Planning (UK) articles from July 2004

Planning (UK) archives from July 2004

Investigation vilifies prices in South West.(National Housing Federation )(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The South West is the most unaffordable region to buy a home in the UK, according to latest National Housing Federation (NHF) research. The federation used Land Registry figures to calculate that the average house in the South West costs...

Agency awarded heritage powers.
July 2, 2004... The power to list historic sites and buildings will be given to English Heritage in a major shake-up of Britain's heritage protection system, it emerged this week. Heritage minister Andrew McIntosh unveiled plans to transfer responsibility...

First renewal firms to be set up in Scotland.(Urban Regeneration Companies (URCs))(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Scotland is to get its first urban regeneration companies (URCs), ministers announced this week. Companies will be set up in Stirling, Glasgow and Edinburgh, backed by pounds 20 million from the Scottish Executive. Raploch, Clydebank and...

New Forest passes national park tests.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The New Forest will become England's first national park for nearly 50 years, the government announced this week. Ministers have decided that it meets the criteria and purposes for designation. The park will be England's smallest at...

Figures reveal improved service record.(speed at which planning applications are being dealt)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Planners are continuing to improve the speed at which they deal with planning applications, according to latest figures. Government statistics for the first quarter of 2004, published last week, show that 73 per cent of all planning...

MPs lash out at housing quango's lack of vision.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The Housing Corporation has 'lost its vision' and should concentrate on delivering a national housing strategy instead of slavishly trying to meet government targets, an influential committee of MPs has said. There is confusion about who...

Manual aims to boost planners' profile.(Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI))(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... School pupils are set to benefit from an RTPI teaching aid aimed at stimulating an understanding and appreciation of sustainable development. The manual aims to raise the profile of planning as a pivotal and rewarding profession. The...

Report spells end of paper notifications.(Planning application lists to be publicised exclusively on the internet)
July 2, 2004... Planning application lists could disappear from local newspapers should the recommendations of a government-commissioned report be implemented. The Arup study, published last week, recommends that planning applications should be publicised...

Councils hit back over sprawl claim.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Council planning chiefs have angrily rejected claims by an environmental group that they are ignoring government policy and adding to urban sprawl. The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) published a list of councils this week that it...

Studdert lands key job for Cambridge.(Cambridge Sub-Regional Infrastructure Partnership)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Cambridge City Council's environment and planning director Peter Studdert is leaving the authority to take a senior job at the body being set up to spearhead the development of the surrounding sub-region. Studdert has been appointed...

Berkeley sells sites to focus on brownfield.(Developer Berkeley Group)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Developer Berkeley Group has announced plans to withdraw from traditional house building to concentrate on urban brownfield regeneration schemes. The move, which is subject to shareholder approval, will see the company selling off around...

In brief: A tool kit to help planners ..(Environment Agency)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A tool kit to help planners make more informed and faster decisions on steering development away from flood risk areas was published by the Environment Agency this week. Flood Zones provides indications on the likelihood of flooding and the...

In brief: A nationwide plan should be prepared for marine minerals ..(discovery and exploration)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A nationwide plan should be prepared for marine minerals, according to an ODPM-commissioned report. The plan would help to provide an appropriate amount of dredging from marine areas so that they fully contribute to sustainable aggregates...

In brief: Anthony Bowhill Associates closes next month.(Anthony Bowhill Associates)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Planning consultancy Anthony Bowhill Associates will close at the end of next month following the retirement of its founder, Anthony Bowhill. CgMs Ltd will take on most of the firm's staff. Valerie Scott has been hired as a planning director,...

In brief: The ODPM has commissioned a review ..(environmental impact assessments)
July 2, 2004... The ODPM has commissioned a review of the levels of scoping activity in the preparation of environmental impact assessments (EIAs). Manchester University's EIA centre and Land Use Consultants will examine the process that identifies projects'...

In brief: Council tenants should be given more choice ..(options for regeneration areas)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Council tenants should be given more choice over options for regenerating their areas, according to a pamphlet launched this week. The Local Government Information Unit (LGIU) argues that it is wrong to offer council tenants just three options...

In brief: A couple who built an eco-friendly roundhouse ..(fine imposed for constructing house in national park without planning permission)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A couple who built an eco-friendly roundhouse in the Pembrokeshire Coast national park without planning permission has been fined pounds 800 after the pair refused to knock it down. Tony Wrench and Jane Faith, who were convicted at Swansea...

