Shift to Localism

Amongst other things, the Localism Act provided the Government the power to formally revoke the Regional (Spatial) Strategies (RSs), and for Neighbourhood Plans to be prepared.

Chris Potts (Director, London) comments: “The planning system in England used to be three tier – national, regional and District/Borough. It remains three tier, but with the regional tier having been abolished (outside London), and a completely new tier (neighbourhood planning) introduced. This is a significant change, and will inevitably take some time to bed in.

In the early phase, the loss of the regional plans has left some Districts and Boroughs feeling uncomfortably exposed; the opportunity to create neighbourhood plans has been grasped enthusiastically by some communities (with or without encouragement from the tier above), but not in others; and in some cases, there may have been unrealistic expectations.”

Meaning of Localism: Case Study

Tewkesbury Borough Council v Secretary of State,
February 2012 Judgment

A High Court challenge against a plan to build 1,000 homes near Bishops Cleeve in Gloucestershire, lodged by Tewkesbury Borough Council, has recently failed. The Judgement rejected a claim by the Council that the Localism Act had made a fundamental change in the planning system, putting LAs in the driving seat when it came to housing strategies.

The Council had argued the Act had “utterly transformed” the landscape of planning decisions, drastically reducing the Secretary of State’s role and handing power to local councils.

The Judge said: “I would accept that the Localism Act 2011 made significant changes to the planning system, but I would not accept that the effect of those changes was to eliminate the role of the Secretary of State in determining planning applications opposed by local planning authorities”.

The decision highlights that Localism has provided the power for Councils and communities to plan positively for development; however, where that power is not exercised effectively, the Government retains its duty to step in. The NPPF provides the policy framework equally in both situations.

Neighbourhood Plans

The Localism Act provides an important power for local Parish Councils or neighbourhood areas to prepare their own development plans. The Act requires a Neighbourhood Plan to be ‘in general conformity’ with the Core Strategy or Local Plan of the appropriate higher level District or Borough Council.

Savills notes that progress is beginning to be made with Neighbourhood Plans. The first referendum has been held, and a reasonable number are in the pipeline.

Richard Shaw (Director, Wimborne) comments “The challenge with Neighbourhood Planning from a developer perspective is that a lot of time can go into promoting land through the process, which is perhaps misunderstood by the communities managing it. Savills has learnt that active participation and engagement in the process does however assist with the pre-application process, which can lead to positive outcomes. The coverage of neighbourhood plans is however patchy. It would be a brave LA that places reliance for their housing delivery on Neighbourhood Plans.”.

Taken from
Spotlight: National Planning Policy Framework - One Year On