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<p>The Government's expectations are set out in the National Planning Policy Framework.
This asks local authorities to optimise density in the development of towns, and to
recognise the character and beauty of the countryside. Plans should focus development
on sustainable locations. The Framework also makes clear that, in rural areas, housing
should be located where it will enhance or maintain the vitality of rural communities.</p><p>It
is for local authorities to use their plans to determine the extent of settlements,
and say where essential development should go, and where restraint, such as Green
Belt, is needed. One of the purposes of Green Belt is to prevent neighbouring towns
merging into one another. In Green Belt, most types of new housing are to be treated
as inappropriate development, and refused planning permission except in very special
circumstances.</p>
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