This month: Will planning stop and development be delayed?, Housing pledges in spring 2020 budget, Sevenoaks local plan is dead, Should beauty be at the centre of our planning system? and how the Environment Bill is likely to impact the planning system.   Will planning stop and development be delayed? …

By Michael Hardware, Director of Planning and Property  The Government is escalating its response to the Coronavirus pandemic, encouraging a comprehensive voluntary lockdown. It has just closed all the schools and is running down the transport infrastructure. The development industry has been affected with many developers and consultants now working from …

By Alia Khan, Consultant The Government first introduced the new Environment Bill in October 2019, with an updated version of the bill being introduced on 30 January after the first one was side-lined by the December 2019 general election. The bill comes at a time when there is heightened interest in …

By Ruby Burdett, Consultant  The late Roger Scruton alongside co-author Nicholas Boys Smith, coined the idea of “building better, building beautiful” (BBBB). The now government endorsed report, has been labelled a radical amalgamation of politics and philosophy.  Arguing that beauty is not subjective, Scruton asserts that we are obligated to safeguard …

by Michael Hardware, Director of Planning and Property  The council has received further bad news – not only has the Sevenoaks Council failed in its duty to cooperate, the inspector also has serious concerns over the overall soundness of the local plan. Is the plan dead? The inspector, Karen Baker, submitted …

By Kasia Banas, Account Director   With the budget focused on the response to the Coronavirus crisis, the Chancellor Rishi Sunak did not have much space left for housing announcements, something the industry has got used to over the years. The key pledges consist of a £12bn extension of the Affordable Homes …

The head of housing for think tank Policy Exchange, Jack Airey, has been appointed to a new position in No.10. Airey has taken on the role as Prime Minister Johnson’s housing and planning special advisor. At Policy Exchange, Airey’s work on improving housebuilding standards has attracted cross-party approval and is …

This month: Do we see a shift?, What could the conservative victory mean for housing?, Are councillors at risk of losing their decision-making powers from planning?, The importance of community engagement in planning and Government Cabinet Reshuffle 2020.    Do we see a shift? Three local plans have failed, and …