With the UK government keen to make it easier to develop more data centers, new research shows that – in the cities at least – the vast majority of planning applications are approved.
According to FOI-based research from Onnec, local authorities in the UK's 20 biggest cities declined just three out of 88 applications over the last five years. A further five were withdrawn.
Meanwhile, plans for the East Havering Data Centre Campus in east London, which could become the largest in Europe, are still up in the air. With many local residents opposing the development, there's likely to be a formal consultation on the project soon.
The three applications that were turned down were all in Sheffield, with the reasons given being largely aesthetic: 'poor quality design', 'visually unattractive', 'inappropriate developments which would cause harm to the openness of the Green Belt', and 'out of keeping with the character and quality of the wider landscape'.
"The rejections in Sheffield show more thought must be given to design to ensure sites are appropriate, adhere to local requirements, and serve the local community," said Matt Salter, data center director at Onnec.
"Data centers can become the new oil for regions and cities, but only if they are planned holistically – this means considering every aspect of the data center, instead of focusing solely on factors such as power and cooling. For example, thinking about the importance of cabling in providing the bandwidth needed to get the most from data center hardware."
However, the report found, that cities are over-represented in terms of planning approvals, with the majority in and around London – already the biggest data center market in Europe.
While government support will help drive further data center development, said Salter, investment must move beyond the capital.
"Taking a country-wide focus will help kick-start local economies, drive broader digital skills, and give every UK region a chance to compete and be part of the digital infrastructure foundations the UK needs to meet rising AI workloads and deliver economic growth," he said.
Trade body TechUK has been calling for the introduction of a National Policy Statement for data centers, along with more streamlined planning processes through the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIP) regime. It also wants improved training for local planning authorities to ensure that decision-making is consistent.
Earlier this year, deputy prime minister Angela Rayner and chancellor Rachel Reeves said they would re-open two recently refused planning submissions for data centers near the M25 in Buckinghamshire and in Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire, in both cases over concerns that they would impact green belt land in the area.
Havering data centre in east London remains undecided, with many local residents opposing the development. There's likely to be a formal consultation on the project soon.
Overall, said Salter, the situation is encouraging.
"While not every project will be at the scale of East Havering, the data shows a willingness from local authorities to invest and support data centers, with many already aligned with the government's strategy to ride the wave of AI to supercharge economic growth and productivity," he said.
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