Working with Local Government.

The local planning authority (LPA) – usually the district or borough council – is responsible for deciding whether a proposed development should be allowed to go ahead. This is called planning permission. Most new buildings, major alterations to existing buildings and significant changes to the use of a building or piece of land need this permission.

The Planning Process

Because of the recognition by the Government to deliver the housing required going forward, it embarked upon a major overhaul of the planning process to simplify it so that it would help ensure that housing targets could be met.

The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 produced a simpler planning system at regional and local level.

It allows the housing or site allocations to be reviewed more regularly if it is felt that the required housing numbers within a district are not being met. It speeds up the decision making process with the focus on housing. Under this new Act, Councils are obliged to publish an Annual Report showing how they have performed and including whether they are meeting their targets for new homes. It is this transparency that gives land investors greater confidence to invest in green field sites and to then embark upon the process to obtain ‘re-allocation’.

At regional level, each region has its own Regional Spatial Strategy Housing allocations for a 20 year period.

At local level, the Local Development Framework comprises individual documents that can be reviewed separately as the need arises according to each local authority’s own priorities and objectives.

Once this is defined, specific sites can be put forward for housing promotion to the Local Planning Authority.

 

You May Also Enjoy

Home and Living

High Quality Modular Homes for the UK

Are you looking for added accommodation space in your garden / on your land? Modular Living Homes by tutumHOUSE offer a new way to live – minimalist in form, rich in experience. “There are approximately 9.6 million homes in the UK with a garden shed, and around 52% of the population owns one.” asgardsss There…
Read More
Estate Agent Talk

The most stressful places to move to in the UK

With more people in the UK moving homes during summer than any other season and the average cost of moving in the UK rising to over £14,000, picking the right place to move to has become more crucial than ever. Luckily, new research from Pay Less for Storage reveals the UK cities that make life easiest…
Read More
Estate Agent Talk

Time-Traveling Estate Agent Sequel Climbs Amazon Charts

A UK Estate Agent Currently Bringing Joy to People’s Lives – Shame He’s Fictional…   Eric Meek, the fictional estate agent created by author Dale Bradford, is back for a second outing in The Time‑Travelling Estate Agent 2, a sequel that is already climbing Amazon’s bestselling time‑travel rankings. Estate agents were recently highlighted as the third…
Read More
Estate Agent Talk

Is it finally time for lenders to back green homes?

Andrew Smith weighs the risks and rewards Property developers are increasingly pitching green homes to lenders; however, with sales cycles slowing down and repair costs rising, is now the right time to back sustainable builds and at what price point is there market demand? Sustainability is continuing to shape our future of construction with the…
Read More
Breaking News

Breaking Property News 24/07/25

Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X.   OpticWise – digital infrastructure in commercial real estate If your building were a product, how would it perform on the user experience scale?  Week 9: Experience as Infrastructure – Designing for Human-Centric Buildings Welcome to Week 9 of our 52-week journey into the future…
Read More
new build homes colchester essex
Breaking News

UK Housebuilding Falters as Construction Hiring Flatlines

New research from Inventory Base reveals that UK construction industry employment has increased by almost 11% in the past five years, but there has been less than 1% growth in the past 12 months. Inventory Base’s analysis of the UK construction industry shows that in 2024 (latest data available) it employed an estimated total of…
Read More