North Yorkshire BNG advice
Biodiversity Net Gain in North Yorkshire
Plan your North Yorkshire development around its habitats, local planning policies and biodiversity net gain requirements.
ACP Consultants can help with habitat surveys, biodiversity metric calculations and a practical BNG delivery plan for your North Yorkshire site.
Local planning guidance
Which North Yorkshire planning authority handles your development?
In April 2023, North Yorkshire Council replaced seven former district and borough councils. It now decides most ordinary development applications outside the National Parks.
However, the City of York Council remains a separate unitary authority. Land within the North York Moors or Yorkshire Dales National Parks falls under their respective National Park Authorities for planning.
Minerals and waste proposals also use additional policies and sometimes different decision-making arrangements.
First, locate the actual red-line boundary. Then confirm the authority and adopted plan. A nearby town or postcode is not sufficient in every case.
Practical tool: Use the North Yorkshire BNG planning-route finder below to identify the correct plan, LNRS map and ecological evidence.
Why are there still seven former district Local Plans?
North Yorkshire became one council in April 2023, but the existing adopted plans were not cancelled automatically.
The former Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby policy areas therefore remain relevant. Each has its own adopted plan and, in some cases, saved policies or neighbourhood plans.
North Yorkshire Council is preparing a consolidated Local Plan to 2045. Its scoping consultation runs from 26 October to 7 December 2026.
That plan is emerging, not adopted. Until lawful replacement, applicants should start with the relevant inherited adopted policies.
Does the same process apply in York and the National Parks?
No. York adopted its Local Plan on 27 February 2025 and issued factual corrections in April and June 2026. Its adopted GI2 Biodiversity and Access to Nature policy is relevant to ecological planning.
The North York Moors Local Plan was adopted in July 2020 and remains current while a review is prepared.
The Yorkshire Dales National Park Local Plan 2025–2040 was adopted on 30 June 2026. This is now the National Park's main policy framework, not an emerging plan.
The National Parks cross administrative boundaries. Therefore, the planning authority and the relevant county nature recovery map must be established separately.
Local planning guidance
Adopted North Yorkshire Local Plans: seven historical policy areas
The following table helps identify the adopted policy framework for sites determined by North Yorkshire Council. These seven areas are not seven separate current councils.
| Historical plan area | Operative adopted plan | Important biodiversity and application checks |
|---|---|---|
| Craven | Craven Local Plan 2012–2032, adopted 12 November 2019. | ENV4 Biodiversity and Geodiversity, ENV5 Green Infrastructure; Green Infrastructure and Biodiversity SPD 2022. Check habitat, landscape and the applicable local list. |
| Hambleton | Hambleton Local Plan 2014–2036, adopted 22 February 2022. | E3 Natural Environment, E4 Green Infrastructure. The Park Authority determines applications inside the North York Moors boundary. |
| Harrogate | Harrogate District Local Plan 2014–2035, adopted 4 March 2020. | NE3 Protecting the Local Environment and relevant green infrastructure/designation policy. Check Nidderdale and other landscape constraints where applicable. |
| Richmondshire | Richmondshire Local Plan Core Strategy 2012–2028, adopted 9 December 2014. | CP12 Environmental and Historic Assets. Check biodiversity, heritage, relevant saved policies and National Park boundaries. |
| Ryedale | Ryedale Plan Local Plan Strategy, adopted 5 September 2013, with applicable supporting plans. | Confirm the exact mapped site and conservation policies. Some Ryedale land lies in the North York Moors planning area. |
| Scarborough | Scarborough Borough Local Plan 2011–2032, adopted 3 July 2017. | Review relevant biodiversity, coastal and landscape policies, protected sites and actual local validation requirements. |
| Selby | Selby District Core Strategy, adopted 22 October 2013, alongside retained 2005 Local Plan policies. | SP18 Protecting and Enhancing the Environment is a relevant starting point. Check which saved policies and neighbourhood plans remain operative. |
The new North Yorkshire Local Plan will eventually bring these areas into one framework. However, a consultation timetable or new-site directory does not mean that replacement has already happened.
