New research : operationalising the Green Book

Homes for the North, with support from the Northern Housing Consortium, has this week launched new research on appraisal guidance.  This follows revisions made to the Government’s ‘Green Book’ in 2020 and examines how appraisal guidance can be ‘operationalised’ to reflect levelling up. The research finds that the review of the Green Book will come to nothing unless serious thought is given to how, in practical terms, the appraisal system moves beyond monetising benefits to individuals such as land-value uplift, and moves towards truly valuing wider public benefits.

The study was conducted by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr) and included workshops with councils, housing associations and other partners with an interest in delivering more and better homes in the North. The report includes recommendations to government and to scheme promoters.

Commenting, NHC Executive Director Brian Robson, who sat on the steering group for the research, said:  “The NHC was pleased to support Homes for the North with this project. We hope the recommendations to scheme promoters, and the review of the existing evidence base, will prove of value to NHC local and combined authority members as they progress local schemes.”

The report can be downloaded here.