Reigate and Banstead cut site assessment time by 89%

Reigate and Banstead cut site assessment time by 89%
Reigate and Banstead Borough Council used a digital site appraisal tool to assess council-owned sites faster and support site pipeline work.
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
Reigate and Banstead Borough Council tested a digital approach to assessing council-owned sites to support council-led development as part of its plan-making work.
- Outcome: Reduced the time spent assessing council-owned sites by 89%, allowing the council to assess significantly more sites within the same period.
- Technology used: Vestega, a platform used to assess site suitability and viability, test development scenarios and support planning of the council’s development programme.
This was a PropTech Innovation Fund round 4 pilot (2024) and describes what was tested at the time.
The planning challenge
Reigate and Banstead needed to improve how it assessed council-owned sites for development as part of its ambition to deliver council-led housing.
Before the pilot, officers assessed sites individually using different tools and assumptions, and the work often had to be outsourced. As a result, the council typically assessed around one site per year, which limited its ability to identify, compare and prioritise sites quickly.
This made it difficult to:
- assess sites quickly enough to support council-led development
- compare sites consistently using the same assumptions
- understand financial viability and delivery considerations across multiple sites
- prioritise sites to form a clear and deliverable development pipeline
The council wanted a more efficient and repeatable approach that would allow it to assess more sites and better understand which could be taken forward.
What they did
Reigate and Banstead tested Vestega, a digital site appraisal tool, to assess the development potential of council-owned sites. The pilot replaced previous site-by-site appraisal approaches and focused on residential-led development, including assessment of development capacity, financial viability, delivery routes and delivery risks.
Assessing sites more efficiently and consistently
Using Vestega, officers were able to assess sites using a consistent set of assumptions and a shared financial framework.
This made it easier to test and update assumptions, compare sites on a like-for-like basis and understand viability and delivery considerations across council-owned land, supporting a more systematic approach to site appraisal.
Image description: Vestega site appraisal interface showing a site highlighted on a map, with planning constraint layers such as flood risk, green belt and heritage assets displayed.
Building and modelling a site pipeline
A key outcome of the pilot was the ability to assess sites as part of a coordinated programme rather than in isolation.
Using Vestega, the council was able to:
- assess an initial longlist of around 80 council-owned sites
- refine this to 40 sites suitable for further consideration
- prioritise 19 sites to form a focused development pipeline
Assessing sites together helped officers to model the pipeline at a programme level. This supported a better understanding of capital requirements, revenue impacts and overall financial sustainability. The approach also helped identify sites that may not be viable on a standalone basis but could be delivered as part of a balanced programme.
Officer review and professional judgement
Professional judgement remained essential to the process. Officers used the tool to support, rather than replace, decision-making, with site assessments reviewed and refined through officer discussion and engagement with relevant teams.
Results and impact
At a glance:
- 89% reduction in time spent assessing council-owned sites
- increase from assessing around 1 site per year to about 40 sites
- development pipeline refined to 19 priority sites, with potential for around 400 homes
Reducing time spent assessing sites
The pilot significantly reduced the time needed to assess council-owned sites. Overall officer time spent on site appraisal was reduced by 89%, including:
- 50% reduction in time spent on data migration and site uploads
- 80% reduction in time spent on modelling and appraisal work
- 95% reduction in time spent on consultation and council member reporting
These time savings enabled officers to assess many more sites within the same period, increasing capacity without additional resource.
Supporting development appraisal and decision making
By using a consistent digital approach, officers could to carry out development appraisal earlier and compare sites using the same assumptions.
This supported more informed internal discussions about financial viability, delivery risks and which sites should be taken forward, while maintaining professional judgement when interpreting appraisal outputs.
What they learned
Reigate and Banstead found that:
- reducing time spent on site appraisals made it possible to assess significantly more council-owned sites
- using a consistent digital approach made it easier to compare sites
- assessing sites as part of a programme supported clearer prioritisation and pipeline planning
- digital appraisal tools can support earlier understanding of development potential and risks, but do not remove the need for professional judgement
The pilot also highlighted the value of closer working between teams involved in land, housing, finance and development, helping to build a shared understanding of site appraisal and decision making.
The project has been a positive experience for Reigate and Banstead that provided us with the opportunity to trial a new software tool and approach to assessing the viability of our potential housing delivery sites. This has enabled us to speed up our site assessment process and pipeline for housing delivery.
Catherine Radziwonik, Principal Development Manager, Reigate and Banstead Borough Council
Future plans
Following the pilot, Reigate and Banstead Borough Council plans to continue using Vestega to refine its council-led development pipeline and support further programme-level analysis.
The council will also use the tool to develop more detailed site appraisals as priority sites progress and explore opportunities for wider uses, including potential use in housing and economic land availability assessment work.
Help us improve this case study by completing our short feedback form.
Useful resources
Explore tools and suppliers on the Digital Planning Directory.
Read guidance on site identification and assessment using digital tools.
Explore the Open Digital Planning community.
External links on this page are included to help users find relevant information. Their inclusion does not imply government endorsement of any organisation, product or service.