York, National Park and minerals-and-waste routes
| Authority | Current adopted policy | Planning distinction |
|---|---|---|
| City of York Council | City of York Local Plan adopted February 2025, amended for factual corrections in 2026. GI2 Biodiversity and Access to Nature. | York is a separate local planning authority with its own validation guidance. A new York Local Plan 2045 is being prepared. |
| North York Moors National Park Authority | Local Plan adopted 27 July 2020, including environmental Strategic Policies A, E and H and related ENV policies. | Determines applications inside the Park. Review its specific BNG planning advice and the protected moorland/coast rules. |
| Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority | Local Plan 2025–2040 adopted 30 June 2026, including biodiversity and habitat protection provisions. | Determines applications in the Park, including parts outside North Yorkshire. Check the actual adopted biodiversity policy and site boundaries. |
| Joint minerals-and-waste authorities | Minerals and Waste Joint Plan 2022, adopted by North Yorkshire (February), North York Moors (March) and York (April). | A different planning framework for relevant minerals/waste applications. The joint plan does not cover Yorkshire Dales National Park. |
Is there one set of North Yorkshire BNG validation requirements?
No. North Yorkshire Council has its own BNG application guidance and validation information. York and the two Park Authorities also have their own application requirements.
For an in-scope planning application, the baseline information may include the statutory metric, habitat plans, earlier habitat degradation evidence, a description of irreplaceable habitats and relevant ecological surveys.
North Yorkshire Council's current guidance identifies the statutory metric and scaled baseline habitat information, as well as monitoring requirements where applicable. Its fee schedule depends on habitat scale and management complexity.
York and the North York Moors also publish specific BNG advice. Apply the current national exemption rules alongside the relevant authority’s submission requirements.
Local planning guidance
How does statutory biodiversity net gain work in North Yorkshire?
BNG compares the biodiversity value of a site's habitats before and after development. The statutory metric assesses habitat type, extent, condition and other prescribed factors.
A suitable survey establishes the baseline. The design team can then consider retaining valuable features, enhancing suitable habitats or creating new ones.
Where statutory BNG applies, the development normally needs at least 10% net gain. A Biodiversity Gain Plan must generally be approved before the development begins.
The initial planning application may still need metric and ecological information earlier. This distinction matters when coordinating surveys, layout drawings and planning submissions.
Do small development sites always need 10% BNG?
No. The statutory regime includes exemptions and transitional provisions.
For qualifying planning applications made on or after 6 August 2026, development on a full red-line site of 0.2 hectares or less may be exempt where the works do not impact any on-site priority habitat.
There are separate householder, qualifying de minimis and temporary-development exemptions. In contrast, the former general exemption for new self-build and custom-build applications ended on 6 August 2026.
Earlier applications and certain section 73 variations require separate checks. The 0.2-hectare limit concerns the whole red-line site, not just the building footprint.
Being exempt from statutory BNG does not remove protected species, designated-site, water-quality or local biodiversity policies.
Which biodiversity metric should be used?
The current official Statutory Biodiversity Metric version 1.1.0 was published on 3 November 2026. Its updated user guide clarifies watercourse spatial-risk rules for projects affecting more than one waterbody catchment.
Earlier valid statutory metric versions can still be used where government guidance permits. However, the older non-statutory Metric 4.0 is not suitable for a new mandatory BNG submission.
Some eligible smaller schemes can use the Small Sites Metric. Eligibility for that tool is not the same as statutory BNG exemption.
Area habitats, hedgerows and watercourses are separate biodiversity unit categories. A gain in one category cannot simply cancel a loss in another.
See our Statutory Biodiversity Metric guidance and Small Sites Metric guide.
Local planning guidance
North Yorkshire and York's published Local Nature Recovery Strategy
The North Yorkshire and York Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) is published. North Yorkshire Council leads it in partnership with the City of York Council and others.
North Yorkshire's Executive approved publication on 20 January 2026. GOV.UK confirmed that the strategy was published by February 2026.
The strategy covers both North Yorkshire and York. It includes written biodiversity priorities and a Local Habitat Map identifying important habitats and opportunities to restore ecological connections.
