News

There are eighteen items in the published Environment Act that planners, developers, communities and decision makers need to understand and apply.

The High Streets Task Force has published a report on footfall in high streets and district centres in 2020-2021 and what influences recovery. The trend shows a shift from retail to multifunctional high streets.
The NLA published a report ‘Local London’ on 1st December 2021 for building resilient neighbourhoods which demonstrates how our high streets and town centres can integrate a new mix of uses, enhance public realm, improve infrastructure and ultimately strengthen the capital’s polycentricity.… Read more...

The government’s chief planner, Joanna Averley, in her latest newsletter to local authorities has reiterated a ministerial call for councils to complete work on their local plans by December 2023. They are urged also to publish their newly-required infrastructure funding statements of contributions through section 106 planning obligations or the community infrastructure levy (CIL) by the “fast approaching” deadline of the end of 2021.

There are consultations on two pieces of London Plan guidance for Air Quality Neutral (AQN) and Air Quality Positive (AQP). An engagement portal is for access to the documents, signing up to events about them and submitting responses. Deadline for submissions to the consultations is 27 February 2022.

The GLA Public London Charter, consulted upon in 2020, has been launched. It supports London Plan Policy D8 Public realm part H and paragraph 3.8.9 and applies to all developments in which new public space is provided.

The Government has published a Net Zero strategy, a Hydrogen strategy and a Heat and Buildings strategy. Those will affect our homes in future.
London Forum has produced some notes on net zero and hydrogen policies and extracts from the Government’s documents.
There is a very informative video which the Hammersmith Society has published within an article here. It has some warnings about conversion from gas boilers to air source heat pumps and encouraging comments about the future use of hydrogen boilers.

A draft manifesto of vision for its area has been prepared by the Richmond Society to be considered at its AGM in December 2021. It can be seen here.
Details of similar publications by other societies are welcomed.

Two more pieces of draft guidance for London Plan policies have been published. Consultation on them runs until 20th December 2021.
They are for the Urban Greening Factor (UGF) related to Policy G5 and for Sustainable Transport, Walking and Cycling related to Policy T3 and can be seen by clicking on numbers 8 and 10 in the list of guidance here.
A GLA presentation about the UGF is here.

A report by London Councils, supporting boroughs, and the G15 group on housing associations points out that forecasts for 2021/25 highlight that London’s demand for affordable housing is almost eight times greater than the number of homes forecast to be delivered (compared to the average of 2.6 in England).

Joanna Averley provided an update on Government planning activities to local authorities. It covers the following:-

• • Local authorities are invited to submit an Expression of Interest to participate in the National Model Design Code Phase 2 pilot

• • Temporary Pavement Licence Provisions first introduced in 2020 are to be in place for a further 12 months until 30 September 2022

• • DEFRA is seeking opportunities to create new woodland

• • Natural England proposes the Biodiversity Metric 3 for biodiversity net gain outcomes should be put to formal consultation in 2022, as required under the Environment Bill, to improve its definitions

• MHCLG will be carrying out user research to support its planning reform programme and organisations can sign up here