National Strategic Objective No. 1 of the National Planning Framework (NPF), which was first published in 2018 and revised in 2025, is ‘Compact Growth’. The NPF has, since 2018, included policies and objectives relating to ‘compact growth’, setting out the need to promote a more compact and sustainable approach to development patterns to counteract decades of sprawl. National Policy Objective No. 7 of the NPF seeks to deliver at least 40% of all new homes nationally, within the built-up footprint of existing settlements and ensure compact and sequential patterns of growth.
In support of the NPF objectives, the Sustainable Residential Development and Compact Settlements Guidelines for Planning Authorities, “the Settlement Guidelines”, were issued as Ministerial Guidelines in January 2024, under Section 28 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 (as amended). Under the provisions of Section 28 of Act of 2000 Planning Authorities are required to have regard to Ministerial Guidelines in performing their functions and to apply any Specific Planning Policy Requirements contained within the Guidelines.
Following the commencement of Part 3, Chapter 3 of the Planning and Development Act 2024, on 2 October 2025, Section 28 of the Act of 2000 has been repealed and National Planning Statements will replace Ministerial Guidelines. However, all current Section 28 Ministerial Guidelines will continue to have effect, under Section 27 of the Act of 2024, until such time that they are revoked or replaced by a National Planning Statement.
The Settlement Guidelines expand on higher-level policies of the NPF, setting policy and guidance in relation to the growth priorities for settlements, residential density, urban design and placemaking and development standards for housing. This includes delivering brownfield and infill development at suitable locations. The Settlement Guidelines state that to achieve compact growth, it will also be necessary to increase the scale of new buildings in all parts of our cities and towns, with highest densities at the most central and accessible urban locations, particularly in city centres and close to public transport nodes and interchanges. The Settlement Guidelines contain graduated density ranges that respond to settlement sizes (e.g. cities, towns and villages). The Settlement Guidelines also provide for densities to be further refined with regard to centrality and accessibly to services, public transport and site-specific considerations regarding character, amenity and the natural environment.
The Settlement Guidelines are one of a number of Section 28 Ministerial Guidelines that are concerned with sustainable forms of residential development and compact growth. Other Guidelines include the Urban Development and Building Height Guidelines for Planning Authorities (2018) and the Planning Design Standards for Apartments Guidelines for Planning Authorities (2025) “the Apartment Guidelines”.
The Building Height Guidelines expand on higher-level policies of the National Planning Framework to encourage compact growth through increased building heights in urban areas. The Building Height Guidelines set out strategic policy considerations and performance criteria for determining appropriate locations for taller buildings. The Building Height Guidelines states that the preparation of development plans, local area plans and Strategic Development Zone (SDZ) Planning Schemes and their implementation in city, metropolitan and wider urban areas must be proactive and flexible in securing compact urban growth through a combination of both facilitating increased densities and building heights.
The Apartment Guidelines set out technical standards relating to apartment mix/typologies, space standards, dual aspect ratios, floor to ceiling heights, stair/lift cores, and amenity spaces. Viability presents an ongoing challenge to the delivery of apartments, where a considerable gap has emerged between the cost of delivering apartment development and comparable general housing market prices. The overall purpose of the Guidelines is to reduce costs and strike an effective regulatory balance, ensuring that apartment development meets the needs of society in terms of standards and quality, while promoting an increased level of output overall.
This approach provides planning authorities with a degree of flexibility so they can operate a plan-led approach and take the circumstances of a plan area or an individual site into account as part of the decision-making processes prescribed under the Planning and Development Acts.
