Blog

After weeks of speculation, the Prime Minister finally announced the scrapping of the northern leg of HS2. But what does this mean for the projects that received planning permission?

It's designed to stop developers attempting to reduce their share of costs for local infrastructure, and affordable housing, when they start new projects. This includes costs across roads, GP surgeries and schools, shared with councils.

Brownfield sites are usually defined as any land that has already been built on, while greenfield land has yet to be developed. But contrary to what you might assume, not all built-on sites count as brownfield. What’s more, brownfield and greenfield sites can both be found in urban and rural areas.

Utilising Searchland's custom sourcing tool simplifies the process of identifying potential sites for solar farms. But what exactly defines the perfect location for such a development? Let's delve into the key characteristics developers need to consider.

For a property development business, the benefits of buying land off-market can outweigh the various barriers and risks involved. Buying land off-market means actively sourcing more sites than are publicly listed on land portals; a great way to build your portfolio and improve your ROI.

SHLAA data is an incredibly powerful source of information for developers, as it includes off-market building sites that have already been assessed for potential planning. Here, we show you how to make use of our Strategic Land Tool and to utilise our SHLAA mapping layer to find off market sites that are most likely to convert.

Ever wondered what stands between an idea for a new building and its actual construction? It's the world of planning applications—a critical, yet often complex, part of property development. These applications are more than just paperwork; they're the keys that can unlock your project's potential or put it on hold.

The fundamental aim of Green Belt policy is to prevent urban sprawl by keeping land permanently open. But could rethinking Green Belt policy be the key to solving our housing crisis?

MCP is everywhere right now. But not all connectors are built the same - and in property and planning, the difference shows up fast. Here's what to look for, and how Searchland stacks up.

Proposed NPPF reforms could introduce a “default yes” approach to development near train stations. We’ve analysed 1,000+ locations across England to identify where the biggest opportunities sit - and how to get ahead before policy is finalised.

Sourcing and appraising development land in the UK requires using multiple site sourcing tools, from checking land ownership and planning history to assessing flood risk, environmental constraints, and site boundaries.

Padel court development is booming across the UK, with planning applications up 113% in 2024. At Searchland, we've uncovered nearly 17,000 sites ready for padel investment. Here's where the real opportunity lies for landowners, developers and investors.

The UK’s Clean Power 2030 target—95% low-carbon electricity by the end of the decade - is reshaping the renewable energy landscape. But with grid congestion, planning hurdles, and soaring land competition, sourcing the right sites has never been tougher.

Well things have certainly changed since we wrote this article in early 2024. Not only do we now have a new Labour-led government but some huge changes to energy policy too. We'll keep the old stuff here for preservation and update the story as it develops.

Every public EV charger in the UK, now on your map - powered by Zapmap. Colour-coded by speed, built into sourcing. The first PropTech platform to bring it in.

Searchland now maps the political make-up of every constituency, ward and district across England, Wales and Scotland - so you can read the local political climate before you commit to a site.

Searchland now brings together over 3,000 Neighbourhood Plans across 300+ councils - surfacing hyper-local policy directly on the map, so site risk is visible from the very first click.

What happens after planning approval? This update shows stakeholder comments, objections and real-world site activity, helping you track whether developments are built, stalled or completed.

Searchland’s Planning Tool brings together 23 million+ UK applications into one searchable, filterable, map-based platform - so land and planning teams can quantify authority behaviour, assess risk properly, and move with confidence instead of instinct.

Developers move fastest when data, insight, and decisions live in one place. Searchland’s new appraisal tool delivers exactly that - turning the entire acquisition workflow into a single, seamless motion.