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Wanted in Cheshire

Sites with lapsed or refused planning wanted in Cheshire

We want to hear from owners of sites with lapsed or refused planning in Cheshire. There is nothing to pay us, and you are under no obligation.

If your permission expired or an application was refused, the land may still be developable. A refusal often comes down to design, access or a specific technical issue that can be addressed in a new application.

Overgrown fenced plot with brambles and saplings behind a weathered hoarding between houses
Wanted
Size
Any
Planning
Lapsed, refused or withdrawn
Areas
England & Wales
Ways we buy
Conditional or outright

Tell us about your Cheshire site

Free, no-obligation appraisal for land anywhere in Cheshire.

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Agents: any introducer fee is agreed in writing before details are shared and confirmed by the owner. How it works.

The sites with lapsed or refused planning that interests us around Cheshire

Cheshire includes Chester, Warrington, the Mersey towns of Widnes, Runcorn and Ellesmere Port, the mid-Cheshire salt towns and affluent towns such as Wilmslow and Macclesfield. A large part of the north and east of the county is Green Belt, so grey belt, previously developed land and infill are important there. In the south, around Crewe and Nantwich, more edge-of-town greenfield land and farmland comes forward.

  • Land refused for design, access or technical reasons
  • Sites where an appeal was dismissed on specific points
  • Land with an old permission that was never started
  • Plots where policy has changed since the last decision

Cheshire's eastern edge rises into the Peak District National Park, and the Dee and Mersey estuaries bring flood and habitat considerations. Former industrial and chemical land around Northwich, Winsford and Runcorn, and village sites near stations on the Crewe and Manchester lines, are typical development opportunities.

What decides whether a site in Cheshire works

Reasons for refusal

The wording of each reason tells us what would need to change.

Policy changes

National and local policy may have moved since the last decision, for better or worse.

Time since decision

The longer ago the decision, the more the context may have changed.

Where an English council cannot show a five-year supply of housing land, or its Housing Delivery Test result falls below 75%, the August 2026 NPPF can give policy support to suitable housing outside settlement boundaries.

English councils keep brownfield land registers, and some previously developed sites can be granted permission in principle, a quicker way of establishing whether housing is acceptable before technical details are settled.

Four ways to sell to us

01

Outright purchase

Possible where the fix is clear and low risk.

Outright purchase
02

Subject-to-planning contract

The usual route: we make the revised application and complete on success.

Subject-to-planning contract
03

Option agreement

You grant us the right to buy within a set period, usually for an option premium, while we pursue planning.

Option agreement
04

Joint venture

You contribute the land, we fund and manage planning and delivery, and the proceeds are shared as agreed.

Joint venture

Questions owners in Cheshire ask

Does a refusal make the land worth less?

It can affect value, but often the reasons can be addressed. Policy may also have changed since the decision.

How do you decide if a site is worth another attempt?

We look at the reasons for refusal, any appeal, current policy and the technical evidence, then give a straight view.

Can an agent introduce land in Cheshire to you?

Yes. Estate agents, land agents and planning consultants can introduce sites with the owner's consent. Any fee is agreed in writing before details are shared, confirmed by the owner in writing and paid only on completion.

Which planning rules apply to land in Cheshire?

As Cheshire is in England, national policy comes from the National Planning Policy Framework, revised in August 2026. Local policies in the council's development plan also apply.

Tell us about your land near Cheshire

Owners and agents welcome. Nothing to pay, no obligation.

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