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Policy & Legislation
Policy, legislation and guidance produced by the government or its designated bodies. Use adopted sections if you wish to see only policy or legislation in force or emerging sections if you are looking for consultation documents where central government is inviting opinion prior to the implementation of policy or legislation.
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Adopted Policy & Guidance
Here you will find the most recently published government policy and guidance. These are all documents that have been adopted upon publication.
Adopted Legislation
Locate adopted legislation including Acts of Parliament and Statutory Instruments/Rules.
Consultations & Emerging Policy
Latest consultations and reports on government policy and guidance.
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Creating space for beauty: interim report
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25 Year Environment Plan Progress Report - January 2018 to March 2019
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Independent Review of Planning Appeal Inquiries - Action Plan
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Draft National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy for England
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Government response to consultation on Planning Reform: Supporting the high street and increasing the delivery of new homes
Legislation In Progress
Track the progress of legislation through the Westminster and Scottish Parliaments as well as the Welsh and Northern Ireland Assemblies.
Fresh thinking on the DCP blog
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One giant leap
As we celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the moon landing it appears that planning has made one giant leap backwards. Get this: in Hertfordshire an appeal has been allowed and approval... -
The hands of time
If William Morris were still here he might be interested to know that, whilst many of his ideas were considered revolutionary in his lifetime, some have since been absorbed into mainstream... -
Celebrity gossip
Readers who move in certain circles might already be aware that, after his problems with a proposed private chapel on his Suffolk estate, Ed Sheeran does at least now have his wildlife...
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Policy & Legislation News
Rural and student housing advice included in new guidance on meeting needs for 'different groups'
Blanket planning policies restricting housing development in some types of rural settlement "will need to be supported by robust evidence", new planning guidance on the "housing needs of different groups" advises.
New housing supply guidance outlines evidence required to define 'deliverable' sites
New planning guidance published yesterday has set out the evidence that may be provided to support the inclusion of sites within a local authority's five year housing land supply.
Key Topics
Guidance and legislation documents, news and in-depth coverage of key policy areas.
Briefing Notes
Parliamentary briefing documents on adopted and emerging policy/legislation
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Implementation of the Housing and Planning Act 2016 - Briefing paper
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Housing and Planning Bill: Report on Committee Stage
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Solar Farms: Funding, planning and impacts
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Nationally significant infrastructure projects and housing: briefing note
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Housing and Planning Bill briefing paper published
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Planning for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects: Briefing Paper
Policy & Legislation In Depth
Briefing: How to ensure key design principles are embedded in planning process
Planners will need to become familiarised with key design principles when assessing proposals, say David Birkbeck and Dr Stefan Kruczkowski.
The public needs to see that the standard method is free from political tinkering, by Richard Garlick
Plenty of planning authorities will be finding the figures generated by the government's standard method for assessing housing need uncomfortably large.
How the developer contribution rules have changed: the Planning briefing
The key changes to how local authorities charge, collect and report on developer contributions, and their implications. Mark Wilding reports.
What new guidance on older people's housing means for applicants and authorities
Practioners have questioned whether the government's first dedicated guidance on housing for older and disabled people will make much difference to the provision of such developments, especially without bolder action on use classes and site allocations.
The prospects of May's space standards call being pursued by her successor
Commentators are unsure if the outgoing Prime Minister's call for mandatory space standards in new homes will ever be implemented by her successor, but warn that such a move could make development less viable in places.
What we know about Jeremy Hunt's approach to planning
The current foreign secretary adopted a strongly localist stance earlier in his Parliamentary career but has recently indicated far more pro-development views.
Why a court ruling may make it harder for developers to use the NPPF's 'tilted balance' to win consent
A court ruling that last week quashed a secretary of state housing permission may make it harder for applicants to cite the National Planning Policy Framework's 'tilted balance' in favour of development, say some legal advisers. But other experts disagree.
Policy Summary: Environment Agency draft strategy for combating flood risk
POLICY: Draft National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy for England.
