Urbanissta’s Post

In our latest Planning Speed Read, Partner Kamran Hyder discusses the planning reform, with a focus on Section 106 Agreements, along with brief updates on: ◾ Updated guidance in relation to planning appeals by the Planning Inspectorate. ◾ The Revised NPPF may be delayed until 2025. ◾ At appeal, the Secretary of State has approved a part green belt site. ◾ The number of homes permitted by and applications submitted to councils in the past year are at the lowest in over a decade. ◾ The RTPI states a clear plan is needed to assist local authorities to deliver 'impractical' housing targets. Read it here: https://lnkd.in/d5bD3Gmc #Planning #Section106 #BuiltEnvironment

Oxford City Council Local Plan 2040 Update. The Inspectors' Matters, Issues and Questions (MIQs) have been published and stage 1 hearings covering legal compliance including duty to cooperate, and housing need, capacity and housing requirement are scheduled for 11-13 June 2024. From our initial review of the representations, with the exception of the Home Builders Federation, Stantec is alone in representing the housebuilding sector, acting on behalf of L&Q Estates, Cala Group Limited, Vistry Group, Peabody, Gladman, Ptarmigan Land and Pye Homes. Aside from the vital importance in securing a plan-led approach for Oxford and a basis by which the local plan reviews for the surrounding districts can avoid delaying planning for the unmet housing need, this examination is going to be fascinating for all sorts of reasons. I would recommend to planning students, junior planners and even Shadow Ministers, that this is one well worth attending to observe the planning system in practice. Mark Behrendt Chris Maidment Dave Valler Connor Sheffield Lillian Duffield MRTPI RTPI South East

"How long is a piece of string?" This was the rhetorical response of the lead officer at the examination of West Berkshire's Core Strategy Examination when asked by the Inspector, 'how long it would take for the Council to complete an early review'. Not the answer he was hoping for or, dare I say, expecting. In West Berkshire's case, the answer looks to be about 13 years, with its Local Plan Review on track for adoption in early 2025. Yes, a Housing Site Allocations DPD has been prepared in the intervening period, but the less said about that the better. 13 years for a review of the Core Strategy's strategic policies, which were only found sound "on balance" and with arguably more pragmatism by the Inspector than was deserved, is simply unacceptable. There are worse examples which could and perhaps should have been used. Feel free to cite them below. The reason for picking West Berks is that the words "how long is a piece of string" were used more recently by a senior officer at another Council. Similarly in this instance, it was a response to the question "how quickly could the Council bring forward a review to address the shortfall in housing provision", a thinly veiled attempt to prompt a more reassuring reply. With very few exceptions, an "early" or "immediate" review of a local plan is a oxymoron. Even with plans which have policies requiring early reviews, experience shows they just haven't happened. This is why in Stantec's response to the #NPPF consultation in September we recommended further amendments to the proposed transitional arrangements set out in Annex 1, strengthening paragraph 227 to include a deadline for reviews and a consequence for failing to meet it. #carrots #sticks #localplans #planningreform #housingcrisis #transitionalarrangements

In a letter (ED90) dated 20th August 2024, the Inspector undertaking the Bedford Local Plan Examination has written to the Council in response to letters of 30th July 2024 from the Minister of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government to the Chief Executive of The Planning Inspectorate (ED88) and the reply dated 1st August 2024 (ED89). Noting a radical shift in how Inspectors should approach local plan examinations, effective immediately and in the context of a pause to the Examination already exceeding 6 months, Inspector McCreary has emphasised his intention to adhere to a full pause until January 2025 whilst emphasising an intolerant climate towards further delays. The Council has been urged to consider the implications of this position in terms of addressing fundamental soundness concerns already identified and implications arising from the Universal Studios Great Britain proposals announced publicly since the Examination Hearings. In addition to fundamental soundness issues relating to highways and housing delivery, DLP’s submissions to the Inspector were also captured in the Inspector’s Post-Hearings Letter (ED79). Paragraph 71 of that letter requires the Council to adopt a more nuanced approach to assumptions around growth at Rural Service Centres in giving consideration to additional sites that are necessary to address forecast supply shortfalls. To our knowledge the Council has provided no public details of how it intends to respond to this requirement some 9 months since the Post-Hearings Letter. Should you wish to discuss your interests in the context of the current emerging Plan and potential implications for the Examination, please do not hesitate to contact us at enquiries@dlpconsultants.co.uk.