The map and its guidance can help landowners and developers identify restoration options that genuinely fit the surrounding environment.
What does the Local Habitat Map contain?
The statutory map includes three datasets:
- Areas of Particular Importance for Biodiversity (APIB) — existing areas important for nature.
- Areas that Could Become of Particular Importance (ACB) — places where appropriate restoration could enhance biodiversity networks.
- Mapped Measures — location-specific actions for habitat enhancement and creation.
The official downloadable GIS datasets were updated in March 2026. Site-specific interpretation should use the current layer and record the source date.
A mapped opportunity is not a planning permission, a new legal land-use restriction or a registered habitat bank.
How does the LNRS strategic significance test work?
North Yorkshire Council publishes a useful two-part test for considering whether proposed BNG habitat interventions can receive an additional strategic significance factor.
First, the proposed habitat parcel must overlap a shaded 20-hectare hexagon in the official Mapped Measures layer. A neighbouring hexagon without an actual overlap is not sufficient.
Second, the proposed habitat intervention must match at least one relevant mapped measure in the overlapping hexagon. The match should be ecologically credible and recorded in the calculation evidence.
Where both conditions are met, a qualifying post-development habitat intervention may receive a 15% strategic significance uplift within the metric. This is not a new mandatory 15% BNG target.
If only part of a habitat parcel overlaps a relevant hexagon, only that part can potentially benefit. An unmapped action or measure from a non-overlapping hexagon is not enough.
A practical six-step check
- Locate the red-line site on the current North Yorkshire and York LNRS map.
- Identify actual habitat parcels using a suitable UKHab survey, condition evidence and mapped areas or lengths.
- Turn on the Mapped Measures layer and check which shaded hexagons overlap each habitat parcel.
- Read the measures associated with those overlapping hexagons, including the actual measure codes.
- Compare the proposed habitat intervention with the specific measure and the site's soil, hydrology and management feasibility.
- Record the justification in the statutory metric, including the relevant measure codes and map edition where a multiplier is proposed.
The council has produced illustrated worked examples. However, a metric uplift must not be assumed from the map colour alone.
Official resource: North Yorkshire and York LNRS documents, map and BNG guidance.
Local planning guidance
North Yorkshire habitats and ecological constraints
North Yorkshire's coast, National Parks, river catchments, farmland and urban areas contain contrasting habitats. Therefore, an effective BNG design should respond to the site rather than a generic planting specification.
North York Moors: heathland, peat and wooded valleys
The North York Moors include moorland, heathland, peat-rich soils, grassland, woodland and important wildlife. Existing high-value habitats may require substantial protection.
Restoring degraded moorland may need water management, grazing control or suitable vegetation recovery. Blanket tree planting on valuable open habitat can be inappropriate.
The North York Moors National Park Authority also has its own planning validation and nature-conservation policies. Its authority may extend beyond North Yorkshire administrative boundaries.
Yorkshire Dales: limestone and hay meadow habitats
The Yorkshire Dales include limestone landscapes, species-rich hay meadows, pastures, peatland, wooded valleys and important watercourses.
Habitat proposals should account for soils, hydrology, traditional management and landscape character. A meadow enhancement may depend on appropriate cutting and grazing regimes over many years.
The Park's new 2025–2040 Local Plan was adopted in June 2026. Check that adopted policy alongside national BNG law and the relevant county strategy for the actual land.
Coastal and estuarine sites
North Yorkshire's coastline includes sensitive cliffs, rocky shores, coastal grasslands and bird habitats. Some areas have national or international designations.
Coastal development may need separate protected-site, erosion, marine or flood assessment. A predicted biodiversity gain does not remove those obligations.
For instance, development near the Flamborough and Filey Coast protected area requires attention to actual location and likely ecological effects, not a county-wide assumption.
Vale of York, rivers and urban habitats
The Swale, Ure, Nidd, Ouse, Derwent and other waterways connect habitats across the region. Riparian vegetation, floodplain meadows, hedgerows and woodland can support these networks.
However, new wetlands or watercourse changes must be feasible for drainage, flood risk, access and long-term management. Separate watercourse biodiversity units or permits may apply.
