Planning Portal Blog

Three county councils in the middle of England are putting the finishing touches to their joint case for a government-backed five-year growth deal for the region, unifying the various funding streams available for strategic projects and economic growth.

The counties – Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire – have formed an alliance badged as ‘England’s Economic Heartland’ to develop the initiative.

In the next couple of weeks the cabinets of the three councils will consider a report detailing progress so far and setting out the next steps.

Together the counties provide a home for a significant proportion of UK science and technology innovation. The region has a combined economy estimated at £46.6bn and has calculated that achieving a deal with the administration could boost that figure by a further £9bn each year, creating at least 135,000 new jobs by 2020.

Work has started already on preparing a single sub-national infrastructure and economic development framework. The councils have stressed that they will work closely with local planning authorities to ensure this strategy supports their growth ambitions.

The three counties argue that establishing a stronger voice for the area will increase the councils’ influence on longer term planning processes like those associated with the strategic road network and rail infrastructure.

View the Northamptonshire County Council news release on England’s Economic Heartland

Roger Milne

Onshore turbines targeted

Energy secretary Amber Rudd has insisted that Conservative manifesto promises to give local communities a final say over onshore wind farms and to axe their subsidy regime would be implemented by May next year.
Her comments came in an interview in the Sunday Times where she highlighted these as departmental priorities.
She is quoted as saying: “I’ve already got my team working on it. That’s going to be one of the first things we’re going to do.”
The department is thought to be considering changing the planning regulations so wind farms of 50 megawatts capacity or more are no longer treated as nationally significant infrastructure projects and subject to the 2008 Planning Act regime.
These moves are not expected to affect onshore wind projects already in planning. Nearly seven gigawatts of new capacity is currently believed to be in the in the pipeline.

View the full interview on the Sunday Times website (subscription required)

View more information on Amber Rudd MP at GOV.UK

 

Inspector considers fate of ‘hobbit house’

The future of a turf-roofed roundhouse in Pembrokeshire, dubbed the “hobbit house”, has been considered by a planning inspector this week who will determine whether the scheme should enjoy retrospective planning permission as a development which meets government guidelines on sustainable development under the so-called One Planet Development policy.

Megan Williams and Charlie Hague, both 27, have now spent more than three years fighting against the demolition of their distinctive home.

 

Welsh round-up

• The owners of a Welsh ‘holistic’ retreat established on a small-holding near Llandrindod Wells have appealed an enforcement notice requiring them to remove structures that include three shepherds’ huts, an eco classroom and a ‘tree house’ which has a kitchen, a lounge, off-grid electricity, a hot tub and shower. Powys County Council served the order on the couple who have lived at the site for nine years arguing the developments required planning permission.
• A public inquiry has opened into an appeal by South Wales Land Developments into the non-determination by Cardiff City Council of its proposals for 1,200 new homes on land at Lisvane on the northern edge of the Welsh capital.

 

Legal round-up

• Neighbours of the Kensington town house painted in red and white stripes to annoy opponents of plans to demolish it and replace with a new house plus a basement are mounting a legal challenge over consent for the scheme, won on appeal.
  The owner of the town house also faces action from Kensington and Chelsea Borough Council, which wants the stripes removed as the planning authority claims they adversely affect the amenity of a conservation area.
• The decision of Northern Ireland environment minister Mark H Durkan to approve a major mixed-used development on the outskirts of Newry was legally flawed, Belfast High Court was told last week.
• The former lead councillor for planning at Guildford Borough Council has pleaded guilty to a charge of wilfully pretending to be a barrister and will be sentenced later this month. Monika Juneja of Doverfield Road, Guildford also pleaded guilty at the Old Bailey to three charges of forgery and one of obtaining a pecuniary advantage by deception.

 

London round-up

• University proposals to demolish a row of Victorian buildings in central London have been put on hold while ministers consider whether or not to call in the scheme which has been approved by Westminster City Council.
• Thousands of people have signed a petition to stop King’s College London replacing the buildings on the Strand with a new, bigger academic building and a link to the existing Somerset House. Save Britain’s Heritage campaigners said the new building would be “bland”.
• Office workers in east London could soon be hanging out among the trees now Hackney Council is providing temporary office space for up to eight people in the canopy of a tree in Hoxton Square from June. The council said the booking fees would help maintain the park and other open spaces, and community groups could book the space free of charge at weekends. Between six and eight people will be able to hold meetings or work on laptops in the weather-proof structure, which will be built around the tree. The tree office has been designed by Australian-American artist Natalie Jeremijenko along with “collaborative artists” Shuster and Moseley, and architect firms Tate Harmer and Gensler.