In brief: The spiralling cost of the Holyrood ..(management flaws are the cause of the spiralling cost of Holyrood parliament building project)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The spiralling cost of the Holyrood parliament building could have been checked if the project had been better managed, according to Scotland's auditor-general. Robert Black found that there was little incentive for contractors to curb costs...

In brief: A strategic energy framework will set ..(energy policy)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A strategic energy framework will set Northern Ireland's future energy agenda, enterprise minister Barry Gardiner announced this week. The framework aims to reduce costs, build competitive markets, develop renewable sources and enhance the...

In brief: More than 80 per cent of councils ..(stalling of progress in councils due to lack of funding)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... More than 80 per cent of councils are prevented from making progress on tackling climate change due to the lack of funding from Whitehall, latest research has found. A Local Government Association survey published this week finds that town...

In brief: Leicester's De Montfort University ..(offer of part-time foundation degree in housing, regeneration and communities)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Leicester's De Montfort University has set up a part-time foundation degree in housing, regeneration and communities. The three-year degree course is accredited by the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) and will be led by staff from the...

In brief: The Commons environment ..(The Commons environment, food and rural affiars commitee to inquire into the impact of the European Union's land fill directive and European waste policy)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The Commons environment, food and rural affairs committee is seeking evidence for an inquiry into the impact of the EU landfill directive and European waste policy in general. The committee will examine whether the UK is on target to meet its...

In brief: The development of a stadium for Exeter Rugby Club ..
July 2, 2004... The development of a stadium for Exeter Rugby Club is set to proceed after the city council approved plans for the redevelopment of its existing ground this week. Exeter City Council gave permission for the club to build a stadium in May, but...

Study reveals impact of delivery grant.(planning to meet quantitative targets)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The planning delivery grant has been a major factor in raising planning's profile in local authorities, according to emerging research. Julie Bishop, head of development control policy at the ODPM, told a seminar at the RTPI Planning...

Barker defends housing supply review findings.
July 2, 2004... Kate Barker launched a strong defence of her review of housing supply at the RTPI Planning Convention last week, insisting that planners need to find a more flexible way of providing for housing. The Bank of England monetary policy...

Poll highlights property ladder hurdle.(financial assistance from parents to assist children to acquire homes)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... One in five home owning parents is willing to borrow as much as pounds 24,000 to help their children onto the property ladder, according to latest research. More than half of the parents surveyed by pollster MORI for the Joseph Rowntree...

Census shows wider regional inconsistency.(United Kingdom )(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The UK's north-south divide is getting worse, according to a study of 2001 census data published by the Policy Press. Researchers at the University of Sheffield have created a census atlas of the UK, comparing 2001 census data with that of...

Sustainability boost sought by framework.(South East England Regional Assembly)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... An integrated regional framework to encourage sustainable development in the South East was launched this week. The framework, published by various regional bodies, the Environment Agency and the Department of Health, consists of four main...

Regeneration News: Bristol extension plan put forward.(submission of plans for an urban village on the outskirts)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Plans for an urban village of nearly 2,000 homes on the outskirts of Bristol were submitted to South Gloucestershire Council this week. It is hoped that the scheme will complete the Emersons Green Development Area, which has already seen...

Regeneration News: Mixed-use development in Kent has been granted.(urban redevelopment)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A pounds 60 million mixed-use development in Kent has been granted consent by Medway Council. Part of the South East England Development Agency's regeneration programme, Chatham Quays will include 303 homes, of which 25 per cent will be...

Regeneration News: Early success trumpeted for media project.(Channel 4 and its partners claim early success in the real estate regeneration of Glasshoughton)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... One of the early phases of the Castleford Project, the regeneration scheme that will be televised by Channel 4 next year, has been granted planning permission. The redevelopment of the village green at Fryston in Yorkshire forms part of...

Regeneration News in brief: The latest round of the pounds 2.3 million Operation Gate It ..(improvement of alleyways blighted by antisocial behavior)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The latest round of the pounds 2.3 million Operation Gate It initiative has been announced. Seventy-three projects seeking to improve alleyways in England and Wales blighted by antisocial behaviour will receive a share of pounds 1.1 million to...

Regeneration News in brief: A pounds 35 million shopping centre development in Morpeth ..(Castle Morpeth Borough Council)(Trinity Development)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A pounds 35 million shopping centre development in Morpeth has earned the backing of Castle Morpeth Borough Council. Trinity Development proposes two anchor stores, 17 shops and two restaurants, creating 11,500 sq m of retail space, as well as...