York, Harrogate, Northallerton, Selby, Scarborough and other built-up locations also contain mature trees, rivers, sustainable drainage features and some ecologically important previously developed land.
Local planning guidance
Tees catchment nutrient neutrality is separate from BNG
A particular part of the North York Moors National Park planning area falls within the Tees nutrient catchment.
The Park Authority publishes guidance for affected residential development, including an adapted nutrient budget calculator and the need to demonstrate that nitrogen discharge will not increase.
This requirement is not a blanket rule for North Yorkshire, and the adapted calculator is not described by the Authority as suitable for every accommodation type.
Does buying biodiversity units meet nutrient-neutrality requirements?
No. Nutrient-neutrality mitigation addresses potential water-quality effects on protected environments. Statutory biodiversity units measure and secure habitat gain.
If the actual site and development type trigger nutrient assessment, confirm the mapped catchment, wastewater route, current calculator and agreed mitigation with the competent planning authority.
Read the North York Moors nutrient-neutrality guidance where that specific planning route applies.
Protected-site mitigation, including visitor pressure or water-quality measures, cannot automatically be claimed as additional BNG units without checking the rules on additionality.
Local planning guidance
On-site gains, off-site units and long-term delivery
Start by identifying valuable habitats that can be retained and protected. Next, assess feasible on-site enhancement or habitat creation.
For qualifying non-major applications made from 6 August 2026, on-site creation or enhancement and registered off-site gains sit at the same preference level within the revised national biodiversity gain hierarchy.
However, major development and some earlier permissions follow different rules. The mitigation hierarchy still requires appropriate avoidance and mitigation of harmful impacts.
Where a suitable shortfall remains, eligible registered off-site biodiversity units may help deliver the gain. Statutory biodiversity credits remain last resort.
Can North Yorkshire landowners provide off-site units?
Potentially, subject to an appropriate baseline, suitable habitat creation or enhancement, legal securing and registration.
A landowner should check the ecological opportunity against the published North Yorkshire and York LNRS. However, a mapped hexagon does not mean that units are automatically created, sold or allocated.
The developer must confirm the required habitat category, metric trading rules, location, registered gain site and actual allocation. Current available unit quantities and prices cannot be inferred from supplier advertisements.
How are gains secured for 30 years?
Significant on-site and registered off-site habitat gains normally require at least 30 years of management supported by suitable legal arrangements.
A Habitat Management and Monitoring Plan (HMMP) can establish target habitats, creation or enhancement works, monitoring, maintenance and corrective measures.
It should reflect the landholding, water conditions, habitat establishment risks and long-term resources. A favourable metric spreadsheet alone does not demonstrate realistic delivery.
See our off-site biodiversity units guidance and Habitat Management and Monitoring Plan advice.
Local planning guidance
North Yorkshire BNG planning submission checklist
Use this checklist to prepare the right evidence. It is not a decision that an application is exempt, valid or ready for planning permission.
A complete submission should explain which habitats are retained, created, enhanced and maintained, with evidence that the proposal can succeed.
Local planning guidance
How ACP can support BNG projects in North Yorkshire
A useful North Yorkshire BNG assessment connects the site evidence with the planning route, design and long-term delivery. We agree the scope around your proposal and the information already available.
Confirm the authority and plan
Identify North Yorkshire Council, York or the relevant National Park Authority. For North Yorkshire Council sites, establish which inherited plan area and any neighbourhood policies apply.
Set a proportionate survey scope
Review the site’s upland, farmland, urban, river or coastal context. Agree the habitat baseline, condition assessments and any protected-site or species evidence needed for the proposal.
Apply the published nature map
Use the North Yorkshire and York LNRS measures with the council’s map-interpretation guidance. Explain how the proposed habitat and mapped location support any strategic-significance entry in the metric.
Prepare delivery information
Coordinate the metric, habitat plans and planning report. Identify any separate Tees nutrient pathway, then plan gain-plan approval, off-site allocation where needed and secured long-term management.
For further detail, see BNG report service, Biodiversity Gain Plan guidance.
Local planning guidance
North Yorkshire biodiversity net gain FAQs
Is North Yorkshire one planning authority or seven?