View more information about the TREExOFFICE on the Groundwork London website

View more information on Hoxton Square

 

Essex nature reserve extension

The Environment Agency has started construction work this week on a major extension to the Essex Wildlife Trust’s Fingringhoe Wick Nature Reserve, on the Colne estuary.

The estuary has national and international designations because of its conservation importance and has recently been included in a Marine Conservation Zone designation.

Coastal habitats that make the area special include tidal mudflats, salt marshes and Essex coastal grazing marsh.

The project, which is a partnership between the Trust and the Environment Agency, will see 22 hectares of new intertidal habitat created by breaching the existing seawall – allowing the tide to enter the site. The habitat will be a mix of salt marsh, mudflat and saline lagoon, with a further 1.5 hectares of new reed bed.

View the full press release on GOV.UK

 

County council objects to major Surrey housing project

Surrey County Council has recommended that proposals to build more than 2,000 homes on Wisley Airfield near Guildford on land adjoining the A3 should be rejected because of traffic issues.

 

Go-ahead for Teesside homes

Leading planning and design consultancy Barton Willmore has helped secure outline planning permission on behalf of Leebell Developments for a scheme of up to 500 homes in Upper Warren in the Tees Valley near Hartlepool.

The development, to the north-west of the town close to the A179, includes up to 75 affordable homes. Leebell Developments is a joint venture between Persimmon Homes (North East) Ltd and Bellway Homes (North East) Ltd. The scheme has been brought forward in tandem with the council’s emerging local plan.

View the full press release on the Barton Willmore website

 

Leicester developments announced

A new development combining office space, shops and homes has been announced for the site of the former Leicester City Council offices at New Walk Centre.

Local developer Ingleby has been chosen as the preferred developer to transform the one hectare site at the junction of New Walk, Welford Road and Belvoir Street.

Initial designs for the new development include two buildings up to five storeys high, with a central tree-lined public square linked to New Walk, and an open thoroughfare connecting the development to Welford Road.

Meanwhile, in a separate but related development the city council has outlined plans to renovate and restore an area near the cathedral under an £1.6m scheme which will focus on 20 Georgian buildings. The plan is known as the Greyfriars Townscape Heritage Initiative.

View more information on the Leicester City Council website

 

Flats plan for Reading listed buildings

Three early 19th Century buildings in Reading are to be converted into private homes, under plans published by the University of Reading.

The listed properties on London Road were last used by the Witan International College 10 years ago. The university, which owns the buildings, and a private developer plan to convert them into 53 flats.

View more information on the planning details on the Reading Borough Council website

 

Corrie tram line concern

Coronation Street bosses have objected to a planned expansion of Greater Manchester’s tram network because they fear the noise could disrupt filming.

ITV have raised an official complaint about Metrolink’s plans for a new route – linking central Manchester with the Trafford Centre – which would run past the soap’s Media City set in Salford

The company said it would be happier with earlier plans which bypassed the area. The proposals will be examined during a public inquiry due in July.

 

Derby homes re-think

The Conservative group leader of a Derbyshire council, which until the recent local elections was Labour-controlled, has announced he will try to axe proposals for 400 new homes on a site at Allestree near Derby.

The site is allocated for residential development under Amber Valley District Council’s draft local plan which has yet to complete its examination. The scheme has been put forward by Catesby Estates

 

Kent AONB undergrounding

Overhead power lines have been removed from a 4.5 kilometre stretch of protected countryside in Kent.

UK Power Networks said the £482,000 scheme would improve the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). Engineers have replaced electricity lines and 43 wooden poles near Canterbury with underground cables.

 

Underperforming cities report

A report recommending practical steps for regenerating underperforming cities has been published by a group of professional bodies including the Royal Town Planning Institute.

The document ‘A brighter future for our towns and cities’ is the product of a unique collaboration involving the RTPI, Association of Town and City Management (ATCM) and Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

Trudi Elliott, RTPI chief executive, said: “It is essential that we do not abandon our underperforming towns and cities, and in collaboration with other professional bodies, we have outlined practical measures for boosting local economies.

