But for all the rhetoric — and undoubtedly the right intentions — many of the small- and medium-sized (SME) developers we work with are facing many of the same issues they were a decade ago.

In some respects, those challenges have become even harder to overcome. The industry already knows how to build homes. The bigger challenge is creating the conditions that give developers the confidence to bring forward more viable schemes.

Overcoming planning barriers

Planning delays have long been a challenge, and most developers have learned to work around them as best they can. Long lead times, drawn-out consultations and varying timescales between local authorities have become part of the reality of development.

What is becoming far more damaging today, however, is not simply the speed of the planning process but the uncertainty surrounding it. Developers can usually plan for a delay. What becomes much harder is planning for unpredictability, where changing interpretations and uncertain outcomes make it increasingly difficult to bring viable schemes forward with confidence.

Ahead of the UK's Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum, Hampshire Trust Bank commissioned independent research among SME developers across England and Wales to better understand the pressures they are facing, and the findings were striking. Three-quarters of respondents identified the planning process as a barrier to their business, while almost half described it as the single biggest constraint they currently face.

Importantly, developers were not only frustrated by delays, but repeatedly pointed to inconsistency in decision-making, poor communication and constantly shifting interpretations of policy as major issues creating uncertainty, affecting viability and undermining confidence. When confidence weakens, housing delivery inevitably suffers. That's why these findings should concern anyone serious about increasing the supply of new homes.

It's a story we hear regularly. A scheme that appears entirely reasonable in one local authority can face prolonged resistance in another, and even within the same planning department. The result is that developers often have little certainty about how applications will be assessed from one officer to the next.

One respondent described the process as "pot luck", explaining that one planning officer might approve a proposal while another within the same authority could reach a completely different conclusion. That uncertainty inevitably changes developer behaviour because confidence determines where developers are prepared to commit capital. Businesses become more selective about which schemes they choose to pursue, meaning some viable schemes never progress beyond the initial investment decision.

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The development viability challenge

Large housebuilders may have the scale and balance sheet strength to absorb prolonged planning delays or unexpected changes to requirements, but SME developers rarely do.

For smaller developers, every additional month spent waiting for decisions adds cost, while viability margins become tighter. Developers are already dealing with build cost inflation, labour shortages, environmental obligations and regulatory pressures, all of which continue to squeeze profitability.

When planning itself becomes uncertain, it becomes much harder for developers to assess risk accurately or make confident investment decisions. Developers respond by committing capital more selectively, and the result is that fewer viable schemes are brought forward, ultimately reducing housing delivery.

Several developers surveyed by HTB spoke openly about the financial strain this is creating. One said planning costs and delays had "practically run us out of business", while another argued that the current system is becoming so expensive and bureaucratic that developers are beginning to question whether it is "worth carrying on in the industry".

Those comments should concern anyone serious about increasing housing delivery because SME developers are often the first to respond when confidence weakens.

Why SME developers matter

The reality is that the UK will not build the homes it needs through large corporations alone. SME developers are often the ones bringing forward smaller, more complex and regionally important sites that larger housebuilders simply overlook. Their understanding of local markets, regional demand and the opportunities hidden within smaller sites is invaluable, but they cannot act on that expertise without sufficient confidence.

The industry does not need more headlines about housing targets. It is not short of capable developers. It needs a planning system that developers can navigate with greater certainty and consistency so they have the confidence to invest in bringing forward more viable schemes.

That starts with better resourcing for planning departments, but it also requires clearer communication, more consistent interpretation of policy and stronger engagement earlier in the process.

There also needs to be greater recognition that planning delays do not happen in isolation. Every delay compounds wider pressures around costs, labour, funding and regulation, and when developers are already operating on increasingly fine margins, uncertainty in the planning process can be enough to make a viable scheme unworkable.

Ultimately, the UK doesn't lack capable developers. It lacks the conditions that give them the confidence to invest. Improve those conditions and more viable schemes will be brought forward. That's how we'll increase housing delivery.