Fewer new homes in England and Wales are being built on previously developed land but more are being built in areas with a high risk of flooding and on the green belt, official figures show.

Some 56% of new homes were created on previously developed land in 2016/2017, a fall of 5% from the 61% recorded for the previous financial year, according to data published by the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).

The figures also show that 11% of new homes were built within areas of high flood risk, up 9% from 2015/2016 while 16% were on agricultural land and 13% on industrial and commercial land.

All new homes in the City of London were built on previously developed land while the area where the lowest number built on this type of land was 13% in Redditch and 14% in Milton Keynes.

There was also a rise in the number of new homes built on green belt land, accounting for 4% in 2016/2017, a rise of 2%.

Geoff Offen, managing director at Future Climate Info pointed out that the figures show that more than one in 10 new homes were built on sea or river flood plains which are prone to flooding. He added: “While the national housing shortage compels us to seek out more land across England and Wales to build homes upon, buyers of these new properties must be aware of the risks their new bricks and mortar face.”