Planning (UK) articles from January 2003

Planning (UK) archives from January 2003

Dismal future predicted for local services.(in 1995-2000 UK lost 20% of its most vital services)(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The decline in neighbourhood shops and services is sounding the death knell for the UK's local economies, a leading think-tank has warned. A New Economics Foundation report shows that the UK lost 20 per cent of some of its most vital...

Planned congestion target abandoned.(UK transport secretary says goal to reduce congestion in England by 6% by 2010 is unrealistic)(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Targets to cut congestion have been abandoned in a U-turn on the government's pledge to tackle gridlock outlined in the ten-year transport plan. Transport secretary Alistair Darling has admitted that targets to cut congestion in England by...

Checklist reveals decision shortfall.(UK planning authorities are still failing to meet targets for deciding applications)
January 3, 2003... Planning authorities are deciding applications more quickly but most are still falling short of government targets, according to figures published before Christmas. The ODPM's latest planning performance checklist shows the speed with...

Campaign set up to improve profile issues.(Town and Country Planning Association wants local authority heads of planning to receive statutory recognition)(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Statutory recognition should be given to local authority heads of planning to ensure that the profession is represented in the first tier of council directors. The Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) made the call in a campaign to...

Architect bemoans lack of design skills.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Planners must become better informed about the aesthetics of design and work more closely with architects for regeneration projects to succeed, a leading architect has claimed. Will Alsop, designer of the award-winning Peckham Library, told...

Motor centre planned next to race circuit.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Plans for a new Mercedes Benz heritage and technology centre next to the Brooklands motor racing circuit in Surrey have been submitted for planning approval. The plans for the centre at Weybridge were submitted by manufacturer Daimler...

Report claims radar system needs update.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The early warning radar defence system in the North York Moors national park may need to be upgraded, according to a Ministry of Defence (MoD) consultation document. A paper on missile defence, published before Christmas, says that the...

Figures offer new hope of easing staffing crisis.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The recruitment crisis in planning could start to ease over the next two years, latest RTPI student intake figures suggest. The number of students enrolling on RTPI-recognised postgraduate courses last year was substantially higher than in...

Policies called for to create new jobs.(Institute for Public Policy Research )(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Job creation policies are required to tackle growing regional disparities, a leading think-tank has claimed. An Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) report published last month concludes that regional differences are growing wider....

First birthday celebration.(Richard Greaves)(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... As another new year dawns, the profession is still seeking proof that it is successfully attracting younger people. Benjamin Jack Greaves, son of Hertfordshire County Council senior planning officer Richard Greaves, did his bit last month by...

Commons rejects anti-business slur.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... There is 'not a shred' of evidence that planning is bad for the UK economy, according to a literature review carried out on behalf of a Commons committee. The review on planning and competitiveness, carried out by consultancy Roger Tym &...

London First backs congestion charge.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A 'shopping list' of transport improvements in the capital, funded by congestion charging, is outlined in a report by business group London First. The report, published last month, says that congestion in central London is getting worse...

Ministers plan to fight blight of urban noise.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A major drive to combat noise pollution in England's cities is to be carried out by the government and local authorities. Alun Michael, minister for urban quality of life, announced the start of a project to map noise across England before...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Dome application submitted.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A planning application to redevelop the Millennium Dome and its environs was submitted to the London Borough of Greenwich before Christmas. The application, submitted by Meridian Delta Ltd, English Partnerships and Anschutz Entertainment Group...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Purchase Bill to receive reading.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill was set to receive its second reading in the Commons as Planning went to press at the end of last year. The government is hoping that the bill, published late last year (Planning, 6 December 2002,...

NEWS IN BRIEF: CPA should remain key tool.(Comprehensive performance assessment)(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Comprehensive performance assessment (CPA) should remain the key tool for identifying poor performance in local government and assessing the need for intervention, according to the results of a consultation exercise. Responses to the...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Agency to provide funding.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The South West Regional Development Agency announced before Christmas that it would provide funding for a visioning exercise on the future of Trowbridge, Wiltshire's county town. The vision, led by West Wiltshire District Council, will outline...

