A new local plan is being prepared, with a call for sites open since August 2025 and submission aimed at 2028. Village edge land near Fleet, Hook and Odiham is in demand.

The local plan
What we look for
Free land review

The local plan

Under two years of housing land, a new plan years away

An appeal decision in August 2025 found Hart had about 1.8 years of deliverable housing land, far short of the five years the national framework requires. When a council is that short, the framework's presumption in favour of sustainable development applies: an application beside a settlement is approved unless the harm clearly outweighs the benefit. Hart opened a call for sites for its new local plan on 29 August 2025, which remains open. It aims to submit the plan in March 2028 (Hart District Council call for sites page, read October 2026). Until then the shortage is the strongest card an owner of village edge land holds.

What that means for an owner. Land touching Fleet, Church Crookham, Hook, Odiham, North Warnborough, Hartley Wintney and the villages has a live application route now, not in 2028. The constraint that decides most Hart sites is the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area: homes within five kilometres of it need a share of a Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace. Within 400 metres they are not allowed at all. We check the SANG position before anything else.

Why our buyer wants it

Hart sits inside two requirements we hold, a housebuilder's and a funder's. Values in the Hart villages clear the bar. We have read the appeal, the housing trajectory and the call for sites submissions in full.

Check the register yourself

Hart's online planning register shows applications by postcode with the officer's report and the decision notice.

What we are looking for here

Village edges with SANG capacity

Village edge fields

One to six acres touching Rotherwick, Odiham, North Warnborough, Long Sutton, Winchfield and the villages round Fleet, with a gate onto an adopted road.

Yards and paddocks inside a settlement

Land already within the built area, which the SANG rules treat more kindly and the plan treats as infill.

Sites put into the call for sites

If you submitted land to Hart's call for sites, you already have a case. We can tell you how it stands against the buyers we hold.

Questions landowners ask

Straight answers

What does Hart's housing land shortage mean for my land?

When a council cannot show five years of deliverable housing land, national policy tilts the decision towards approval for sustainable sites. Hart was found to have about 1.8 years in August 2025. Village edge land with access and no overriding constraint has a real chance now.

What is SANG and why does it matter in Hart?

Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace is open space provided to draw walkers away from the Thames Basin Heaths. Homes within five kilometres of the heaths need SANG capacity, which is limited. Homes within 400 metres are refused outright. It is the first check we make on any Hart site.

I put my land into Hart's call for sites. What now?

The call for sites is evidence for a plan due in 2028. It does not grant anything. We can tell you whether the site also fits a buyer we hold today, which is a faster route.

Free land review

Tell us about your land

Tell us the postcode. We do the rest at our cost and come back to you within ten days.