“We call on the new government to encourage positive regeneration outcomes through investment in local planning, the incentivisation of cooperation between local authorities and better coordination of policies for housing, infrastructure and service delivery.”

View a copy of the full report (1.2mb PDF)

 

Coventry backs West Midlands combined authority

Coventry has moved a step closer to joining the proposal for a West Midlands combined authority. The city council voted to support the move in principle on Monday.

The councils controlling Birmingham, Walsall, Sandwell, Wolverhampton and Dudley have already backed the plan. Solihull could also follow suit.

View the full press release on the Coventry City Council website

 

Portsmouth minister named

Mark Francois MP, the new Minister of State at the Department for Communities and Local Government has also been confirmed as Minister for Portsmouth, a role which dovetails with his ministerial responsibilities for coastal communities in the department.

View the full press release on GOV.UK

 

Potteries statue taller than the Angel of the North

A 21-metre tall sculpture has been unveiled in North Staffordshire. The work – called Golden – is taller than the Angel of the North and stands on the former Goldendale ironworks site in the Chatterley Valley near Stoke-on-Trent. It is made of corten steel and glass prisms and has LED lights that shine at night.

View the full press release on the City of Stoke on Trent website

 

Roger Milne

England’s first part business-based neighbourhood plan passed muster last week following a referendum organised on the same day as the general and local elections.

The neighbourhood strategy – known as the Central Milton Keynes Alliance Plan 2026 – had taken two years to organise by a voluntary alliance of local businesses and community groups.

A core policy for the 50-hectare area is to retain the original, successful layout of Central Milton Keynes (CMK) with its tree-lined boulevards, open spaces, safe pedestrian routes and a presumption that new buildings over eight storeys high will need to be considered against very strict criteria.

Other policies support a major university, new community and sports facilities, new public transport shuttle service, market hall, civic square and a new boating marina.

In related but separate moves, outgoing Communities Secretary Eric Pickles has decided not to contest legal challenges to two decisions he made in appeal cases relating to areas with emerging neighbourhood plans.

Last year Pickles refused permission for a 350-home development to the north east of the Wiltshire town of Devizes and 100 homes on the edge of the Staffordshire village of Rolleston on Dove.

Both appeals involved proposals which had been recommended for approval by a planning inspector in a neighbourhood planning area without a demonstrable five-year supply of housing land. In both cases, Pickles had decided that allowing the appeals would undermine the neighbourhood planning process.

Both appeals will be remitted for re-determination by Pickles’ successor as Communities Secretary Greg Clark.

Also last week a High Court judge decided that Pickles acted contrary to national planning policy by allowing an emerging neighbourhood plan to become the determining factor in his decision over a 120-home scheme proposed by developer Woodcock Holdings in the mid-Sussex village of Sayers Common. The appeal will now be re-determined.

View ‘The CMK Business Neighbourhood Plan’

Roger Milne

Prime Minister David Cameron has returned to Downing Street and said the Conservatives’ electoral triumph means a green light for the Party’s manifesto programme, which included specific targets on housing supply.

The Conservatives have plans for 200,000 new Starter Homes as well as an aspiration of 120,000 new homes courtesy of its Help to Buy initiative plus a further 95,000 as part of the Housing Zone regime, already signalled. Also on the Conservative’s wish-list is a doubling of custom-built homes by the end of the decade.

Brownfield development should be a priority with the aim that 90 per cent of suitable brownfield sites will have planning permission for housing by 2020. All local authorities will have to have a brownfield land register. The Party has pledged to establish a London Land Commission. And it may decide to extend the Planning Act 2008 regime to major housing schemes, a move which a number of developers and volume builders have canvassed.

The Conservatives are on record as wanting more neighbourhood planning, a stronger Community Right to Bid regime and have plans for a ‘pocket parks’ programme. The Party also favours giving local people more control over planning and greater protection for the green belt. But in terms of specific policies the main pledges were an end to on-shore wind farm subsidies and a change in the law so local people have the final say on new land-based turbines. Also promised were moves to give local businesses more say on minor planning applications.

The Conservative Manifesto blew warm on more City Deals, more growth deals, and locally-supported garden cities and towns.

The Conservatives have signalled ambitious spending plans on roads, railways (including HS2) and flood prevention schemes. The Party is committed to creating a sovereign wealth fund for the north of England bankrolled from unconventional oil and gas development, including fracking.