Want a deeper understanding of the housing sector? 👇 Our next Level 4 #CIH accredited cohort is starting on 26th March. It gives housing managers the advanced technical knowledge to excel as an effective housing professional. The course includes housing-specific financial policy, and how to budget and forecast specifically for the sector. Level 4 housing professionals can manage people and changes in housing - particularly important following impending legislation from the Social Housing (Regulation) Bill and Awaab's Law. Get ahead. Find out more: https://ow.ly/RjLM50QKARW

Sacramento, CA (June 18, 2024) – AB 2433, cosponsored by NAIOP SoCal, will not advance this year. The bill, aimed at expediting permits and plan-checking services, was withdrawn by Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva (D-67) after opposition from the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). Despite passing the Assembly with a 67-0 vote, SEIU's opposition in the Senate led to its withdrawal. Quirk-Silva plans to reintroduce similar legislation in 2025-26. Timothy Jemal, CEO of NAIOP SoCal, expressed gratitude for Quirk-Silva's leadership and support for AB 2433, emphasizing its practical solutions to building delays. He also thanked CBPA’s Skyler Wonnacott, NAIOP SoCal’s Jose Cornejo, and members who supported the bill. NAIOP SoCal, in partnership with the California Business Properties Association, sponsored AB 2433 to address permitting delays with flexible fee structures. They also sponsored AB 2904, which seeks to provide more advance notification to property owners about zoning changes. AB 2904 passed the Assembly unanimously and is now awaiting Senate action. Subscribe to our newsletter for more real estate updates >>> https://buff.ly/4aVQ0iR #wealthbuilding #construction #startabusiness #blackowned #propertydevelopment #development #blackownedbusiness #sustainability #realestateinvesting #realestatetips #propertymanagement #mwenterprisesllc #realestate #MWEnterprises #constructionmanagement

After an initial review of the new Government’s changes to the NPPF and associated planning reform, our Planning Consultancy team has considered what the changes to the Standard Method of Assessment of Housing Need mean for local authorities. Many areas show significant % increases compared to the current standard methodology. Even where there are decreases, the targets across all regions far exceed all previous delivery rates in terms of the annual average net additions. Our National Planning Consultancy team are advising on the robust assessment of housing needs and the implications of the changes to the NPPF for plan-making and development. Read more here > https://lnkd.in/eyn6j6XB If you want to find out more, then please contact Steve Hemming - National Head of Planning (shemming@lsh.co.uk), or one of the regional contacts listed below. Mary-Jane O'Neill / Adam Buxton / Jeevan Thandi / James Cullingford / Gareth Denning #housingneed #planning #regionalplanning #ukhousing #localauthorities

St Albans City and District Council On Thursday 28th November, St Albans City and District Council considered the responses to the Local Plan Regulation 19 Publication. The overall message was that there were no ‘show stoppers’ or ‘red flags' identified that fundamentally altered or stopped the progress towards submission of the draft Local Plan under Regulation 22. Therefore, the Council submitted the Local Plan on the 29th November to the Planning Inspectorate for Examination. As previously highlighted (https://lnkd.in/e4fFfWtS), this expedited timetable is seeking to progress the Local Plan under the current NPPF, which means a lower housing land requirement. We will now wait to hear when the dates of the Examination sessions are set. If the Local Plan is found sound and can be adopted, this is currently scheduled for April 2026. However, there are still many potential hurdles to this new timetable being achieved. #stalbanscity #localplan #strategicplanning

The latest version of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) has got off to a cracking start with confusing and convoluted paragraphs relating to housing land supply together with an almost Byzantine-like footnote cross referencing requiring planning practitioners to order in more hot towels for mentally over taxed heads. Notwithstanding the supposed clarity provided within additional Practice Guidance, there still remains internal ambiguity within the NPPF which will have to now trouble the Courts. It is notable however that a number of LPAs who regard the reduction from a minimum of 5 years' to 4 years' worth of housing land supply as a "God send" are refusing applications deliberately stalled pending the publication of the NPPF. Those applications were otherwise quite capable of being approved -there being no adverse impacts which significantly and demonstrably outweighed the benefits (you know the text) but now, in the context of a continuing housing crisis have been refused. So much for decision makers being required (para 38) to approve applications and to approach decisions in a positive and creative way.

Good to see government experimenting with LLMs, and - just as importantly - sharing the results. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government  (MHCLG) pointed an LLM at various councils' local plans. The results were... mixed. In planning, the legal tolerance of error is low,  and the cost of error can be very high. So getting error rates between 24% and 58% is a very long way from being useful IMO. But once again, I'm very glad MHCLG tried this.  https://lnkd.in/eaFyJf6k