A third of UK population covered by councils pledging net-zero
More than a third of the UK’s population is now represented by local authorities that are planning to reach net-zero emissions ahead of the government’s 2050 commitment.
Huw Morris, The Planner
Fire statement proposal for high-rise developments after Grenfell
Developers must submit a fire statement alongside a planning application for multi-occupied residential buildings under government proposals following the Grenfell Tower disaster.
Huw Morris, The Planner
London’s brownfield has the capacity for 400k homes
More than 400,000 homes within 1.5km of a town centre could be built on brownfield land in London, according to an AECOM report.
Laura Edgar, The Planner
Regional planning application submission data from April indicates a reduction in the number of applications submitted across all regions when compared to March 2021.
There is more to this data than meets the eye, however. None of these figures show more than a 19% decrease, and it should be taken into account that April has a reduced number of working days due to the Easter holidays.
When comparing April 2021’s figures to those of April 2020, the difference is significant. Regions in the North have seen large increases in application figures: a 92% increase on 2020 in the North East, and a 61% increase on 2019. Up until April 2021, the North East region has shown increases in the number of applications submitted month on month which helps to explain this vast difference. The North West follows at a close second, with an 85% increase when compared to April 2020.
Read more…Approval of build-to-rent homes on a high
In the first three months of 2021, 6,937 new build-to-rent homes were granted full planning permission in the UK during the first three months of 2021, according to research published 24 May.
Laura Edgar, The Planner
14 councils announced for national model design guide pilot
The 14 local planning authorities in England selected to apply the new National Model Design Code (NMDC) to their areas have been announced by housing minister Christopher Pincher.
Laura Edgar, The Planner
Views sought on Old Oak and Park Royal local plan
The Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) has published a seven-week public consultation on changes to its local plan.
Laura Edgar, The Planner
Data collated by the Planning Portal so far this year shows that applications for home improvement projects continue to outperform the average rise in application volumes, as they have done consistently since applications bounced back from the shock of the first lockdown in spring 2020. In April 2021, Householder and associated consents were more than double the volume over the same period last year. Of course, last April bore the brunt of the COVID-19 impact, with application numbers for Householder consents 21 per cent lower than April 2019, but regardless – this represents a strong recovery well beyond expected baseline levels.
Read more…Since 2002, the Planning Portal has helped to transform the planning process, making information and services simpler and more accessible for those involved in the process. However, as much as technology in general has brought much opportunity and convenience into our everyday lives, predictably there will always be those that try to exploit technology for their own gains.
Email fraud is often seen on a large scale, such as attacks on PayPal, HMRC or banking services, where ‘scammers’ use various tactics to gather account or bank details and get people to pay for products or services they haven’t agreed to. This is also known as ‘phishing’. Consequently, one of the important questions for users of the Planning Portal is, “How do I know that a request for payment of an application is genuine?”
Due to this risk with any online transaction, we advise that you please ensure you are vigilant and question any requests for payment or information from a source that you think is suspicious.
Read more…
The Planning Portal is in the unique position of receiving around 90 per cent of all planning applications submitted to Local Planning Authorities across England and Wales. Each month, we assess and publish this data in our Planning Market Insight Report. May’s report took a deep dive into Advertisement consent applications.
Read more…Government urged to consider flooding in planning bill
Flood Re and the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) have called on the government to make sure that new homes are not built in areas at risk of flooding.
Laura Edgar, The Planner
MPs to investigate how rural productivity can be boosted
An inquiry to explore how the rural economy can be boosted in a post Covid-19 world has been launched by a group of cross-party MPs and peers.
Laura Edgar, The Planner
Housing divide between young and old widens due to Covid-19
The coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated housing inequalities between the young and old, according to recent research.
Laura Edgar, The Planner
Our event this year promises to bring together thought leaders, keynote speakers and exhibitors from across the planning industry for discussions, learning and networking at our four-day conference, delivered to you virtually.
Do not miss out on your chance to be part of our event and submit your application to host a workshop, join our panel discussions or be a headline speaker.
Read more…More than a million homes waiting to be built, suggests analysis
Analysis suggests that there are at least 1.1 million homes in England with planning permission that have yet to be built.
Laura Edgar, The Planner
Welsh Labour ends one short of Senedd majority
Welsh Labour won 30 seats in the Senedd election – one short of an outright majority.
Laura Edgar, The Planner
Office space in Wandsworth approved
Wandsworth Borough Council has granted planning permission for a 12-storey, 240,000-square-foot office building on the site of Royal Mail’s former South London depot in Nine Elms.
Laura Edgar, The Planner
It is now over a year since the first national lockdown, during which we saw the number of planning applications submitted plummet. In this month’s Planning Market Insight Report we have taken the opportunity to look back over the last year and see how far we have come. Throughout 2020 and the first quarter of 2021, we saw application patterns change dramatically, defying all seasonal trends and far surpass previous years in terms of the number of applications submitted. We are now questioning whether these trends have settled back down, now that there is some sense of normality back in our lives.
Over the last five years we have seen submission rates of planning applications drop off throughout April. We thought this year may be different, but in line with previous years, April 2021 saw 65,357 applications submitted, down from 77,289 in March of this year. Having analysed this data, we have concluded that there are a few reasons as to why this may be.
Read more…
