Planning

Question 1

Local planning authorities are involved in:

Answer 1

• Long term development planning to ensure there are sufficient houses, roads, schools, factories and shops to cater for population numbers
• Development control – whether to approve planning applications for individual developments

Question 2

Development planning

Answer 2

• The last Coalition government said that planning decisions sometimes take too long, preventing houses and workplaces from being built
• There is constant tension between the need for new development and economic growth and the protection of the environment
• The last Government set out guidelines - the 2011 National Planning Policy Framework – in an effort to make the system simpler and quicker and build more houses
• See - https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/making-the-planning-system-work-more-efficiently-and-effectively
• Controversially this said there should be a “presumption in favour of sustainable development”
• Within that framework local authorities have to set out a local plan earmarking particular areas for development – here is Sheffield’s https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/planning-and-city-development/planning-documents/local-plan.html

Question 3

What are the two types of planning consent?

Answer 3

o Outline planning permission or consent – this gives permission for development in principle under broad outlines. Lasts for five years. Land is often sold with “outline planning permission”.
o Detailed planning permission – this gives consent to detailed plans that will show the exact numbers of houses/shops/factories and their location. Lasts for five years.

Question 4

What can councillors do?

Answer 4

o Give unconditional approval
o Give conditional approval subject to conditions such as improved access or traffic management schemes
o Refusal
Before an application is discussed by councillors, officers will study the proposal and give a recommendation whether it should be approved or not
Increasingly, councillors are wary of going against the recommendation of officers because of the costs of appeals. See for example the plan to demolish shops in Devonshire Green http://forgetoday.com/press/councillors-give-devonshire-demolition-the-go-ahead/
Planning permission is sometimes required when the type of business using a particular premises changes. This is called change of use consent.

Question 5

What is the planning process?

Answer 5

• Developers apply to the local planning authority (district councils in two-tier areas and unitary authorities elsewhere)
• The application is formally entered on a register, immediate neighbours notified and parish council alerted
• Sometimes it is also advertised in local press or with notices posted on lampposts or other structures near by
• Public exhibitions with models and detailed plans may be put on for major applications
• Planning officers make a recommendation based on planning law, but it is councillors who decide
• Routine applications – e.g. small house extensions are dealt with by the sub committees
• Key decisions involving significant expenditure are discussed by Cabinet and full council
• Application must be determined within two months

Question 6

Appeals

Answer 6

• If planning permission is refused the applicant has six months to appeal to the Secretary of State
• The Planning Inspectorate will consider the appeal by way of:
o Written representations and site visit (80% done this way
o Formal hearing with both parties present (16%)
o A full planning enquiry taking evidence from both sides and other interested parties
• The Secretary of State may “call in” controversial applications for a final decision

Question 7

Planning gain

Answer 7

• Sometimes developers will offer “sweeteners” to the local authority and the community
• For example a developer may agree to build new classrooms for a primary school as part of a big new housing development
• Or offer to build “affordable housing”, leisure facilities or new roads as part of a bigger scheme
• This is known as planning gain or planning contribution
• More formally they are Section 106 Agreements of the 1990 Town and Country Planning Act

Question 8

Extra protection

Answer 8

Certain areas with special scenic or scientific value have extra protection from development:
• National Parks (e.g. the Peak District and the Yorkshire Dales)
• Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)
• Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)
• Individual buildings can be listed as being of special historical or architectural interest
• Conservation areas – buildings in designated areas are protected from unsympathetic alterations