Regeneration News in brief: The Royal Academy of Arts Schools ..(The Royal Academy of Arts Schools)(Future City)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The Royal Academy of Arts Schools will have a new home in Hornsey, north London, following a partnership agreement struck by the academy, developer St James and art and regeneration consultancy Future City. The academy will move into a...

Regeneration News in brief: Redevelopment plans for two former pipeworks sites ..(David Lock Associates)(Tapton Estates)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Redevelopment plans for two former pipeworks sites in the National Forest have been approved by South Derbyshire and North West Leicestershire District Councils as well as the two county councils. Once the Woodville Woodlands site has been...

Regeneration News in brief: The first phase of the regeneration of London's Royal Docks ..(Royals Business Park)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The first phase of the regeneration of London's Royal Docks has been completed. The pounds 20 million initial work on the 20ha Royals Business Park, called Building 1,000, consists of two glass and steel buildings. The project is being...

Regeneration News in brief: Fourteen developers have submitted tenders ..(Sheffield's Park Hill estate)(Sheffield City Council)(Housing Corporation )(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Fourteen developers have submitted tenders to take part in the regeneration of Sheffield's Park Hill estate. Sheffield City Council, English Partnerships and the Housing Corporation want to redevelop the estate, the largest grade II* listed...

Regeneration News in brief: A pounds 5 million fund to plug ..(Ridings Early Growth Investment Company)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A pounds 5 million fund to plug the investment gap for small businesses in Yorkshire has been launched. Part of the DTI's early growth fund, the Viking Fund will offer investments of pounds 50,000 to pounds 100,000 in start-up businesses,...

Regeneration News in brief: Outline plans for a 56,000 sq m distribution facility ..(Carrington Power Station)(Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Outline plans for a 56,000 sq m distribution facility at the Carrington Power Station in Greater Manchester have been submitted to Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council. Consultancy GVA Grimley submitted the application on behalf of Maro...

Regeneration News in brief: The redevelopment of student accommodation ..(Concept House)(West & Machell Architects)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The redevelopment of student accommodation at Concept House has been granted planning permission by Leeds City Council. Comprising 362 bedrooms in two blocks in Burley Road, the former industrial, warehousing and office site will be developed...

Transport News: Mersey tunnels levy set to become law.(Merseytravel)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A controversial bill to raise toll charges for the Mersey tunnels will become law this week after it was approved in a third reading in the House of Lords on Monday. The Mersey Tunnels Bill was passed by 75 votes to 65 and is set to...

Transport News: Greens slam rising cost of UK roads programme.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The cost of road schemes is soaring, according to research into the national roads programme by environmental groups. Some projects have risen by as much as 170 per cent in price, claim the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), Friends...

Transport News: Rail body points to improved services.(Strategic Rail Authority (SRA))(Rail Passengers Council (RPC))(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Investment in the railways over the past year has increased by 24 per cent to reach a record level, according to the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA). Provisional figures from the authority suggest that more than pounds 5 billion was...

Transport News: The pounds 5 million Marine Way bridge ..(Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council )(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The pounds 5 million Marine Way bridge in Southport has opened in the latest stage of the town's seafront regeneration. The 50m tall structure, designed by Babtie Group to improve links between the town centre and the seafront, replaces a cast...

Transport News: Traffic powers tightened for city boroughs.(Transport for London)(London boroughs )(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Transport for London (TfL) and six London boroughs have taken on new powers in a pilot to help keep traffic moving in the capital. The nine-month trial, which began last week, will allow TfL and the London Boroughs of Camden, Ealing,...

Transport News: Improvement bill in Essex to hit pounds 1.6 billion.(Thames Gateway South Essex (TGSE))(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Around pounds 1.6 billion is needed to fund transport improvements in the south Essex section of the Thames Gateway, according to latest research. The report on movement between London and Southend claims that a 'step change' is required...

Scottish News: Inverness project attracts criticism.(Inverness Estates)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Planning officials have criticised a consortium behind plans for a major mixed-use development on the east side of Inverness. They are frustrated that the scheme has been put forward by Inverness Estates after publication of the draft...

Scottish News: Minister moves to deny appeal claim.(no prejudgement on consultation process and third party's right to appeal intact)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Planning minister Margaret Curran has taken the unusual step of issuing a statement to deny that the Scottish Executive prejudged a consultation process. Last week's statement follows speculation that a decision had already been taken not...

Scottish News: Firm loses bid to construct anemometers.
July 2, 2004... Planners have refused permission for four anemometers that opponents feared could be the first stage of a massive wind farm in the west Highlands. Edinburgh-based Wind Energy was seeking approval for five 48m masts in Morvern, Ardnamurchan...

