Land Availability Assessment LAA

What is the purpose of the assessment of land availability?

An assessment of land availability identifies a future supply of land which is suitable, available and achievable for housing and economic development uses over the plan period. The assessment is an important source of evidence to inform plan-making and decision-taking, and the identification of a 5-year supply of housing land. It can also inform as well as make use of sites in brownfield registers.

However, the assessment does not in itself determine whether a site should be allocated for development. It is the role of the assessment to provide information on the range of sites which are available to meet the local authority’s (or, where relevant, elected Mayor or combined authority) requirements, but it is for the development plan itself to determine which of those sites are the most suitable to meet those requirements.

Plan-making authorities may carry out land availability assessments for housing and economic development as part of the same exercise, in order that sites may be identified for the use(s) which is most appropriate.

An assessment should:

identify sites and broad locations with potential for development;

assess their development potential; and

assess their suitability for development and the likelihood of development coming forward (the availability and achievability).

EHDC LAA site 

LAA methodology pdf