On the 6 August, the Government published the ‘Planning for the Future White Paper’ which sets out the Government’s vision for a reformed planning system. This includes measures to streamline and modernise the planning process, bring a new focus to design and sustainability, improve the system of developer contributions to infrastructure and ensure more land is available for development where it is needed. These proposals require new primary legislation. The consultation runs for 12 weeks until 29 October 2020
The scope of the proposed changes is considerable and the reforms if implemented as outlined, would have significant implications for local planning authorities. The draft consultation response also has regard to Government’s proposals to reform local government which are due to be set out in a separate White Paper in late 2020/early 2021.
Taking account of members comments on the draft response since it was published it is proposed to amend the response to include the following:
1. Question 8 – make it clear that the number of homes is per annum and state the number up to 2033 the end of the plan period
2. Question 9a - Areas for growth should be more carefully considered for the long term - may mean it is too easy to develop in land recognised as requiring growth.
3. Question 9b - Enhance protections for conservation areas. The protection of conservation areas is vitally important in our local area, this should not be compromised. The provision for “appropriate, sympathetic changes to support their continued use and address climate change" needs to be strengthened.
4. Question 10 - These proposals take away powers from local authorities and representatives. Whilst we are pleased they recognise the importance of the green belt, further protections are needed to protect the character of an area. Local voices need to be strengthened and broadened and the number of applications brought to committee should not be stripped back as far as currently suggested.
5. Question 14 – if planning permission is granted and not implemented there need to be sanctions to build sites out and some financial penalty if development is started and not finished
6. Question 20 - The proposals should not compromise the quality of housing as a result of any changes to increase permitted development which may reduce the quality of building and not meet the character of a local area.
7. Question 22a – emphasise the need to retain the contribution to community projects in local areas
8. Question 22b – need to ensure that a flat or area based rate will not result in less contribution to affordable housing
Synopsis of proposals in the White Paper
The Planning White Paper identifies several problems with the current planning system that it seeks to tackle including: that it is too complex; planning decisions are discretionary rather than rules-based; that it takes too long to adopt a Local Plan; and that it is based on 20th-century technology.
The White Paper proposes a zonal system whereby local plans designate land into three different categories:
Main changes to plan-making
a) Growth areas suitable for substantial development including new settlements and urban extensions and which would have automatic outline permission with faster routes for detailed consent. The consultation also asks whether new settlements should be consented via Development Consent Orders (DCOs) under the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects regime;
b) Renewal areas suitable for development, largely on urban and brownfield sites, and which would be permitted either through a prior approval process, a faster planning application process or a Local or Neighbourhood Development Order; and
c) Protected areas where development would continue to be restricted such as Green Belt, Conservation Areas, Wildlife Sites, areas of significant flood risk and important areas of green space.
The White Paper promotes a simplified, streamlined and more engaging plan-making process with proposals including:
• Removing general development management policies to national policy to create much shorter and focused Local Plans;
• Replacing the ‘tests of soundness’ with a single statutory “sustainable development” test;
• Removing the Duty to Co-operate test;
• Local plans to be more visual and map-based, to follow a standard template and based on the latest digital technology; and
• A statutory duty to adopt the new style plan within 30 months of the new legislation coming into force or 42 months for councils with a recently adopted plan (such as Chelmsford) with sanctions for those failing to do so
The White Paper proposes a standard method for establishing housing requirement figures to distribute the Government’s national housebuilding target of 300,000 new homes annually. This would amend the current standard method to include affordability changes over time, remove the cap on the limit of the increase for individual local authorities and include a buffer to account for a drop-off rate between permission and delivery. Land constraints, such as the Green Belt, could be factored in once existing brownfield land for housing has been optimised.
Main changes to decision making (Development Management)
· The White Paper seeks faster and more certain decision-making with firmer deadlines. The established period of 8 or 13 weeks for determining an application is proposed to be a firm deadline. ‘Extensions of time’ which are used currently to agree an extended determination date with the developer are criticised.
• Decision-making would make greater use of digital technology, including a new case-management software (this would automate routine processes such as knowing whether applications are “within the rules”); data-rich planning registers; digital templates; standardisation of technical information and standard national planning conditions.
· Delegation of planning decisions would be given to Planning Officers where the principle of development has been established (i.e. through designation as growth or renewal land within a local plan).
• There would be an automatic refund of planning fees if the application is not determined within the time limit and deemed approval of planning permission if there has not been a timely determination.
· Applicants who are successful at appeal will receive an automatic rebate of their planning application fee. The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) would also be updated.
· The Government propose to strengthen enforcement powers and sanctions and the nature of permitted development would be widened, to include development of popular and replicable forms of development.
· A quicker and simpler framework for assessing environmental impacts (Environmental Impact Assessments) is proposed.
· The White Paper also proposes to explore whether suitably experienced architectural specialists can have earned autonomy from submitting routine listed building consent applications.
Main changes to design and sustainability
· The headline objective in the White Paper is that planning should create beautiful and sustainable places. This leads on from the recommendations of Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission 2019.
• Planning is a powerful tool to create places and new communities, not simply concentrate on building design.
• To augment improvements in decision making, local councils will be expected to set out detailed design parameters and specific standards for their areas. A National Model Design Code will be published in the autumn setting out how this may be achieved.
• These design guides and design codes should be developed through robust public engagement and emphasise local character.
• There is a recognition that this may require a step-change in design skills, prioritisation and leadership available to local council’s as well as the need to improve resourcing for planning departments more generally. The role of Homes England, for example in its Garden Towns and Villages programme, will be reviewed to assist with this.
• The proposals include a focus on net gains for the quality of the built and natural environments, moving away from ‘no net harm’.
Main changes to developer contributions for infrastructure
The White Paper proposes that the current system of planning obligations under Sections 106 should be consolidated under a reformed, extended ‘Infrastructure Levy’. The existing system of S106 agreements and Community Infrastructure Levy would be removed. The new Levy would:
· Be based on a flat-rate set nationally at either a single rate, or at area-specific rates;
· Be based on the principle of capturing a proportion of land value uplift to fund infrastructure and affordable housing;
· Be charged on the final value of the development;
· Be levied at the point of occupation;
· Include a value-based minimum threshold below which the levy is not charged;
· Only be charged on the proportion of the value that exceeds the threshold;
• Maintain an exemption for self and custom build development;
• Be chargeable on permitted development proposals
• Enable in-kind on-site delivery of affordable housing; and
• Maintain the ‘Neighbourhood Share’ associated with CIL.
Local authorities could borrow against the Levy to forward fund infrastructure
Other changes to deliver the reforms
These include:
• Introducing a new performance framework across all planning functions;
• Providing stronger enforcement powers and sanctions;
• Greater regulation of discretionary pre-application charging; and
Potentially widening fee income to cover planning costs e.g. Local Plan submissions
(Further information: Alison Blom-Cooper 4066)