Updates

John Stewart reports on Performance Based Navigation (PBN) for future flights paths being planned by ‘Our Future Skies‘. PBN is well-suited to provide noise respite. Curved and high level airport approaches could be implemented to reduce flights over any one community.

Planning permissions should include a legally-binding “delivery contract” setting out “an agreed contractual trajectory of housing delivery” with penalties for developers and councils that breach them, according to a think tank report by the Centre for Policy Studies, welcomed by the housing minister, Christopher Pincher.

“The private rented sector is unwilling and unable to house those in greatest need. As landlords seek to exit that sector, the government should purchase their properties for social rented housing”, writes Lord Richard Best, chair of the Affordable Housing Commission (AHC) which recommended a £1.3bn National Housing Conversion Fund.

Commercial estate agents Bidwells has published a Spring 2021 update on Local Plans in boroughs. It is clear that several Councils have out of date policies and are locked into the process of preparation, consultation, examination and adoption of changes which will make it difficult for them to modify plans in the near future for design codes and for whatever is the outcome of the Planning White Paper. In March 2020, the Government set a clear deadline of December 2023 for all authorities to have up-to-date Local Plans [more…]

The MHCLG Chief Planner, Joanna Averley wrote in April 2021 to local authority planners about measures that will remain to ease the path out of lockdown.
The letter refers also to a Government response to the August 2020 consultation on ‘Changes to the Current Planning System’ with a decision not to raise the small sites threshold below which developers do not need to contribute to affordable housing. So, Chapter 5 of the National Planning Policy Framework still applies.
The Government has delayed its decision on whether or not to extend the current Permission [more…]

The Government proposed in December 2020 new permitted development rights to allow buildings included in its newly-created Class E in town centres, such as shops, offices, banks, other financial institutions, lawyers, architects, accountants, Post Offices, creches, day centres and indoor sports facilities and gyms, to convert to housing without needing planning permission.
On 31st March 2021 the Government issued a press statement announcing new planning laws which introduce most of the proposed changes but with more limits and conditions for prior approval. Those were in a report on the responses it had received, [more…]

London’s boroughs have been given more control of the location of tall buildings by Policy D9 in the new London Plan introduced in March 2021. An article by Joey Gardiner explains the implications. London Forum members should ensure their Council is taking advantage of the policy.
The ‘Homes for All Londoners’ draft guidance for the new London Plan is being finalised now. London Forum has expressed concern to the GLA about one part of it on daylight to homes which could influence the design of tall [more…]

The emergency measures introduced in 2020 that allowed boroughs to conduct planning committees on-line have not been renewed and meetings would not be able to be held that way after 6th May 2021. They were popular with communities and a recent survey of London Forum’s members indicated how they would like to see such committees operating in future and some safeguards, as here.
The lawyer Zak Simmons has published his reaction to the ending of ‘virtual’ planning committee meetings.
There is a Government consultation on the subject [more…]

The Mayor published the final version of the replacement London Plan, first seen in 2017, on 2nd March 2021. It provides the basis for revision of Local Plans with the introduction of design codes. The GLA web site has key points about the new London Plan with a link at the end to the full document.
Policies for Green Belt in the new London Plan and in the NPPF have been extracted, as here.
The GLA has issued amendments to the plan in light of changes by Government to [more…]

A consultation was launched by Government with a closing date of 27th March 2021 on a Model Design Code and associated revisions to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
London Forum’s response to the consultation is here.
The introduction of design code standards will support the implementation by boroughs of the replacement London Plan and its guidance for the use of such codes by boroughs for suburban densification of small sites by more ‘Homes for Londoners’ for which London Forum provided a summary.

The Mayor published proposals on this subject to support the suburban densification and small site housing policies in the imminent replacement London Plan and sought responses from communities, boroughs and other stakeholders.
London Forum has summarised for members the content of the draft guidance and it submitted a response by the consultation closing date of 15th January 2021.
The Mayor’s guidance on this subject will become a London Plan Supplementary Planning Guidance (SPG) document in the summer of 2021. The state of all London Plan SPGs [more…]