Vol. I 14 April 2026
Ground Level

All pieces

the-system 23 Jun 2026

How land gets its value, and who keeps it.

The arithmetic underneath the English housing crisis.

The Editor · 17 min read
policy 16 Jun 2026

The neighbourhood plan, and what it can actually do.

The most democratic tool in the planning system, and the one with the least power when the system is under pressure.

The Editor · 15 min read
the-system 9 Jun 2026

The infrastructure that doesn't exist yet.

How water, roads, schools, and GP surgeries are supposed to arrive alongside new housing, and why they don't.

The Editor · 16 min read
policy 2 Jun 2026

Section 106 and the Community Infrastructure Levy.

Two mechanisms for making developers pay for what development needs, and why both are under strain.

The Editor · 14 min read
the-system 26 May 2026

The Local Plan, and why most of England does not have one.

The document that decides where houses go, how it gets made, what happens when it fails, and what happens without it.

The Editor · 15 min read
the-system 19 May 2026

Viability, density, and why every estate looks the same.

The product range, the economics behind it, and a planning system that cannot demand anything better.

The Editor · 14 min read
policy 12 May 2026

What "affordable" actually means, and what it costs.

The gap between what the planning system calls affordable and what a local worker can pay.

The Editor · 12 min read
policy 5 May 2026

The five-year supply, the tilted balance, and why your council can't say no.

The mechanism that hands control to developers when a council falls behind.

The Editor · 10 min read
policy 28 Apr 2026

What the standard method is, and what it is not.

A formula, a set of inputs, and a missing cap. Three things, in order.

The Editor · 8 min read
policy 23 Apr 2026

The Housing Algorithm.

How a government formula is overriding local democracy, ignoring physical reality, and reshaping rural England.

The Editor · 13 min read
Ground Level

Get the dispatch.

Long-form, data-first, independent. Housing, planning and infrastructure reporting delivered free to your inbox.

01Independent, long-form reporting on housing and planning.
02Free to read. Unsubscribe in one click.
03Written by industry professionals, not content mills.