On 10 February, the Government approved 10 councils to be in its Devolution Priority Programme (DPP) including Cumbria, Cheshire and Warrington, Norfolk and Suffolk, Greater Essex, Sussex and Brighton and Hampshire and Solent. These areas will need to follow an ambitious devolution timetable, with MHCLG consultations already started. Councils have …

Chelgate Local helped obtained consent for two projects during February: a 480-home Redrow Eastern project west of Billericay in Essex was approved by Basildon Council, and a 45-home Bellway Thames Gateway project in Chipping Ongar, also in Essex, was approved by Epping Forest Council. London Road, Billericay Redrow Homes Eastern …

Following the publication of the Devolution White Paper in December, the Government sought indications in January from councils wishing to be considered for the first tranche of devolution and local government reoform. A total of 18 councils put their names forward and on 10 February Angela Rayner MP, the secretary …

The previous Conservative UK Government set about reform of the local planning process and the role of the Planning Inspectorate in the scrutiny of local plans. The current Labour Government has continued these reforms. On the 30th July, 2024, just after the General Election, Matthew Pennycook MP, Minister of State …

The Renters Reform Bill is closer than ever to getting passed and will have a huge impact on renters and landlords alike. For a lot of renters, this will be welcomed as it primarily aims to promote renters’ rights. However, for a lot of landlords, it will not be so …

In 2025, the UK Government’s Future Homes Standard (FHS) will become mandatory. This comes after the previous government consulted on an uplift to energy efficiency standards for new homes in 2020. The initiative aims to decarbonise new-build homes by 75-80% more than the current building regulations. This is part of …

Developments regarding the reform of local councils continued apace and the contentious move by the UK Government towards the creation of mayoral combined and unitary authorities remained at the forefront of minds within the planning and development world. Whilst some councils, such as Essex, have shown enthusiasm towards the new …

Chelgate has been providing political engagement and community consultation support to our clients for over 35 years. Over the past decade, we have worked on approaching 100 projects totalling over 50,000 dwellings. Our Midlands region includes Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Buckinghamshire and Warwickshire. A selection of projects we have worked on …