Business briefs: A feasibility study for a civic centre ..(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A feasibility study for a civic centre in Brent will be led by regeneration specialist Anna Woda. The study, part of the London borough's pounds 1.5 billion vision to transform Wembley, will examine the logistics of building a civic centre as a...

Business briefs: Technical advice for Oldham Metropolitan ..(Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council)(Babtie Group)
July 2, 2004... Technical advice for Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council's pounds 60 million secondary schools private finance initiative will be supplied by the Babtie Group. The project involves two secondary schools being built - at Failsworth and Radclyffe...

Business briefs: A church, community centre and residential scheme ..(Sarah Hare Architects)(Maccreanor Lavington Architects)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A church, community centre and residential scheme in the Seedley and Langworthy regeneration area in Salford will be designed by Sarah Hare Architects and Maccreanor Lavington Architects. The Langworthy Road project is a joint venture between...

Business briefs: Essex's guide to environmental impact assessment ..(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Essex's guide to environmental impact assessment will continue to be produced and updated by planning and environmental consultancy Peter Hakes for the Essex Planning Officers Association. The company will also continue to provide a planning...

Business briefs: A vacant brownfield site next to York station ..(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A vacant brownfield site next to York station will be the subject of a transport study by Faber Maunsell. The firm, appointed by York City Council, is investigating access to the 35ha York Central site, which is being primed for a mixed-use...

Business briefs: Local authorities have been given more freedom ..(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Local authorities have been given more freedom in directing property transactions, according to a study by CB Richard Ellis that investigated the local government accounting framework, launched in April. It claims that councils have...

Business briefs: An urban computer model has been developed ..(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... An urban computer model has been developed by transport consultancy Steer Davies Gleave to help policy planners analyse and predict the impact of transport schemes on local and regional economies. The Dynamic Urban Model uses socio-economic and...

Business briefs: A sports ground and its surrounding area in Derby ..(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A sports ground and its surrounding area in Derby is to be masterplanned for housing by Urban Initiatives Ltd. The firm, appointed by housing association Walbrook Group, Derby City Council and English Partnerships, will plan the regeneration of...

Business briefs: Alliance Environment and Planning Ltd moved to larger premises.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Alliance Environment and Planning Ltd has moved to larger premises following a significant expansion of its staff over the past year. The company remains in Guildford but is now located at Wharf House in Wharf Road. Contact details are...

Business briefs: GMA Planning changes its name.
July 2, 2004... Planning consultancy GMA Planning has changed its name to Indigo. The company's staff and contact details remain the same.

Analysis: Study offers political lesson.
July 2, 2004... High-quality homes in the right places could actually be a vote winner, David Blackman discovers. At a meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party held in the wake of the local and European elections earlier this month, Tony Blair told his...

Housing crisis spreads from cities to rural UK.
July 2, 2004... The flight from urban areas is having a bad impact on rural communities, says Catherine Early. Four times more people are moving from urban to rural areas than from the north of England to the south, according to the Countryside Agency....

Tanner on: Filling the gaps in Welsh national design guidance.(appreciation of land use planning in Lanzarote, Canary Islands)
July 2, 2004... Access to design guidance for residential development in Wales is a bit of a post code lottery. Some Welsh planning authorities have produced no guidance on the issue, while the guidance produced by the rest varies significantly from authority...

Opinion: Fyson on good reasons to be positive after image problems.
July 2, 2004... RTPI president Mike Hayes titled this year's national planning convention 'Planning... A Revolution?'. Such was the positive, revivalist tone of the event that the question mark began to seem like the only presentational error. There is a...

Editorial: Fresh scent of hope wafts in with reform.(Brief Article)(Editorial)
July 2, 2004... Individual delegates will have to decide whether last week's RTPI Planning Convention delivered the huge release of energy promised in the build-up. But there was certainly a buzz about the institute's best-attended annual event for years,...

Interview: A natural custodian.(Interview)(Biography)
July 2, 2004... Mark Southgate is an old hand when it comes to campaigning for the environment and he pledges not to abandon his principles in his new role, he tells David Dewar. Mark Southgate campaigned for the environmental cause for 13 years working...

Stevenage strains to maintain status.
July 2, 2004... Britain's first new town is struggling to sustain its momentum in catering for houses and employment, reports David Dewar. 'Silkingrad' is what disgruntled locals termed Stevenage when it was designated as a new town in 1946. Local...

