We’ll be holding an event for LPAs in West Yorkshire in February on the benefits and challenges facing local authorities undertaking channel shift strategies.
Now that online submission of planning applications has become the norm, we’re continuing to work with LPAs on effective methods to help drive the percentage of electronic apps even higher.
In addition, we’re looking at ways LPA websites can improve their user journeys and make use of existing content and advice on the Planning Portal.
Back in October we ran a similar event with local authorities in the South West. This was a well-attended day with speakers from Socitm and a workshop on how to develop effective user journeys and customer-facing planning websites.
The day was attended by around 30 LPAs and general feedback was good. So good, we’re running another in Kirklees, West Yorkshire, on the 13th February. We expect invites to go out at the start of next week.
We also picked up the following post from Shropshire Council’s development team blog about how they used some of the user-centred design techniques covered in the event to good effect while planning the redesign of their own planning pages.
Here’s a link to the User Journey presentation (2.7MB PDF) from the event in October. It’s an introduction to practical methods for designing web pages for your customers. The workshop was run by a user experience expert who kindly gave permission to share the presentation.
Finally, here’s yet another link to our guidance on linking to the Portal effectively.
I was mostly eating and also building Lego Star Wars ships with my boy (other construction models are available – but they’re rubbish!)
However it appears there were 14 planning applications submitted online via the portal on Christmas Day.
223 were submitted on New Years Eve and another 93 apps on New Years Day.
It would appear that the majority of these applicants were men!
Firstly, I’d like to wish a Happy New Year to you all.
Here we are. The craziness behind us and another year of doom and gloom ahead.
Fear not though, the team and I will endeavour to inspire you to overcome the January blues and face the year with fortitude and resilience. I promise to do my utmost throughout 2013 to keep your spirits up with tales of development derring-do and exceptional feats of planning positivism.
For now I offer up a statistical tidbit recounting the Planning Portal’s performance in 2012.
Perhaps surprisingly, given the times in which we endure, we have experienced continued growth across all key measurables (my salary not included).
We have broken a new ceiling, in that we’ve received more than 10 million visits in a single year for the first time (similar to the French picture house, The Louvre) and despite the perceived dip in development, we have seen planning applications submitted via the Portal increase by more than 20,000 to 296,185, an increase of 8% on 2011.
The total number of pages viewed by the good folk of this nation (and a few further afield) was 108,277,506, a massive 12% increase on 2011.
Most notably, there were 10,600,325 visits to our website. This equates to a mammoth increase of 19% on the paltry 8,921,884 received last year.
Other notable metrics include a rise of 17% in downloads of Building Regulations Approved Documents to just short of 2 Million at 1,942,276 and finally this little old blog had more than 110,000 visits, which is extremely gratifying.
Thanks to all who have taken the time to contribute, moan, praise or generally just get involved and in particular to those of you who despite recognising our occasionally less than perfect system, have persevered anyway.
Come on 2013 bring it on! I’ve a feeling that it’s going be a good ‘un.
Whilst it may or may not be the end of the world today, it’s certainly approaching the end of the year and I would like to take a moment to thank all of you for your support in 2012.
I t has been a momentus year for us all at the Portal, dealing with the ever changing planning landscape and reaching our 1 millionth online planning application.
Thanks for bearing with us, for contributing to the blog and for supporting us in our efforts to make planning better, faster and easier.
To those of you who celebrate Christmas, I hope it’s all you wish it to be and to everyone (assuming we make it past 11:11 this morning) a wonderful and prosperous New Year.
Thank
Chris
I am at long last pleased to announce that a root around the Portal sofa has unearthed sufficient funds to allow us to e-enable the Non-Material Amendment form.
We are now instructing our technical and delivery partners and are beginning the development process.
We anticipate that the new form and other improvements will go live in Spring.
As the holiday season approaches and thoughts turn to ridiculous over-consumption and tinsel, I thought I’d share a little festive fun created by the Portal’s very own elves.
Old friends may possibly recognise the interactive card as being rather similar (possibly even identical) to one we sent three years ago – but times are tough and a little bit of recycled Christmas cheer is surely better than none at all.
Our interactive Christmas treat lets you build a snow person (no gender issues here!) to your own exacting standards (should appeal to the control freaks architects out there!) and subsequently email it to a friend, colleague or even family member, if you’re a cheapskate.
The team and I would like to wish you a very merry Christmas if you celebrate it, and a happy new year as well.
Now where did I put that sack, ho ho ho!
We launched our Smarter Planning Scheme in late October and we’ve had a huge amount of interest since then. So far over 200 planning professionals and 100 LPAs have submitted expressions of interest in joining the scheme.
If you have contacted us with an expression of interest please rest assured one of our account managers will get to you as soon as possible.
In the meantime, we’ve created a Frequently Asked Questions document which tries to answer some of the key questions we’re getting asked during the Smarter Planning process.
If you’re waiting to hear back from one of our account managers, or you have some questions about the scheme, please spare five minutes to read the FAQ document.
Read the document on the Portal (PDF 279KB).
By the end of November we had already processed 276,941 planning applications for the year. That’s 2,101 more than the total achieved for the whole of 2011.
Thanks to everyone for your continued support and keep them coming.
Updated applications by month 2005 – 2012
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Wednesday the 22nd November was our busiest day for applications ever, stopping just short of 2,000 applications in a single day.
I’ve received a request for help from a Planning Portal reader but as I’m no expert I’m passing it on to you good folks.
The reader in question is seeking advice from a specialist with expert knowledge of safe wall heights and lengths.
You can find more information about the request and get in contact with our reader via her Facebook page.
We recently launched our Smarter Planning scheme with professionals and local planning authorities.
Smarter Planning is a partnership between planning agents, local planning authorities and the Portal. The initiative aims to encourage and support best practice in the electronic submission and processing of planning applications.
Take up of the scheme has been very popular since its launch and 67 LPAs have completed the survey to join the scheme.
Of the surveys that have been assessed, 13 LPAs have achieved the requirements so far and been accredited with Smarter Planning Champion status.
They have been awarded the Smarter Planning champion logo and can now proudly display this on their websites.
Due to the high demand to join the scheme, we are busy assessing the remaining LPA surveys and hope to add further ‘champions’ in the coming weeks.
The 13 LPAs to receive Smarter Planning champion status so far are:
- Brighton and Hove City Council
- Bristol City Council
- Cheshire West and Chester Council
- Cornwall Council
- Coventry City Council
- Kings Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council
- Kirklees Metropolitan Council
- Newark and Sherwood District Council
- Rotherham MBC
- Sefton Council
- Sheffield City Council
- Telford and Wrekin Council
- Westminster City Council
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