Wales’s natural resources minister, Carl Sargeant (pictured), likens the country’s new – and separate – planning regime to a present.
At an event organised by the Royal Town Planning Institute, he told attendees the system is “a gift from me to you”. Like a birthday present – before it is unwrapped – the contents are a bit of a mystery.
The Planning (Wales) Act 2015 received royal assent on 6 July, a day described by many as a momentous one for the Welsh planning system. That has laid down the primary legislation, but the detail will rely on secondary legislation – and everything won’t be finalised until 2018.
“It’s what comes out in the detail of that secondary legislation that developers will have to keep an eye on,” stresses Paul Williams, associate director (planning) with Savills in Cardiff.
Early indications suggest, however, that the new structure will be more “plan-led”, shifting the planning system towards becoming more “development positive” and less “development control” and with the intention of being more user-friendly, clearer and quicker in terms of delivering the results of planning applications.
A National Development Framework (NDF) will be put in place, replacing the Wales Spatial Plan, which is considered by many to be flawed – too high-level, too strategic, too little led by land uses and toothless. The new framework will identify the key drivers for economic growth in Wales – development, job creation and infrastructure. It will also be pro-development, much like the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) in England, which has led to an increase in successful housing schemes.
Kathryn Williams, senior planner with JLL in Cardiff, describes this as “a golden opportunity” to create a plan that promotes development when proven to be sustainable.
The Act also introduces a limited number of sub-regional plans – or Strategic Development Plans. This represents a departure from the English planning system, which ditched this layer about a decade ago.
“In some ways this is controversial,” says Owain Griffiths, director in planning with Bilfinger GVA in Cardiff, “because England eventually abolished the system. But I think it is a sensible move and it’s being done in way that is more manageable than what was being attempted in England.”
Targets will most likely be the Cardiff and Swansea regions and, possibly, the A55 corridor in North Wales. Within them “larger than local” issues such as housing needs, employment sites and supporting transport infrastructure will be planned in a joined-up way that extends beyond local council boundaries.
Savills’ Williams says this could deliver greater certainty for developers and investors who are looking at opportunities in such areas.
Local plans will remain a feature of the system but the new Act seeks to make these plans more robust and up to date. Local authorities will be encouraged to make land provision for development and be more positive in dealing with planning applications and appeals. Plans will also expire if they are not reviewed after a certain time period and they must work in harmony with national and strategic plans.
An unknown factor in all this will be the outcome of the Williams Commission, which seeks to reduce the number of local authorities. While some believe it could work hand-in-hand with the new planning system, others fear it could be a complication.
However, at this stage, what is seen as the start of an independent and modern Welsh planning system is broadly welcomed by advisers. The decision making process should speed up, they say, and the inconsistencies that developers have experienced when dealing with different planning authorities should be a thing of the past.
Mark Roberts, planning director for Wales for Barton Willmore, says: “The message is it doesn’t matter where you are in Wales – you will get the same efficiency and the same transparency.”
The new Act introduces several other changes. It creates a new category of “Developments of National Significance” – a certain scale of energy projects and some others, still to be decided, for which applications can be submitted directly to Welsh ministers. In England large housing projects also fall under a similar system – not the case for Wales at the moment, says JLL’s Williams. “But that could change as things tend to follow suit.”
For developers undertaking major projects, “frontloading” – or carrying out a pre-application consultation process that engages with the public and stakeholders – will become a statutory obligation. “There are two ways of looking at this,” Savills’ Williams says. “Yes, it adds time and costs but you can get some meaningful results that iron out issues.”
Another change that could affect developers is the one that makes the Welsh language a “material consideration” when determining planning applications. This will be particularly key in areas where Welsh is the first language – largely north and west Wales. Would a proposed new housing development, for example, attract non-Welsh-speaking people to an area, and how would the existing community feel about that? As this is a new feature, the depth of information that will have to be provided on such issues is unknown.
In truth, much of how the system will take effect is unknown. “It’s wait and see,” says Barton Willmore’s Roberts, “It’s more reform than revolution and the acid test will be how effectively people can navigate the planning system.”
One thing is certain. Most planning experts agree the Act is saying to developers and investors that Wales is “open for business”.
What the developers say
Developer reactions are mixed. Richard Hayward, principal of Richard Hayward Properties, raises concerns that the system will, in fact, become “more expensive, slower and more ponderous”. However, Duncan Powell, planning director of Acorn Property Group, believes that if all areas are operating with the same set of rules it brings more certainty. “That’s good for investment, so it’s reassuring. ”