NEWS IN BRIEF: High Court ruling backs organisations.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A High Court ruling before Christmas backed the right of organisations such as Railtrack to use their status as 'statutory undertakers' to sidestep normal planning controls over the provision of shopping facilities at their sites. Mr Justice...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Canal initiative set up.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A townscape heritage initiative has been set up for a key section of the Trent and Mersey Canal in Stoke-on-Trent. The pounds 1.8 million scheme will enable the city council to assist owners of properties along the canal with improvement...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Hungate application submitted.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... An outline planning application has been submitted for a mixed-use development at Hungate, a brownfield site within York's city walls. The pounds 100 million scheme will comprise 55,740 sq m of housing, shopping, leisure and office space. It...

Report promotes farm diversification.(DEFRA)(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Farmers are encouraged to diversify their business, grow crops to provide green fuel and practice sustainable farming in a report published by the government. The strategy for sustainable farming and food, published by DEFRA before...

Concessions on social homes won by builders.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The construction industry in the Irish Republic has won concessions against rules forcing developers to provide an element of social and affordable housing on all new private estates. Environment minister Martin Cullen has announced that...

Environment group expels 'infiltrators'.(An Taisce)(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... An Taisce, the Irish conservation and environmental lobby group, has expelled three members amid allegations that they were 'infiltrators' intent on influencing the organisation's policy of opposition to one-off housing in rural areas. ...

Howard Holdings' scheme go-ahead.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The London Borough of Richmond-upon-Thames' planning committee resolved to grant permission for Howard Holdings' scheme to redevelop Teddington Studios before Christmas. The Lifschutz Davidson-designed plan to revamp the south-west London...

Welsh awards given for best home designs.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A multi-million pound apartment block and a house that cost less than pounds 75,000 to build are among the winners of the Welsh Housing Design Awards, announced before Christmas. The awards were launched in August by the Royal Society of...

Council urges crackdown on enforcement.(Council for the Protection of Rural England)(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Unauthorised development that causes 'irrevocable damage' should be criminalised, the Council for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) has said. In a new campaign designed to highlight the problems of planning enforcement, the group is...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: Sandwell Council appoints Atkins.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council has appointed Atkins as preferred consultant for the preparation of transport assessments and travel plans to accompany planning applications for school private finance initiative projects in the borough....

BUSINESS BRIEFS: Runnymede Council first for internet planning.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Runnymede Borough Council has become the first council in Surrey to put planning applications on the internet. Planning committee chairman Victor Baker said: 'I hope that making applications available on the council's website will make it...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: Halcrow appointed.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Halcrow has been appointed by the Department of Trade and Industry and Highland Council to review and consider opportunities for the oil fabrication yards at Nigg and Ardersier and other ports and major industrial sites in the inner Moray...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: RPS buys Ecoscope Applied Ecologists.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... RPS Group has bought Ecoscope Applied Ecologists Ltd, the largest ecological consultancy in the UK. The company, based in St Ives, Cambridgeshire, has a core staff of 16 and draws on a further 20 associate sub-consultants to provide specialist...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: UWE researchers appointed.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Researchers from the University of the West of England (UWE) have been appointed by the Royal Institute of British Architects to look at why so many women leave the architecture profession. Ann de Graft-Johnson, Sandra Manley and Clara Greed...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: Babtie to supply health services.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Babtie has been commissioned to supply health and safety and planning supervision services to English Partnerships. The firm will provide specialist services, including inspections, of English Partnerships' land, buildings and property. It will...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: JMP monitoring traffic flow.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... JMP Consultants is monitoring traffic flow and congestion for the London Borough of Camden to assess the effect of charging service providers land rental fees while working on the borough's roads. The findings will be compared with a 'before'...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: IDS launches advertising campaign.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Housing association IDS has launched an advertising campaign to promote an online survey of the housing needs of Jewish people. IDS wants to work out the level of unmet demand for housing from the Jewish community in London. Chief executive...

SCOTTISH NEWS: Scheme unveiled for Princes Street.
January 3, 2003... Designs for a shopping centre beneath Edinburgh's Princes Street Gardens have been unveiled, with planning permission expected to be sought in the autumn. The proposals, by Allan Murray Architects, were chosen after an international...