The Queens Speech setting out the government’s first legislative programme is scheduled for 27 May.

Read the Conservatives manifesto

 

A groundbreaking deal designed to protect the University of Sussex’s unique listed buildings and streamline the planning process has been signed by Brighton & Hove City Council, Historic England and the University.

The so-called Listed Building Heritage Partnership Agreement is only the second such agreement in the country – and the first involving a university.

The University of Sussex was the first of a new wave of universities created in the early 1960s. Its early buildings were designed by architect Sir Basil Spence, and include one Grade l and seven Grade II* listed buildings.

They have many common design features, such as flat roofs, red brick and concrete arches. The university has continued to develop the site in sympathy with the early design and site layout.

Penny Thompson, chief executive of Brighton and Hove City Council, said: “The agreement means that Listed Building Consent for general or repeated work will be granted without the need for the university to individually apply for consent – cutting red tape and saving time and money.”

Areas covered by the agreement include work to repair or replace the external fabric of buildings, internal fixtures and finishes to upgrade teaching facilities and works to improve safety and accessibility.

The agreement will run for 10 years, subject to periodic review.

View the University of Sussex press release

View the Brighton and Hove City Council press release

View the ‘Good Practice Advice Note: Drawing up a Listed Building Heritage Partnership Agreement’

Roger Milne

Greenwich Royal Borough Council has formally proposed a landmark new local planning authority policy that would mean any developer who doesn’t meet the council’s affordable housing target would have to provide a public viability study justifying its stance.

Currently the south-east London local planning authority expects developers to ensure 35 per cent of housing in new schemes is affordable.

The Royal Borough has just started consulting on a new list of locally established criteria for planning applications. This includes a requirement to provide a fully public viability study for residential developments with less than 35 per cent affordable homes. This will then be subject to full public consultation as part of the planning application.

Councillor Danny Thorpe, Greenwich cabinet member for regeneration and transport, said: “This is about transparency for local people. At the moment our hands are tied on affordable housing levels if the viability study shows a development won’t work financially with the levels of affordable housing we want.”

“This will now allow the whole process to be far more transparent – making the viability studies publicly available as part of the planning documents means the Royal Borough and residents alike can see precisely why a developer might claim they cannot meet our affordable housing targets.“

He added: “We believe we’re the first local authority in the country to be doing this – looking at policy which insists on these studies being in the public domain.”

 

View the Royal Borough of Greenwich press release

View further details of the consultation and have your say

Roger Milne

Developers urge enhanced planning service charging

The new government should consider following in the footsteps of Historic England and introduce a charging system for enhanced planning services, according to the British Property Federation (BPF).

Historic England has consulted on charging for a series of enhanced services which will allow developers to pay for options such as extended pre-application advice and fast-track listing within a guaranteed time frame, whilst still offering its existing advice for free.

The charges will help improve performance by delivering a better-resourced system for all, and will encourage developers to bring historic buildings back into use, while also safeguarding the future of these assets.

The BPF has suggested that a similar structure be considered by the new administration as part of the solution to tackling the lack of resources facing local planning departments.

In its response to the Historic England consultation, the BPF recommended that there should be a regular review of the free services, to ensure that those who are unable to pay do not receive a poor, reduced or slower service.

Read the BPF press release

View further details of the Historic England ‘Enhanced Advisory Services’ consultation

 

London round-up

• London Mayor Boris Johnson (who is now a constituency MP in the capital) has started consulting on two sets of minor alterations to the London Plan (MALPs) on housing standards and, separately, on parking standards for outer London boroughs. Both sets of minor alterations will be considered by an independent planning inspector at a joint public examination to be held later this year in City Hall, probably in October 2015.
• London Premiership club Queens Park Rangers (QPR) has submitted a revised planning application for a new training ground at Warren Farm in Ealing. The scheme will create a new purpose-built training centre for the club’s first team and academy, alongside a new community sports facility.
• Owners of an illegally converted property in Ealing received more than £104,000 in fines at Harrow Crown Court plus a confiscation order after failing to comply with a planning enforcement notice issued by the west London borough.

 

Workington solar farm blocked

Solar Park Developments has announced it has appealed the decision by Allerdale Borough Council to refuse it application for a 14-hectare solar farm scheme at Moor House Farm near Workington in west Cumbria. Officials had recommended approval of the 14-megawatt project.

