The south of England housing market has been supercharged for more than a generation. Council tenants face long waiting lists to find a place to live and young people struggle with pricey rents and staggeringly large deposit requirements. People need homes and the pressure to build is intense, only made stronger by large government housebuilding requirements that councils are challenged to meet. 

At the same time, the state of nature locally is perilous. To see nature in recovery and increase our resilience to a changing climate we need more space for nature, not less which can come into conflict with housebuilding and development pressures.  

Nowhere is this more acute than at Tipner West in Portsmouth: a densely populated island city surrounded on all sides by legally protected habitats for wildlife.  

The land at Tipner West is made up of brownfield land (currently used by a school, waste and recycling company and a shipyard), an undesignated decommissioned firing range and a strip of legally protected coastal grassland to the south, all surrounded by Portsmouth Harbour Special Protection Area. 

There have been numerous plans over the years for Tipner West, the most recent of which, the Lennox Point ‘super-peninsula’, would have built out over the Harbour’s protected mudflats, which we successfully campaigned against, causing the council to ‘pause’ all plans. 

Next comes the tricky part. The council have made it clear that they must build some homes and employment space on the existing land at Tipner West and this year they will be deciding on an option to include in their Local Plan. Worryingly, options they are considering for the existing landmass may still build over the protected coastal grassland. 

But is there a scenario in which Portsmouth can build homes at Tipner West and not damage or destroy legally protected habitats for wildlife? Potentially. But it won’t be easy.  

Even if Portsmouth City Council agree on plans that do not cross into the legally protected sites for nature, there is still a large risk of significant indirect impacts as Tipner West is nestled next to important and legally protected sites on all sides.  

If Portsmouth City Council is resolved to build here, then they must step up and meet these challenges head-on.  

Challenge 1: Don’t Cross the Line into protected sites for nature 

The mudflats and coastal meadow at Tipner West are legally protected as a Special Protection Area (SPA), Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Ramsar site in recognition of their importance for wintering waders that grace our shores each year.    

Options currently under consideration would still build over a five-football pitches worth of legally protected coastal meadow, an essential high-tide roost for these birds that take refuge in Portsmouth Harbour. 

Any loss of legally protected areas is a fundamental red line for nature. Never before has housing trumped these legal safeguards and should this go ahead, this would open the flood gates for building over protected sites for wildlife across the country, setting a ‘Portsmouth precedent’.   

Challenge 2: Loss of important but undesignated habitats for wildlife 

Unfortunately, the decommissioned Tipner Firing Range has no legal site protection for wildlife, although it does play a key role in supporting wintering brent geese, acting as a high-tide refuge.  

Because of this supporting role, it is classed as a Primary Support Site in the Solent Wader and Brent Goose Strategy (SWBGS). There is a well-established precedent in place for how development in these circumstances is treated. If the Council builds over the Tipner Firing Range for housing, they must meet the SWBGS guidance for Primary Support Sites which states if loss or damage to the site is unavoidable, the Council must identify another site to replace the loss ensuring that there are significant net benefits to the wader and brent goose ecological network.  

However, this may be easier said than done. Within the boundaries of the Council, there are very few, if any, areas that could replace the loss of the Tipner Firing Range.

Challenge 3: Increased disturbance from development 

Given that even the smaller development options now being considered could require building right up to the edge of the Special Protection Area, it is vital that careful design from the outset ensures that any indirect impacts on these designated sites are avoided.  

We are especially concerned that more people living in the area will increase disturbance to the wading birds on the protected mudflats and coastal meadow. Disturbance from people and dogs could alter the birds’ behaviours, directly damage the habitat and potentially drive species declines further.  

This is why we are clear that any development must provide high-quality access to nature without increasing recreational disturbance. While this is a challenge, it is also an opportunity to create more accessible routes for people to enjoy nature and also enhance the coastal meadow for wildlife.  

If Portsmouth City Council can manage the access to the Special Protection Area and take a few simple steps to improve the coastal meadow for wildlife, it could help put this area back into recovery and support our important wading bird populations. 

For example, we have shown in our visual how a green route around the edge of the development could be raised above the coastal meadow and the shoreline to minimise disturbance to the birds and other wildlife below, while still providing a space for people to connect with nature.  

Challenge 4: The need for nature-positive design 

So often people define clear boundaries between the built areas and natural areas. However, we need to make more space for nature not only in the rural landscape but also within our towns and cities. Not only does this help nature recover and flourish, but it improves our health and makes our towns and cities more resilient to the climate crisis. 

As any development at Tipner West would sit so close to our protected habitats for nature, ark sites that provide essential refuge for many species, the council must adopt best practice nature-positive design principles, creating a green gateway for the city and the species who rely on our shores.  

These guides by the RSPB and Wildlife Trusts set out what a good, nature-rich housing development looks like, the benefits it can bring to people and nature and how it can be implemented in new homes across the country. 

We are clear that only if Portsmouth City Council meet these challenges, can we provide homes for both nature and local people. Instead of setting a ‘Portsmouth Precedent’ for destruction, we need to see bold leadership that not only safeguards our protected sites for nature but invests in nature’s recovery for the benefit of wildlife and the city’s residents for years to come.