Enhancing the uptake and quality of SuDS within new housing developments

This study investigates how private housebuilders navigate the provision of Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SuDS) within new housing developments, focusing on the often-overlooked land acquisition and valuation processes that shape environmental decision-making. It situates SuDS provision at the intersection of three calculative domains in housebuilding—land valuation, construction costs, and maintenance liabilities. Drawing on elite interviews with volume and super housebuilders operating in Yorkshire, UK, the study shows how these domains influence the uptake of multi-benefit, nature-based drainage solutions compared to minimal “compliant” systems. The paper concludes that without mandatory, consistent regulation and clearer institutional arrangements for SuDS adoption and maintenance, developers will continue to favour minimalist, hydrologically compliant designs over multi-benefit systems. By reconceiving SuDS as market-embedded infrastructure, this study highlights the need for governance reforms that align environmental resilience goals with the economic logics of housebuilding.