Consultation on the Land Use Framework for England
Ipsos in the UK were commissioned by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) to design and deliver a large-scale consultation programme between January and April 2025. Our role encompassed both the delivery of stakeholder and public engagement activities and the analysis of consultation responses submitted through the formal consultation process. This included analysing more than 7,000 consultation responses, alongside evidence gathered through deliberative workshops and focus groups conducted across England, to provide Defra with a comprehensive understanding of stakeholder and public views on land use change.
Our approach
Drawing on our expertise in stakeholder engagement and deliberative research, Ipsos delivered a programme of workshops and focus groups in six locations across England. Participants included representatives from farming and land management organisations, environmental groups, local authorities, industry bodies, community organisations, researchers and other stakeholders with an interest in land use.
Alongside the engagement programme, Ipsos led the analysis of consultation responses received through the government's formal consultation process. We coded and analysed responses from individuals and organisations, identifying key themes, areas of consensus and differing perspectives across stakeholder groups. This analysis was combined with insight from workshops and focus groups to provide Defra with an integrated evidence base that reflected both the breadth of consultation responses and the depth of deliberative discussion.
What we found
Drawing on both the consultation analysis and deliberative engagement activities, Ipsos identified several consistent themes across stakeholder groups and public participants. The consultation revealed broad support for the need to take a long-term and strategic approach to land use in England. Participants widely recognised the importance of balancing economic priorities, food production, housing growth and environmental objectives, but also highlighted the complexity of achieving these goals simultaneously.
Across stakeholder groups and public participants, there was a strong call for decision-making processes that draw on local knowledge and expertise. Respondents emphasised that successful land use planning should be developed collaboratively with communities and land managers, rather than imposed through a purely top-down approach. Participants also stressed the importance of high-quality data and evidence to support robust and transparent decisions.
A recurring theme was the value of multifunctional land use, with participants highlighting opportunities to deliver multiple benefits from the same areas of land. There was also widespread recognition that future land use policy needs to be flexible enough to respond to emerging evidence and changing circumstances, while maintaining a clear and stable long-term direction. Many respondents identified the need for coordinated and long-term funding mechanisms to support land managers and encourage the right changes in the right places.
Impact
The consultation provided Defra with a robust evidence base on the opportunities, concerns and priorities associated with land use change across England. Through the analysis of more than 7,000 consultation responses, alongside in-depth deliberative engagement with stakeholders and members of the public, Ipsos helped Defra understand not only what participants thought, but why they held those views and where areas of consensus and disagreement existed. The findings informed the creation of the Land Use Framework for England, supporting a more evidence-led approach to balancing economic growth, food production, housing delivery and environmental resilience over the coming decades.
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