Data centres are relatively new technology to the UK, and the laws and regulations that relate to their planning, construction, and operation are evolving.
In January 2026, the Government admitted a serious logical error in granting permission for a data centre in Buckinghamshire. However, the substantive judicial review dispute has been granted permission to proceed to a full hearing.
In this article, we look at what happened in the process of granting, and then rowing back from the permission that was granted to allow the hyperscale data centre. We consider what the impact may be on future litigation around data centres, as the demand for them increases.
Given their potential environmental impact, use of grid electricity, and proposed locations on green belt sites, there are several contentious issues surrounding data centres that can lead to litigation.
What happened
Developers Greystoke Land and Altrad UK have been pushing for a data centre in Buckinghamshire since 2022.
In June 2024 Buckinghamshire Council rejected the development, raising concerns about the impact it would have on the environment, and its potential to damage the green belt.
Later in 2024, the Government overruled Buckinghamshire Council’s decision and granted planning permission for the hyperscale data centre at Iver.
In August 2025, an environmental non-governmental organisation called Foxglove, and the environmental charity Global Action Plan together launched a judicial review to challenge the decision to grant permission. Central to their argument was the allegation that the decision ignored the vast electricity demands of the data centre and failed to adequately consider its climate impact.
A permission hearing for the judicial review was set for 22 January 2026. A few days before the hearing took place, on 19 January 2026, the Government accepted that it made a “serious logical error” in making the decision and said that the approval should be quashed.
Nonetheless, the permission hearing went ahead and permission was granted for the claim to proceed. The full legal challenge will be heard at a later date.
Details of the proposed data centre
The proposed data centre at Iver is a large hyperscale data centre facility which includes two buildings, office space, provision for emergency back-up generators, and an electricity substation. It is a 90-megawatt facility and is 72,000 sqm in size.
All in all, the development will cost around £1 billion.
The proposed location is a former landfill site within the green belt, beside the M25.
Why the Government conceded
The reason the Government conceded the challenge was due to a procedural misunderstanding. The application for planning permission did not include an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). That meant that the Secretary of State granted planning permission without fully considering the environmental impacts of the scheme, such as the electricity demands of the facility and its requirements for water for cooling.
Instead, the data centre had been approved on the basis that “mitigation measures” could be put in place, including the sourcing of low carbon energy. The Government later considered that these could not be secured, which represented a serious logical error.
Government policy supports the development of data centres
In September 2024, the Government designated data centres as Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) which takes the decision over their construction out of the hands of local authorities and hands it over to the Secretary of State.
Then in January 2025, the Government announced the creation of ‘AI growth zones’ across the country, which are areas that will speed up planning approvals for building data centres quickly. They will have better access to the energy grid, and draw in investment from around the world.
Government policy is clearly in favour of supporting data centre developments in the UK.
Short summary of judicial reviews
However, as the Buckinghamshire project highlights, data centre development may be subject to judicial review.
Judicial review is the procedure by which the courts examine the decisions of public bodies to ensure that they act lawfully and fairly. A party with sufficient interest in the matter can make an application. The court then conducts a review of the process by which a public body has reached a decision to assess whether it was validly made.
The grounds for judicial review are generally categorised under one of four options:
- Illegality
When the decision maker misdirects itself in law, or exercises a power wrongly. - Irrationality
Where a decision is so unreasonable that no reasonable authority could ever have come to it. This can also be articulated as having to show that the decision under challenge is outside the range of reasonable responses of a public authority. - Procedural unfairness
Did the public authority observe the relevant statutory rules and procedures? - Legitimate expectation
A public authority may be required to act in a certain way. People may have an expectation about how an authority it will act based on its statements or conduct.
Judicial review challenges may only be brought with the permission of the court. Before it grants permission, the court must be satisfied that there is an arguable case for judicial review. If so, the claim proceeds to a substantive hearing.
Future data centre litigation
The Buckinghamshire decision indicates to developers the rigour they need to apply to their environmental considerations when applying for planning permission. While the Government is keen to approve data centre projects as part of its policy for growth, failure to address environmental concerns could be fatal to an application.
Non-governmental organisations are increasingly willing to litigate to block projects which are deemed to be polluting, especially on green belt land. Litigation may be successful if there are flawed or incomplete procedural steps.