Ten-year plan grinds to halt.
July 2, 2004... Too many plans chasing too little money are the key obstacle to improved local transport services, Susanna Gillman finds. Four years into the government's ten-year plan for transport, funding remains the big issue. While some local...

Notebook: Debunking degree grading.
July 2, 2004... When it comes to degree grades, not every student knows their Damien Hirst from a Desmond Tutu or a Douglas Hurd, as Cliff Hague tries to explain. 'Professor? Can I have a word with you?' 'Ah, Darren. It is Darren isn't it? How can I...

Development Control Casebook: Lidl store turned down over reluctance to adjust format.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Lidl UK has failed to convince an inspector that no sequentially preferable site was available or suitable for the development of a food store in a shopping centre on Merseyside. The company proposed to demolish a public house and petrol...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Agricultural development - Containers judged to require planning permission.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... An enforcement notice requiring the removal of two shipping containers used to store young trees at a site on the Isle of Wight has been upheld after an inspector agreed that their siting involved operational development that required planning...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Commercial and industrial - Notice against timber yard ruled wrongly served.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A reporter has quashed an enforcement notice directed against the storage of timber in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs national park, concluding that it had not been properly served on the owner of the land. The reporter noted that a...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Community facilities - Crematorium judged harmful to green wedge.
July 2, 2004... Plans for a crematorium on setaside farmland in a south Wales green wedge have been dismissed because there were insufficient exceptional circumstances to outweigh the presumption against such a scheme and no overriding need to justify...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Community facilities - Student blocks agreed despite nuisance concerns.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A proposal for six accommodation blocks to house up to 632 students in a Cardiff suburb has been pronounced acceptable by an inspector who determined that the coming and going of so many people to and from the site would not undermine the...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Community facilities - Children's residential centre held to be lawful.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... An inspector has granted a lawful development certificate for the use of a former junior school in Cumbria as a residential education centre for groups of schoolchildren, ruling that the existing use already involved a residential institution...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Community facilities - Prayer room granted temporary permission.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A condition imposed on a planning permission for a prayer room and mosque on the upper floor of a property in Sheffield, restricting its use to two hours a day on Fridays, has been varied by an inspector who judged that extending the hours for...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Food and drink uses - - Sliding doors accepted in restaurant frontage.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... A scheme to provide a new frontage involving the use of sliding doors at a 90-seat restaurant in Buckinghamshire has been accepted by an inspector who concluded that it would not lead to unacceptable noise nuisance. The council argued that...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Housing: new build - Care home lighting held harmful to amenity.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Enforcement action taken against six 3m high lamp posts at a nursing home in the metropolitan green belt in Berkshire was been upheld on the grounds that they harmed the character of the area and residential amenity. The lights were sited...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Housing: new build - Extra traffic ruled no threat to road safety.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... The redevelopment of a swimming pool next to the site of a demolished hotel in the North Devon area of outstanding natural beauty to create two dwellings has been allowed following a ruling that it would have no significant effect on highway...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Housing: new build - Conversion scheme held to constitute demolition.
July 2, 2004... An enforcement notice directed against an unauthorised house in Norfolk has been upheld after an inspector agreed with the council that there had been a breach of planning control because the works fell outside the scope of a planning...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Housing: new build - Apartments scheme ruled out on design grounds.
July 2, 2004... David Wilson Homes Ltd has failed to secure detailed approval for 52 two-bedroom apartments on a larger housing scheme in Berkshire, with an inspector deciding that the flats would lead to an oppressive development. Reserved matters had...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Housing: new build - Single home rejected due to excess land supply.
July 2, 2004... A proposal for a single dwelling at a site in Worcestershire has been rejected on the grounds that it would increase the oversupply of housing land in the area. The council claimed that the phased structure plan housing target to 2006 had...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Housing: new build - Road scheme blocks homes on allocated site.
July 2, 2004... A proposal by the Co-operative Group for housing development on an allocated site in south Wales has been rejected on the grounds that it might prejudice the implementation of a new link road. The line of the link road had not been included...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Householder development - Extension of bathing house backed despite size.(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... Alterations and extensions to a former Victorian bathing house on the shore of the Menai Straits in north Wales that had been converted to residential use have been supported on the basis that they were innovative and of good design. The...

Development Control Casebook: Appeal cases - Householder development - Dormer extensions survive order spacing test.(General Permitted Development Order)(Brief Article)
July 2, 2004... An inspector has granted a lawful development certificate for dormer extensions at a house in Surrey after ironing out conflicting interpretations of the General Permitted Development Order (GPDO). The property comprised a detached...