North Yorkshire Council is one unitary authority formed in April 2023. However, the seven former district and borough Local Plans remain relevant in their historical areas until replaced. City of York and the two National Park Authorities have separate planning responsibilities.
Who decides planning applications in the North York Moors or Yorkshire Dales?
Within their statutory planning boundaries, the North York Moors and Yorkshire Dales National Park Authorities decide relevant planning applications. A nearby town name does not establish the correct authority. The Park boundaries also extend beyond North Yorkshire.
Has Yorkshire Dales adopted its new Local Plan?
Yes. The Yorkshire Dales National Park Local Plan 2025–2040 was adopted on 30 June 2026. The North York Moors Authority still uses its adopted 2020 Local Plan while a review is in preparation.
Has North Yorkshire and York's Local Nature Recovery Strategy been published?
Yes. North Yorkshire's Executive approved publication in January 2026, and GOV.UK confirmed North Yorkshire and York LNRS area 07 as published by February 2026. It covers the North Yorkshire and City of York strategy areas and has a Local Habitat Map.
Does the LNRS map automatically add 15% to BNG?
No. The 15% strategic significance multiplier is a potential metric uplift for qualifying post-development habitat interventions, not a blanket BNG target. The parcel must overlap a relevant mapped-measure hexagon, and the proposed habitat must match at least one measure in that overlapping hexagon.
How do I check the North Yorkshire LNRS hexagons?
Use the current Mapped Measures layer, check actual overlap with the habitat parcel, and inspect the measures for the overlapping 20-hectare hexagon. Confirm the habitat intervention matches the mapped action and record its code. Adjacent or unmapped measures are not sufficient.
Is the North Yorkshire Local Plan 2045 already adopted?
No. Its scoping consultation runs 26 October–7 December 2026. Until a new consolidated plan is lawfully adopted, the seven inherited plans and other operative development plan documents remain relevant outside the National Parks.
Are small North Yorkshire development sites exempt from 10% BNG?
Some are. For qualifying applications made from 6 August 2026, a development on a red-line site of 0.2 hectares or less can be exempt if the proposal does not impact on-site priority habitat. Other exemptions and transitional conditions must be checked independently.
Are new self-build homes automatically exempt from biodiversity net gain?
No. The former general self-build and custom-build exemption was removed for new planning applications made from 6 August 2026. Earlier applications and some section 73 variations may have different rules. Another exemption must meet its own conditions.
Does every North Yorkshire development need Tees nutrient-neutrality credits?
No. The Tees catchment nutrient-neutrality guidance applies to affected proposals, particularly relevant residential development in a specific part of the North York Moors National Park. It is separate from BNG and depends on the location, wastewater impacts and current council guidance.
Can I buy off-site biodiversity units in North Yorkshire?
Potentially. However, a proposed habitat bank or mapped LNRS opportunity is not proof of available units. Check the official biodiversity gain sites register, habitat category, legal securing, trading rules and allocation to the specific planning permission.
When does the Biodiversity Gain Plan need approval?
For permission subject to the statutory biodiversity gain condition, the final Biodiversity Gain Plan generally requires approval before development commences. The council may need habitat plans, metric and ecological information earlier to validate or determine the planning application.
Local planning guidance
Discuss your North Yorkshire BNG project
Tell us where your site is, what works are proposed and which planning authority is involved. A red-line plan and any ecology or landscape reports will help establish the correct scope.
We can discuss habitat surveys, statutory metric calculations, BNG reporting and management evidence. Where protected sites, nutrient constraints or national infrastructure are involved, separate assessment routes may be needed.
Discuss your North Yorkshire biodiversity net gain requirements
Alternatively, contact ACP directly.
Talk to ACP / Site enquiries
What does your site need next?
Tell us where the site is, what you plan to build and how far the application has progressed. We’ll use that context to discuss the surveys, calculations or plans your project needs.
What to have to handA red-line plan, an existing ecology report or a request from the council can help us scope the work. Start with whatever you already have.
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North Yorkshire BNG
Sources and references
Reviewed 10 November 2026.