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PLANNING REGIONAL STRATEGIES
2010-06-16 11:36:29
Eric Pickles MP the new communities and local government secretary has moved quickly to ensure that the coalition government’s goal of localisation has an immediate impact. On the 27th May he wrote to the leaders of all the councils in England and Wales confirming that housing supply constraints laid out in the regional spatial strategies should no read more >

PLANNING AND THE QUEENS SPEACH
2010-06-02 13:08:09
The changes to the planning system which we alluded to in our earlier article have now been included in the queens speech and look set to be debated in the house of commons in the autumn. Whilst there is some resistance from the RTPI, (Royal Town Planning Institute) this mainly relates to the detail of how the changes will be implemented rather tha read more >

RADICAL PLANNING REFORM
2010-05-27 13:06:44
The new coalition government has stated that they will radically reform the planning system in order to shift the focus from a national and regional led policy framework to a locally led regime. They have committed themselves to abolishing the regional spatial strategies and to return decision making powers on housing and planning to local councils read more >

NEW PLANNING MINISTER
2010-05-21 10:48:57
Bob Neill MP looks set to become the new planning minister in the new coalition government. Here at property planning consultants, we like this because the rhetoric and core beliefs of Bob Neill fit with our own and probable the entire development and construction industries, why. Here is an example of the sort of thinking we like so much, in the j read more >

NEW GOVERNMENT APPOINTMENTS
2010-05-16 10:48:23
The new government has appointed Grant Shapps MP as housing minister and Eric Pickles MP as communities and local government secretary; however it is still unclear as to which one of them will have responsibility for planning issues. Both spoke in these areas in opposition and have already intimated at changes to the current planning system as we m read more >

LOCAL DEVELOPMENT FRAMEWORK THE NEW PLANNING POLICY REGIME
2010-05-12 09:15:57
The new local planning policy regime known as the local development framework (LDF) was envisaged to provide a more responsive and consultation led planning policy landscape ensuring that all parties, developers, local authorities and the general public would benefit from a speedier, more open and accountable system. The LDF’s are set read more >

COMMUNITY INFRASTRUCTURE LEVY
2010-04-28 11:39:53
Cil - Community infrastructure Levy, this new government stealth tax is possibly the most onerous new tax yet. This new charging regime came into force on the 6th April and allows local authorities to place a financial charge on all types of planning permission which involve adding an extra 100m² of floor space. The idea is to raise f read more >

HISTORIC HERITAGE PLANNING GUIDANCE
2010-03-29 12:28:46
The government has just published the above long awaited guidance which brings together many different existing policies which were at times at odds with each other and places them together in one coherent document. The goal of the new guidance is to simplify the methods by which developers and owners of historic buildings, arc read more >

PERMITTED DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS
2010-03-22 14:38:07
The government has made amendments to property owners permitted development rights, these rights allow owners to make amendments to their property without the need for planning consent. The change which most affects residential property owners is that they are now allowed to convert a house in multiple occupancy into a more norma read more >

DESIGN IN A TOWN PLANNING CONTEXT
2010-03-18 11:37:10
Design in a town planning context is a holistic approach to design which encompasses not only the design of a particular site in isolation but which takes account of local influences. Any proposed development must promote innovative design solutions which are sustainable and enhance the local character, promote quality, choice and var read more >