SCOTTISH NEWS: Educational aid to design goes online.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Ministers have launched an initiative to raise awareness of architecture and the built environment in Scotland's schools. A website called Building Connections, aimed at teachers and pupils, has been set up by The Lighthouse, the...

SCOTTISH NEWS: Reporters unit may move out of capital city.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The headquarters of the Scottish Executive's inquiry reporters unit could be moved out of Edinburgh under plans to relocate public sector jobs away from the capital. Deputy finance and public services minister Peter Peacock has confirmed...

ANALYSIS: Road to utopia or nowhere?(government transport funding plans)
January 3, 2003... Not everyone is impressed by the government's latest transport funding, reports David Dewar Transport secretary Alistair Darling's attempt to play the role of Santa Claus in his pre-Christmas announcement of transport funding beneficiaries...

Long view sets context for the sustainable city.(Column)
January 3, 2003... A masterplan is not just for Christmas - it has to last, writes Kevin Murray After 20 years of the urban environment being shaped by a conspiracy of corporate and government bean-counters, we are entering a new age of spatial design. Or...

TANNER ON... the planning bill's implications for Wales.
January 3, 2003... Wales has part 6 of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill all to itself, while parts 1 and 2 apply to England only. This means that the remainder of the bill, including all of the provisions for changes to the development control system in...

OPINION: Fyson on... good economics and city centre renewal.
January 3, 2003... The opening of the Winter Garden in Sheffield in December marked the completion of the public part of the Heart of the City renewal project. It served as a powerful reminder of what public investment can achieve. The story is repeated...

EDITORIAL: U-turn is the road to bad transport policy.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... It all started with deputy prime minister John Prescott and his admission that he would have failed if more people had not stopped driving cars and started using public transport within five years. Six months ago, when Alistair Darling took...

INTERVIEW: Presidential optimist.(incoming RTPI president Vincent Goodstadt)(Interview)
January 3, 2003... As a Sassenach who made his name in Scotland, Vincent Goodstadt has already achieved much. He tells Huw Morris about his year ahead as RTPI president The planning profession's chief champion for the next 12 months is one of life's...

CASEBOOK: New hospital goes ahead but not on preferred site.(North East Oxfordshire NHS Trust)
January 3, 2003... The North East Oxfordshire NHS Trust has failed to secure planning permission for a new community hospital, ambulance headquarters and children's nursery on its preferred site in Bicester, but an almost identical proposal located on adjacent...

CASEBOOK: Employment land supply overruled by care benefit.
January 3, 2003... The conversion of a 2,800 sq m warehouse building on a Northamptonshire industrial estate to a creche, day nursery and indoor leisure centre for children has been allowed after an inspector ruled that the change of use would not affect...

CASEBOOK: Court cases - Use of cabin must stop following notice.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The High Court has upheld an inspector's decision supporting an enforcement notice relating to the use of a wooden cabin at a retreat in the Lake District, overruling the appellant's arguments that the notice was imprecise and confusing and...

CASEBOOK: Court cases - Flood defence measures agreed for store site only.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The Court of Appeal has upheld a High Court ruling on the extent of flood prevention measures associated with the construction of a new supermarket in Frome, Somerset. Mendip District Council argued that the High Court had been wrong to...

