It’s often said that local communities would rather see new homes built on the edge of towns and villages, behind banks of hedges and trees, than built in their back yards.

Their concerns, which are not unfounded, are that more homes will mean more traffic on what may be an already congested street network, putting a strain on local services, such as schools and GP surgeries, and that any new housing is bound to be badly built, ugly and will ruin the character of the local area.

To the handful of developers building the majority of British homes, the local community is therefore feared and seen as an obstacle, creating significant delays, planning appeals and ultimately affecting profit margins.