SPATIAL PLANNING

Question 1

What are the key principles of the NPPF?
What are the key objectives of the NPPF?

Answer 1

Sustainable Development - Balancing economic, social, and environmental factors.

Plan-Led System - Development should follow local plans.

Presumption in Favour of Development - Support for approved and sustainable projects.

Protecting the Environment - Safeguarding natural, historic, and built environments.

Community Involvement - Encouraging public participation in planning.

Question 2

What is the Localism Act 2011?

Answer 2

Decentralising power from the national government.

Gave LPAS more control over planning, housing etc

Communities can influence local development through neighbourhood planning

Question 3

What are the principles of the ‘plan-led’ system?

Answer 3

The basic principle is that planning decisions must be made in accordance with the provisions of “the development plan”, unless “material considerations” indicate otherwise.

Question 4

What is a Local Plan?

Answer 4

A document created by LPAs to guide land use and development within their area.

It outlines policies and site allocations for housing, employment, infrastructure, and other land uses

Typically covering a 15-20 year period

Question 5

How is a Local Plan adopted?

Answer 5

TCPA (Local Planning) REGULATIONS 2012.

Consultation & Preparation of (Reg 18)

Publication (Reg 19)

Representations (Reg 20)

Examination (Reg 24)

Adoption (Reg 26)

Question 6

Tell me about the power of the Secretary of State to grant development consent for housing linked to a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project

Answer 6

A Development Consent Order (“DCO”) application is made to PINS who will consider the application and make a recommendation to the Secretary of State. They decide on whether to grant permission.

Question 7

Tell me about the CPO process.

Answer 7

Legal process that allows public authorities to acquire land or property without the owner’s consent.

Compensation is given to landowners.

Question 8

Tell me about an instance of when you have interpreted strategic planning policies.

Answer 8

Policies matrics as part of a whole plan viability study

Question 9

Tell me about a recent change to planning policy in a region you have worked in.

Answer 9

BNG - change to 10% uplift being required. This has impacted many viability assessments, both site specific and whole plan.

Question 10

Tell me about the decision making process for planning applications.

Answer 10

When received, they go through a verification process.

Applications are then consulted on.

Question 11

Outline the appeal system for planning applications which haven’t been determined in the required timescale or which have been refused.

Answer 11

Applicant can appeal if not decision made in the timescales.

Appeals are submitted to the Planning Inspectorate.

Question 12

Tell me about one of the use classes and the types of use included within it

Answer 12

I would refer to the TCPA Use class order 2020 for the full list

Class C - Residential

Question 13

What is Article 4?

Answer 13

Legal mechanism within the UK planning system that allows local planning authorities (LPAs) to remove certain permitted development rights.

Question 14

What is vacant building credit?

Answer 14

Aimed at encouraging the redevelopment of vacant or underused buildings by reducing the affordable housing contributions

Question 15

How have you identified an appropriate planning strategy to help promote and/or manage proposed development allocations and/or strategic and community infrastructure requirements?

Answer 15

Whole plan viability testing in Coventry.

We reviewed the emerging local plan policies, formulating development typologies to be tested in appraisals.

This informed the ability for Coventry to implement their policy.

Question 16

How have you identified and evaluated both desktop and field study planning information and data in relation to a purchase, sale, investment and/or development decision?

Answer 16

Involved in various development decisions through FVAs.

We have reviewed applicants viability assessment and advised the council on their reasonableness.

Question 17

How have you critiqued, reported and explained to clients, stakeholder and the public about land use allocations, housing need assessments, regeneration strategies, infrastructure or economic development plans?

Answer 17

Our viability report details the housing need assessment which forms the basis of our unit mix.

During the Wirral local plan assessment, we utilised the council’s regeneration strategy to form the basis of our assumptions on value.

Question 18

Harborough District Council

Tell me about the residential market report you prepared?

Why are evidence-based documents important when preparing development plans?

How do you ensure a robust methodology?

How are your findings recorded and shared with the client?

Answer 18

Resi market report to inform on the values of Harborough and create the value areas to feed into our assumptions for appraisals.

Evidence is crucial to determining the reality of a situation. The plan is examined and has to be supported by evidence.

Clear and methodical approach is required that is rooted in evidence.

Findings are recorded in market reports which are made public.

Question 19

Vale of White Horse

Tell me about your instruction to assess the viability of the local plan.

