Latest improvements to our application service

One of the things we were most excited about at the Planning Portal regarding our new system, was the flexibility we would have in developing, amending and implementing changes to the system far quicker than before.

Despite having launched the new system at the end of January, we were able to implement the addition of the new Prior Approval forms within a number of months, providing improved data transfers for Local Planning Authorities. These changes we are able to make, support us further in our ambition to provide all application types online, and simultaneously develop efficiencies in the digital transfer of data more effectively for those involved.

We recently implemented adjustments to improve our new infrastructure, helping to make the platform more robust and resilient. We will also be applying many usability changes to improve the overall user experience. This will refine action buttons throughout the site and help to enhance rates of validation.

The most exciting aspect of the latest update (in our opinion) is the introduction of the schema v3.0. This data standard will allow Local Planning Authorities to automatically download the recently launched Prior Approval forms. This new version of our data standard will allow us to provide legislative compliance across other areas of the application service by adding:

• Entries for all current/proposed Use Classes in England and Wales
• A flag to identify proposals for public service infrastructure developments.

This will allow us to update the relevant individual application questions to collect this information going forward.