CASEBOOK: Court cases - Failure to consider elevations judged reasonable.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... An architect's claim that an inspector had proceeded incorrectly by failing to consider submitted plans for the side and rear elevations of a proposed dwelling in Liverpool has been rejected by the High Court. The appellant claimed that...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Agricultural Development - Farmer unable to justify permanent dwelling.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A proposal for a permanent agricultural dwelling at a farm in a Devon area of outstanding natural beauty has been rejected because it did not pass the financial and functional tests justifying development in the countryside. The appellant...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Agricultural Development - Relocation of garden centre judged harmful.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A proposal to relocate a garden centre to a former nursery in Hampshire has failed to win planning permission because of its unacceptable impact on landscape and highway safety considerations. As part of the proposal, the appellant had...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Commercial and Industrial - Container regarded as operational development.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... An enforcement notice directed against the use of land in West Sussex for the storage of a box container has been quashed after it was found to comprise a building operation that had achieved immunity under the four-year rule. The...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Commercial and Industrial - Betting office allowed in primary shop frontage.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A proposal to use a vacant retail unit in a primary frontage of a Hampshire town centre as a betting office has been allowed after an inspector accepted that the premises were unlikely to attract another retail occupier. The shop was on a...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Community Facilities - Hostel use ruled immune from enforcement.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... An enforcement notice alleging a breach of a condition imposed on a permission for a hostel and residential institution in Norwich has been overturned following a detailed review of the planning history and use of the site. In 1998 the...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Community Facilities - Day-care centre ruled not ancillary to house.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... An enforcement notice alleging use of a house in Birmingham as a day-care centre has been upheld on the basis that an environmentally unacceptable material change of use had occurred. The premises were occupied by up to three adults with...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Food and Drink Uses - Quality design supports bar in listed bank.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A proposal to create a bar and diner in a listed bank building in Glasgow, together with an extension to the property, has been allowed on the grounds that no harm would be caused to amenity, traffic or architectural or historic character. ...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Food and Drink Uses - Cafe breach of control not correctly specified.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... An enforcement notice alleging that a shop in west London had been changed to a Caffe Nero cafe has been quashed because it incorrectly specified the breach of planning control. The appellant claimed that no material change of use had...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Food and Drink Uses - Cafe in retail unit allowed with costs.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Use of a Gloucestershire town centre shop as a cafe has been permitted with a full award of costs to the appellant, after council officers recommended that the scheme should be approved subject to a legal agreement seeking to restrict the...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Housing: New Build - Parking ruled adequate for flats development.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A scheme involving the creation of 28 apartments in two blocks at a site in Greater Manchester has been allowed, with partial costs awarded to the appellant on the issue of the adequacy of car parking provision. The appeal site contained a...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Housing: New Build - Road safety fears block canalside housing.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A residential development straddling the Grand Union Canal in Northamptonshire has been rejected on sustainability and road safety grounds despite the appellant's argument that the proposals would represent a sensitive form of infilling and...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Housing: New Build - Lower density justified by need to preserve trees.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Two proposals for 20 dwellings within the extensive landscaped curtilages of two large early 20th century detached houses in Cheshire have been approved despite local planning authority concerns about a net density of less than 25 dwellings per...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Housing: Conversion - Single pub deemed adequate to serve village.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A proposal to convert a long-established Buckinghamshire village pub into six flats and build four dwellings in the grounds has been allowed despite local authority objections to the loss of a local community facility. The appeal premises...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Householder Development - Fence identified as permitted development.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... An enforcement notice issued against a 2m high fence a site in Northamptonshire has been quashed after an inspector rejected council claims that it was not permitted development because it exceeded the one-metre maximum allowed adjacent to a...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Householder Development - Gable end and dormer judged poorly designed.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The retention of a gable roof with a full-length rear dormer at a flat in north-west London has been rejected on design grounds after an inspector concluded that the development destroyed the composition of the building. The development...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Leisure Development - Functions conversion rejected in town centre.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Plans to use a vacant former church in a Welsh town centre as a function room and restaurant hosting weddings, parties, seminars, bingo, dancing and cabarets have been rejected on amenity and highway grounds. The inspector observed that...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Leisure Development - Health club accepted despite parking concern.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A change of use of a restaurant in south Wales to a health and leisure club has been allowed without any on-site parking provision despite local authority concerns about parking problems and impact on amenity. The appellant proposed to...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Listed Buildings - Flat conversion ruled out by conservation impact.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... A proposal to convert a maisonette in a Tunbridge Wells town into three flats has been rejected due to the harm it would cause to the character of a listed building and its conservation area setting. The deputy prime minister concluded that...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Listed Buildings - Painting of mews house ruled harmful.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The painting of the front and rear of a mews house in London has been found unacceptable due to the very dark colours used. The appellant had applied black and grey-green paint to the grade II listed building, which was set in a narrow street...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Mineral Development - Quarry proposal fails due to visual intrusion.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The proposed extraction of three million tonnes of sand and gravel from a site in the Lothian area of Scotland has been rejected because of the visual intrusion it would cause in a sensitive road corridor. The appellant company claimed that...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Mixed Use Development - Greenfield site ruled out for homes and businesses.
January 3, 2003... Following the High Court's decision in November 2001 to quash a previous determination, the deputy prime minister has refused planning permission for the Waterside Park mixed-use development in Greater Manchester after concluding that it...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Transport Uses - Extension of goods sold at petrol station denied.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... An inspector has refused to allow variation of a condition restricting the range of goods sold at a rural petrol filling station, concluding that more extensive sales would harm the character of the countryside. BP Oil (UK) Ltd sought the...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Ombudsman cases - Delayed legal agreement judged unreasonable.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... The local government ombudsman has ruled that Restormel Borough Council caused injustice to a developer seeking to complete the construction of 20 dwellings due to its failure to progress a section 106 agreement, recommending an award of pounds...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Ombudsman cases - Council agrees compensation over flats design.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... East Devon District Council has agreed to pay pounds 37,750 to two residents of a cottage next to a three-storey block of flats after the local government ombudsman ruled the detailed design of the neighbouring property had led to a significant...

