SIMPLIFYING PLANNING
WILL THE GOVERNMENT’S CHANGES WORK?
From grey belt land to a tweaked National Planning Policy Framework, our new government has already started to tinker with planning –but will it be enough to unlock more opportunities for high-quality homes? ArchitectOpinder Liddarshares his take on efforts to cut the red tape
Our current government was elected on a pledge to build 1.5 million homes over the course of this Parliament. They intend to do this by making quick changes to simplify planning rules – but seven months after coming into power, have they managed to make a difference? In this article, I’ll share how people – including both architects and clients – are impacted by the current planning environment, what affect proposed changes are likely to have, and whether there’s anything additional that can be done to support more quality development.
Why the government wants to act
Has the time finally come when the government is as exasperated by planning as the self build industry and clients? Delays caused by the installation of a large bat tunnel for the HS2 project suggest so. There’s a whiff of a fresh planning zeitgeist, which is powered by both the people impacted by the system and the policy makers themselves. We are being promised more effective processes, rooted in sustainable core values.
I expect we’ll see more press coverage of the many extraordinary planning issues that cause delay and expense. The Planning and Infrastructure Bill (due in spring 2025) will probably have more to say about this. But a recent review of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) didn’t herald dramatic changes. So, I’m not expecting significant impacts.
The current planning system
Most architects want to create better and more sustainable buildings that cater for clients’ current needs and those of future generations. As a practice, we’ve realised hundreds of bespoke homes that reflect these principles. From our work over 20 years, I know that the majority our of clients – self builders or small developers – desire the same result.
Alongside our customers, we create homes that are of a significantly better quality than those found on large estate developments. Surely, local authorities and the planning system should look to facilitate more of this and encourage people to build their own homes to decent standards? Yet when we submit applications, even for one-off houses, I get the sense that our core values are not shared. We often get an adverse overreaction from officers, who effectively prevent our modest levels of development.