NPPF (2026) · policies L3, S5 and GB7
Which stations pass the new NPPF’s well-connected test?
1,121 English stations do. Around each one, national policy sets a minimum housing density and opens routes to permission that exist nowhere else.
The 2026 Framework calls a station well-connected on two facts: it sits in one of the top 80 travel to work areas by economic output, and the weekday timetable serves it at least 4 times an hour overall, or 2 an hour in one direction. Within about 800 metres of one, residential schemes must reach at least 35 homes per hectare, or 45 where the service is at least twice the minimum. The list and map below cover every English station on the timetable: the ones that pass carry their density badge, and the ones that fall short are greyed out, each with the reason on its own page. Click a station to see its 800 metre circle; double-click to open its page.
Own land near one of these stations?
The station test is one policy among many. Our free site assessment reads a specific site against the full Framework: settlement position, Green Belt status, flood risk, heritage and the density rules on this page. Draw the boundary and get a first answer in minutes.
What the circle is worth
A density floor, and a refusal for missing it
Policy L3(2)(c) is the direct effect. Residential schemes within reasonable walking distance of a well-connected station must reach the minimum density shown on each station’s badge, measured across the net developable area. It is a floor rather than a cap, and a scheme that fails it should be refused. Small sites below the major development threshold can escape, but only by showing the standard is inappropriate or not possible.
How the density rule works →A route to permission outside settlements
Land outside a settlement boundary normally needs to fit one of the listed routes in policy S5. Being within reasonable walking distance of a well-connected station, and physically well-related to the station or its settlement, is one of those routes in its own right. A paddock or field near a listed station can carry the principle of housing where an identical field a mile away cannot.
The routes outside settlements →Green Belt near stations moved most of all
The same station test appears twice in the Green Belt chapter. GB7(1)(h) makes housing near a well-connected station not inappropriate development, subject to the Golden Rules. And at plan level, GB2(4) lets a council release Green Belt land around these stations without demonstrating exceptional circumstances. If your land is in the Green Belt and inside one of these circles, its position has changed more than most.
How Green Belt policy changed →Questions
Why does my station show as not qualifying?
On the data we hold it fails one of the two limbs of the test. Either its travel to work area sits outside the top 80 by economic output, or the September 2026 weekday timetable shows fewer than 4 trains an hour overall and fewer than 2 an hour in any single direction. Each station's own page says which limb falls short. There is one exception worth knowing: the Framework also counts a station with a reasonable prospect of reaching that frequency through planned upgrades or an agreement with the operator. A timetable cannot show that, so a station with a committed service improvement may qualify even though it is greyed out here.
Are London Underground, tram and Metro stops included?
The policy includes them: Annex B covers railway stations and underground, tram and light rail stops. Our list is built from the national rail timetable, which carries few Underground, tram or Metro services, so coverage of those stops is incomplete. In practice that understates inner London and the cities with tram and metro networks. Treat the list as reliable for national rail stations and as a minimum elsewhere.
Does being within 800 metres of a listed station guarantee planning permission?
No. Proximity does two specific things. It sets a minimum housing density for residential schemes under policy L3, and it opens supportive routes for land outside settlements under S5(1)(h) and in the Green Belt under GB7(1)(h). Every other policy still applies: flood risk, heritage, protected landscapes and the rest. The only way to a real answer is an assessment of the specific site.
Is the 800 metres measured in a straight line?
The circles on the map are straight line distance, which is the right first check. The Framework defines reasonable walking distance as around 800 metres, or around a 10 minute walk where topography, route quality or physical barriers would discourage walking that far. A river without a crossing or a dual carriageway can shorten the effective distance, so treat the edge of the circle as approximate. Where only part of a site falls inside, the density rule applies to that part alone.
What do the 35 and 45 homes per hectare figures mean?
They are minimum densities under policy L3(2)(c), measured across the net developable area of a site rather than the whole site. 35 homes per hectare applies near any well-connected station. 45 applies where the service is at least twice the minimum frequency, meaning 8 trains an hour overall or 4 an hour in one direction. They are floors rather than caps, and L3(4) says schemes that fail them should be refused. Sites below the major development threshold can be excepted where meeting the standard is shown to be inappropriate or not possible.
How current is the service data?
The list is built from the national rail weekday timetable, September 2026 sample, and the Office for National Statistics 2023 rankings of travel to work areas by economic output. The Framework fixes the 2023 rankings in place until the day after the 2028 figures are published, so that half of the test will not move. Timetables do change, so check the current one before relying on a station's status in an application.
Free · No sign-up · England only · National policy only, not planning advice. Service frequencies from the national rail weekday timetable, 2026-09-01 sample. Travel to work area rankings from ONS 2023 GVA data. Underground, tram and Metro stops are under-represented in the source timetable. Circles are straight line distance. The data behind this page: /nppf-2026/stations.json
Reflects the National Planning Policy Framework (2026), published 17 August 2026. This page last reviewed 26 August 2026. Read the framework.
