May has been a whirlwind for planning news; with updates on planning reform, amendments to permitted development rights, consultation on the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, and some landmark cases in London and across the country. We will give a quick overview of the planning goings on in May.
Planning news:
Amendments are scheduled to the GPDO (2015) for renewable energy, making it easier to install EV chargers, Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHPs) and wind turbines. These amendments will take effect 29th May 2025. The changes will allow detached houses to install 2 ASHPs rather than 1 and alter some of technical standards for wind turbines and ASHPs, allowing a greater capacity to be installed without planning permission. Households will also be able to obtain ASHPs which both heat and cool under permitted development. It will be easier to install off-road EV charging points, as private chargers can be within 2m of a highway.
London Plan consultation opened earlier this month, ahead of the Draft London Plan to replace the current 2021 adopted document. Read our blog post covering the proposed updates.
Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) published a Working Paper ‘Speeding Up Build Out’, discover more about this and the consultation in our recent blog post.
Consultation on planning committee reforms. The main areas for reform are: introducing a national scheme of delegation so there is greater consistency and certainty about which decisions go to committee; requiring separate, smaller committees for strategic development so there is more professional consideration of key developments; and introducing a requirement for mandatory training for all planning committee members.
MHCLG published a working paper on site thresholds, proposing more proportionate requirements for sites and reducing validation requirements. Alongside the existing minor and major sites, there could be a new 'medium' classification for sites of 10-49 dwellings or 0.5-1ha.
New Standard Method for Housing data has revealed a slight drop in housing targets from previous figures.
Vive la resistance for residents in Lambeth: Two high court cases within a week from local resident’s groups:
Residents won an appeal against Lambeth Council for the use of Brockwell Park for festivals, which exceeded the 28 days of events allowed by permitted development.
Residents in West Dulwich appealed against a Low Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN) which were was implemented despite the consultation results being largely against the LTN. The Appeal was later quashed in the High Court and Lambeth have been instructed to remove the unlawful LTN.
WEA wins:
Permission for an infill balcony in Brentwood to create more internal space.
Appeal in LB Enfield allowed an application for a Variation of Conditions to alter a boundary wall, made challenging by the recent Neighbourhood Plan which was not supportive of higher boundary treatments. WEA Planning demonstrated there were adequate local examples and the inspector agreed that the higher boundary would be more in keeping with the local area and property.
Other things we’ve enjoyed this month:
RIBA awards announced this month, showcasing a variety of commercial, residential and community buildings across the country. WEA Planning are currently working with one of the shortlisted architects.