Eclipse, GILBURY LANE, EXBURY, SOUTHAMPTON, SO45 1AG Data via plota.co.uk

Natural England advice: extra wastewater in these catchments harms protected habitats, so schemes must offset their nutrient load, usually through credits.

Landscape, scenic beauty and wildlife carry great weight, and major development is only allowed in exceptional circumstances.

An Article 4 direction withdraws particular permitted development rights, so work that would normally need no application needs one here. Not every council has published its directions.

Where development of farmland is needed, policy prefers poorer land over the best and most versatile (grades 1, 2 and 3a). Three sources: Natural England's post-1988 field surveys, which are definitive where they exist; the Defra predictive map for England (2025) and the Welsh Government predictive map, modelled from the soil map with 3a and 3b split; and the 1970s provisional map, which planners and other services still show, coarser and with grade 3 undivided. Where the provisional and predicted grades disagree, treat the predicted grade as the current estimate and expect an application to carry its own survey.

National policy refuses development that would cause loss or deterioration of ancient woodland or ancient trees unless there are wholly exceptional reasons.

Harm to a protected site is only accepted where there is no alternative and an overriding public interest.

Registered parks and gardens, battlefields, world heritage sites and protected wrecks are designated heritage assets: harm needs clear and convincing justification.

Sites of special scientific interest are the best wildlife and geological sites in the country. Development likely to harm one is rarely permitted.