Milton Keynes New Town Expansion

Establishing a new generation of New Towns is a key part of the government’s commitment to deliver 1.5 million new homes by 2029.

The government appointed a Task Force of experts to support the government in delivering these. Part of their role was to make recommendations for suggested locations. There was an open call for sites, and the Task Force have selected 12 locations from over 100 sites which were submitted. Two of these will impact on Bedfordshire, a proposed standalone New Town at Tempsford and an extension to Milton Keynes.

More on Tempsford can be found here:

Government announces a New Town at Tempsford – what happens next?

A ‘Renewed Town ‘ in Milton Keynes

The Task Force report put forward “A ‘Renewed Town’ in Milton Keynes; reinvigorating the city centre and expanding to the city periphery whilst reshaping the way people travel, by delivering a
Mass Rapid Transit system”.

Milton Keynes already appears to be moving forward with its expansion following the announcement of the Governments New Towns initiative. Plans have been released (mid-January 2026) for a 3500-home development to the east of the M1, between junctions 13 and 14. The outline planning application, named Keepers Place, encroaches into Central Bedfordshire, where 750 of the dwellings have been proposed along with retail, schools, retirement and specialised housing.

CPRE recognises that well-designed new towns with proper infrastructure have a role to play in meeting national housing targets. CPRE Bedfordshire planning volunteers are participating in the national CPRE New Towns task force, contributing to policy developments and recommendations.

Locally, CPRE Bedfordshire is concerned with the loss of good agricultural land and the potential effects on local communities. Our planning experts will be reviewing this specific development, how this integrates with the new Milton Keynes Spatial Plan and how it might effect residents in Bedfordshire.

We still feel that it is important that the housing numbers from new towns count towards local housing targets. Many of our local MPs, who we wrote to recently on this matter, are supporting this approach.

Details of the full planning application can be found on the CBC website via this link:

Central Bedfordshire Council planning portal

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Pages 52-54 on the New Towns Taskforce Report outline the proposals for Milton Keynes.