View full details of the refused application

 

County Durham wind farm rejected

Proposals for a £16m four-turbine wind farm on the edge of a County Durham forest have been rejected by members of the county council’s planning committee.

Green power developer Banks Renewables had originally proposed a five-turbine project at Hamsterley Forest. The scheme, at Windy Bank Farm north of Woodland village, was reduced to four turbines up to 125 metres in height.

The committee rejected the development because of “significant effects” on the character of the local landscape. Natural England had opposed the project because of its adverse impact on the Teesdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

View full details of the refused application

 

Mineral plan guidance

The Mineral Products Association (MPA) together with the Planning Officers’ Society has published a best practice guide on so-called Local Aggregates Assessments (LAAs). The guidance highlights what can be expected in terms of LAA style and content for all interested parties.

Ken Hobden, director of mineral planning with the MPA, said, “Over the last 2-3 years, mineral planning authorities have been producing LAAs, often to different standards and degrees of consistency with what the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) requires.

“This document provides mineral planning authorities (MPAs) with advice on good practice in producing LAAs and guides Aggregate Working Parties (AWPs) and the minerals industry in terms of what can be expected to be included in an LAA.”

Download the ‘Practice guidance on the production and use of local aggregate assessments’ (PDF)

 

Luton legal challenge over urban extension fails

Luton Borough Council has failed in a Court of Appeal challenge to a neighbouring authority’s decision to grant planning permission for an urban extension in the green belt.

Central Bedfordshire Council granted permission on 2 June 2014 to the Houghton Regis Development Consortium for the extension on 262 hectares of land on the Houghton Regis North Site 1.

Luton, which is unable to find land within its own administrative area to meet all of its housing needs, brought judicial review proceedings as it wanted to secure a higher minimum level of affordable housing.

A High Court judge ruled against the borough council, which was given leave to go to the Court of Appeal. However, the higher court has now come down against the borough council.

View full details of the original application

 

Airports Commission air quality consultation

The independent Airports Commission, which is considering extra runway capacity for London and south-east England, has just begun a quick-fire extra consultation on the air quality impacts of the three short-listed options: the two proposals for Heathrow and the expansion plans for Gatwick.

This exercise has a deadline of 29 May. The commission is due to make its final recommendations to the government in June.

View details of the consultation

 

Suffolk coastal heath safeguarded

A stretch of coastal heath land in Suffolk has been bought for £200,000 to safeguard its future. Grants were used from two different sources to buy more than 14.5 hectares acres at Dunwich, which will be managed by the National Trust.

It means the land, home to nightjars, woodlarks and warblers, will be open to walkers and visitors. Footpaths around newly re-named Mount Pleasant Heath have been widened and maps of Dunwich Heath will be updated to help visitors explore the area.

View the National Trust news article

 

 Sussex new town land sale snubbed

A Sussex farmer is reported to have rejected an offer of more than £275m for his land from developers seeking to build a new town.

Robert Worsley, who has run his 220-hectare farm in Twineham for the past 15 years, said he would rather protect the countryside than personally profit.

Developer Mayfield Market Towns wants to build 10,000 new homes on land between Sayers Common and Henfield.

The proposals have generated considerable local controversy and opposition from residents and the local authorities involved.

 

Preston bus station revamp competition

More than 90 entries have been submitted to the competition, run by the Royal Institute of British Architects, to redesign the listed Preston Bus Station. Lancashire County Council is allocating £13m to the initiative. A short-list will be announced later this summer.

Preston Bus Station was considered the largest bus station in Europe when it opened in 1969. The site, which was under-threat from demolition, was given Grade II listed status in 2013.

View details of the competition

 

Hall award announced

The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) has named one of its new awards for research excellence in memory of the late Sir Peter Hall, doyen of planning academics.

The Sir Peter Hall Award for Wider Engagement will recognise the very best work of academics which contribute significantly to a stronger policy and public understanding of planning.

View the RTPI press release

 

Planning shenanigans on new TV series

Channel 4 this week began a three-part series on individuals whose properties have fallen foul of the planning system. The first part of Damned Designs: Don’t Demolish My Home was transmitted at 8pm on Monday night and featured Surrey farmer Robert Fidler who famously built a mock Tudor castle and hid it behind bales of straw.

Next  Monday (18 May)  the second  part will see a Warrington pub landlord, a retired doctor in Bolton, and an eco idealist in rural Wales battling to save their dream homes from demolition.

Roger Milne