How did you go about this?

What were your findings and recommendations?

Answer 19

The process of the local plan assessment involves:

• Market evidence (Land and Property)
• Review of policy - any viability implications
• Conclude on other appraisal assumptions
• Create the typologies matrix
• Stakeholder workshop / gather feedback
• Draft Typologies appraisals
• Meeting on strategic sites (if required)
• Strategic site appraisal
• Final Viability Report

Question 20

Wirral Local Plan Viability Assessment
Tell me about this instruction and your specific role.

Why was a viability assessment of the local plan required.

What were the nature of the strategic sites you assessed?

Explain your review process?

Why is it necessary to question and interrogate the information
provided in support of sites?

Tell me about the viability gap you identified and how you advised this be addressed

Answer 20

Whole plan viability assessment on emerging policies.

For their local plan to be adopted.

The nature of the sites were brownfield / contaminated sites.

The review included liaising with the site promoters for specific details on the site and running our own appraisals with the relevant policy costs. we interrogated this to ensure it was robust.

Their was a viability gap in each site, currently low value area which needed regeneration. We advised on premium uplifts we would see from regen / placemaking / sustainability.

Question 21

Charnwood Local Plan Viability Assessment

Tell me about the topology appraisals you prepared in support of this local plan.

What was your methodology?

What were the outcomes and conclusions?
How do you define surplus land value?

Answer 21

Created typologies in line with typical schemes coming forward.

The methodology was to create typologies to be tested under the development appraisals to understand the implications of policies.

In Charnwood, we found the majority of typologies to be viable, we advised that a circa 10-15k per unit could be paid under s106.

Question 22

What is a planning obligation

Answer 22

Legal obligations entered into to mitigate the impacts of a development proposal.

In other words S106.

Question 23

When can planning obligations be sought by the local planning authority?

Answer 23

Necessary to make the development acceptable in planning terms;

Directly related to the development;

Fairly and reasonably related in scale and kind to the development.

Question 24

How have you acted on behalf of stakeholder interests in relation to spatial planning or infrastructure matters?

Answer 24

We have completed a stakeholder workshop in which I presented to many stakeholders, our current assumptions for local plan appraisals.

We took on board feedback to adjust our assumptions where relevant, advising to our client - Coventry Council.

Question 25

Wirral

With the schemes not being viable - why was the advice to approve the local plan?

Answer 25

This did raise significant concerns in regards to the deliverability of the plan as a whole.

In this specific case, many typologies within the Wirral were viable but specific areas including the regeneration of the dockland area was unviable.

There was a reasonable prospect of grant funding because the council was already working with Homes England and Funding bodies to secure the necessary grant funding.

They were confident the required funding could be accessed within the timescales of the local plan.

Question 26

Talk me through the FVA process, say if you were doing a review on behalf of a local authority.

Answer 26

Following the key principles in Financial Viability in Planning: Conduct and Reporting - key requirements are:

Transparency: The FVA should provide clear, evidence-based figures and assumptions.

Consistency: Valuation methodologies should align with established RICS standards, such as the Red Book Global Standards.

Objectivity: Reports should be unbiased, with the surveyor acting independently of the client or developer’s interests.

Fairness: The assessment must balance the need for development viability with the public interest, ensuring appropriate community contributions (e.g., affordable housing)

Question 27

What are the tests for Local Plan examination?

Answer 27

Positively prepared: Based on an appropriate strategy for meeting objectively assessed development needs.

Justified: Based on robust evidence and the most appropriate strategy.

Effective: Deliverable over the plan period.

Consistent with national policy: Enabling sustainable development in line with the NPPF.

Question 28

Can you provide some examples of evidence-based documents that a local authority will gather when preparing a local plan?

Answer 28

Local Plan Viability Assessment

Strategic Housing and Market Assessment

Strategic Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment

Climate Change Strategy

Question 29

Should less weight be given to the PPG rather than the NPPF?

Answer 29

Not necessarily, this is a matter for the decision maker.

The weight placed on various factors is always a matter for the decision maker: outlined in Tesco Stores Ltd v Secretary of State for the Environment

Question 30

What are the determination timescales?

Answer 30

8 weeks for non-major application

13 weeks for a major application

Question 31

What is a statement of case?

Answer 31

A statement of case sets out the grounds for appeal, identifying the main issues and the evidence to be called.