By Joanne Neville, National Director of Planning at Harworth Group Plc

One area in which the government cannot be criticised for lacking ambition is reform of the planning system.  With a commitment to 12 new towns – construction on three supposedly starting within this parliament – and ambitions to ‘build, baby build’ alongside recent additions to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, there is a clear commitment to get things moving.

Delivered through two pieces of primary legislation, the proposed planning reforms are broad in scope.

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill will see all areas in England covered by a strategic authority.  Separately, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill will mandate these authorities to develop spatial development strategies – bringing the rest of England in line with Manchester and London, which have had these in place since 2024 and 2004 respectively.

Sweeping reform is complicated and will take time to have effect, but the government hopes these bills will work in tandem to support development and bolster economies. 

Strategic thinking for strategic planning  

England’s planning system will work better if we can move away from what can be an overly politicised process, towards a spatial system that facilitates effective cross-boundary working. 

This would enable a decision-making framework capable of tackling difficult decisions about how growth is distributed and infrastructure delivered – leaving local planning authorities to focus resources on specific sites.

Despite the benefits on offer, this will be a new way of working for most of England’s planning system and require significant attention and resources to establish.  Greater Manchester’s adoption of its regional plan was a gargantuan effort but much needed.  I hope that with support from central government, other combined authorities will achieve the goal quicker.

Some, such as West Yorkshire Combined Authority, have already begun work on a plan and will be hoping this will help make the case to government for investment in the region’s proposed mass transit system.

The key to delivering an effective spatial plan is starting as early as possible and establishing a shared vision through consistent communication and engagement.

Some worry that strategic planning will result in the displacement of planners from local authorities, thereby compounding current resourcing challenges.  The acute shortage of planners is a concern to us all – there is no obvious solution to this other than the requirement for more planners in the system.  Developing a way of working that streamlines systems to ensure work is not duplicated at a local level is also key.

A move to unitaries: simplicity is sophistication

Putting an end to the current patchwork of administrative make-ups and moving away from two-tier authorities throughout England should, in time, simplify the planning process and largely standardise our political map by bringing all of England under unitary authorities.

At our Skelton Grange site, having a strong unitary authority was critical.  Collaborative promotion between Harworth, Leeds City Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority helped gain interest from globally significant occupiers, with Microsoft ultimately committing to the site.

Microsoft’s plan to build northern England’s largest data centre puts Leeds firmly on the map of this booming industry.  Skelton Grange shows the power of strong alignment and clarity of purpose between local authorities, regional authorities and the private sector.

The former power station site presented some of the most challenging ground conditions we’ve dealt with – and that’s saying something when you look at the type of the former industrial land we specialise in.  Less than four miles from central Leeds, regeneration of the site is really significant to the city.

Greater Manchester and West Midlands are oft-cited examples when it comes to devolution, but we’re also seeing the transition to a major unitary authority play out in North Yorkshire.  This is a particularly interesting example when you consider the challenge and opportunity of creating fertile ground for investment across a large scale and predominantly rural geography. 

Time will tell on the specifics, but it’s hard to argue the logic of streamlining eight councils into one, ultimately ensuring planning decisions on housing and employment can be made in the same town hall as transport, waste and social care strategies.

Decisions, decisions…

A recent report by Lichfields found it now typically takes two years for major applications to secure permission, with just 4% being determined in the statutory timeframe.  The longest wait in 2014 (660 days) was shorter than the average in 2024 (710 days).

In 2008, I was the case officer for a major EIA development with a 112-day (16 week) timeframe.  I was able to determine the application (complete with a signed S106), within the target.

The ingredients that enabled this included a local authority planning department with a strong chief planner at the helm – a role that the RTPI is campaigning to be commonplace across planning departments.  I was empowered to make a recommendations as planning officer in the planning balance.  Plus we had a pragmatic, solution-based relationship between local authority and applicant.

On top of this was a planning committee with a strong chair which recognised the allocation in the local plan and, despite objections, was strong enough to realise the principle of development was not up for debate.

Planning professionals are all too familiar with decisions being made at committee against officer recommendation, often leading to delays and costs in bringing forwards new homes and jobs.

Recently consulted on reforms to committees include a national scheme of delegation, limiting their size to 11 members and the introduction of mandatory training.  Like the government, I hope a clearer scope and increased professionalism will help to put an end to rolling the dice with committees – particularly where allocated and policy compliant sites are concerned

In my opinion, these proposed reforms are a significant step in the right direction to achieving decisions within sensible timeframes again.

Don’t let perfection be the enemy of good

Planning systems and local government are not a perfect science; we are constantly adjusting to the technological, social and economic conditions around us.  With the pace of change and complexities only getting greater, we need to ensure that the planning system is empowering professionals to make decisions in the planning balance.

I am hopeful that the reforms bring the right ingredients together so determining applications within the target becomes the norm once again, rather than the exception.  

There is a long way to go.  Over the coming years we will see brand new authorities getting to grips with new ways of working.  There is potential for the changes to be seismic and those in the private sector have a role to play in supporting the public sector during this transition.

Unitary and combined authorities’ ability to perform from the outset will also heavily influence whether the pace and scale of development increase.

Central government is under huge pressure to deliver, and quickly.  However, spatial development strategies and local government reforms will inevitably take time to embed – potentially temporarily slowing decisions before they get quicker.  

For those of us working in the industry, being pragmatic, engaged and bringing forward the best possible proposals is the key to helping unlock the benefits on offer as quickly as possible.

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