CASEBOOK: Downloading decisions.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Decision letters for all cases with a DCS reference number can be immediately downloaded from the DCS website for pounds 8 + VAT per case. Readers without a free entry code can apply through the site. The site may also be used to browse for...

CASEBOOK: Development Control Casebook Forum.(housing permits)
January 3, 2003... Send your queries or your replies to earlier queries to: Development Control Casebook Forum, Development Control Services, Suite 1, Fullers Court, Lower Quay Street, Gloucester GL1 2LW. Alternatively, fax them to 01452 830047 or e-mail them to...

RTPI NEWS: Planning for major events: the stakes for the host city are high.
January 3, 2003... How should planners deal with occasional major events such as a world trade fair or international games? Chris Gossop reports These pulses of activity can have a huge distorting effect upon the day-to-day operations of the contemporary...

RTPI NEWS: Reduction in aggregates provision welcomed.
January 3, 2003... The RTPI says it is now clear that 1994 forecasts were too high Planning policy co-ordinator David Barraclough says that the overall reduction in the level of aggregates provision over the next 16 years is to be welcomed. 'It is now clear,'...

RTPI NEWS: RTPI Bulletin Board.
January 3, 2003... NEW YEAR GREETINGS The president, council and staff of the RTPI wish you all a peaceful and successful 2003. RTPI REGENERATION NETWORK LUNCH A 'Regeneration Lunch' is taking place in Birmingham on Tuesday, 14 January 2003. Members...

RTPI NEWS: Mentoring service.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Are you aware that there is a mentoring service available? Arlene Britto explains This service is offered through the branches and the RTPI in Scotland and seeks to bridge the gap between a student's educational experience and their future...

RTPI NEWS: Careers pack.
January 3, 2003... Are you giving a careers talk? A new 'Careers pack for speakers' is available to assist members of the institute who have been invited to speak at a careers event in town and country planning. The pack is designed to provide reasonably...

AGENDA.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... DIARY TO 17 JANUARY 14-15 January: Making Places Seminar. Organisers: Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment and British Urban Regeneration Association. Venue: Wigan. Fee: Free-pounds 162. Details: Tanya Thorpe (tel) 020...

DIARY: Council unimpressed by board stunts.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Skateboarders in Leeds are calling for their own street after a city councillor branded them 'a problem' that demands tough action. The skaters issued a plea to Leeds City Council bosses after councillor Gerry Harper criticised them for...

DIARY: MPs freeze in Westminster ice house.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... You have to feel sorry for MPs. When they are not awarding themselves inflation-busting salary hikes or acting like schoolchildren during prime minister's questions, they have proper work to do, like ignoring letters from constituents or...

MOVES: Appointment at WSP Development.(Anthony Nemeth)(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Anthony Nemeth has joined WSP Development as an associate director in its London retail team. He moves form DWP, where he was involved in mixed-use development projects in Eastern Europe. Nemeth will provide masterplanning and transportation...

MOVES: Appointment at URS.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2003... Ian Johnson has been appointed senior planner in the economic development and planning department of URS in Wimbledon, south-west London. He will be involved in a range of planning, urban design and regeneration projects throughout the UK....