The UK government has announced changes to the National Planning Policy Framework that will require new homes in England to include swift bricks to provide nesting sites for birds.

The proposed reforms, which are open for public consultation until 10 March 2026, feature a section dedicated to enhancing the natural environment. This section states that new residential developments should incorporate features designed to support local wildlife.

This includes “a new requirement for swift bricks in developments.”

Plans described as “win-win for nature and housebuilding”

Swift bricks are specially designed hollow bricks that provide nesting spaces for cavity-nesting birds such as swifts. Once common in the UK, swifts have seen a significant decline in their population and are now listed on the country’s Red List of conservation concern.

Swifts traditionally nest in small gaps and crevices in buildings, so the decreasing availability of suitable nesting sites is considered a major factor in their decline.

The inclusion of swift bricks in the revised National Planning Policy Framework—the most significant update to the UK’s planning rules in more than a decade—has been described as a “win-win for nature and housebuilding” as the government aims to deliver 1.5 million new homes.

However, bird conservationist and swift brick advocate Hannah Bourne-Taylor argues that the proposed reforms do not go far enough to protect wildlife.

“This is the weakest action the government could take on swift bricks,” Bourne-Taylor told Dezeen.

“It is greenwashing by the government”

“It is greenwashing by the government to then claim it is a win and put it all over social media and send out press releases,” Bourne-Taylor added.

“There is a giant difference between toothless policy and legislation,” she continued. “A requirement for every new build to have a swift brick sounds like a win, but it is through a policy with no statutory weight—there is no legal requirement, no enforcement, no transparency, no monitoring.”

“If you look at the equivalent existing policies in the National Planning Policy Framework, such as those restricting development on flood plains or green belts, you will see that these policies are often ignored or overturned.”

Other updates to the National Planning Policy Framework include measures to encourage housing development near railway stations, as well as support for high-density housing on small and underused plots of land.

Earlier in the year, Bourne-Taylor urged architects to help protect endangered birds by fitting swift bricks into new homes across the UK.

Also this year, the UK government introduced an initiative to paint offshore wind farms black in an effort to reduce bird collisions.

In 2022, exclusive research by Dezeen revealed that none of the UK’s largest cities currently have planning policies to protect birds from fatal building collisions within their boroughs.

The main photo of a swift brick is by Action for Swifts.

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