As we reach the end of the year, we touch on some of the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic over the past 12 months, and look ahead to what 2022 might bring. This includes further implementation of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 2019, the fourth National Planning Framework, and a need to ensure the delivery of development that will facilitate the country’s green recovery. For more on which and more, read on below…

On Holyrood

Scottish Budget 2022 to 2023 – published on 9 December this year, the Scottish Budget sets out the Scottish Government’s proposed spending and tax plans for the year ahead. Of particular interest to us, this includes commitments to significant investments in the delivery of affordable, energy efficient homes, along with decarbonising the heating of existing homes and non-domestic buildings. The RTPI Scotland has though expressed disappointment that the budget doesn’t explicitly recognise the important role of planning and planners in achieving net zero and delivering a green recovery, with no new resources allocated to support planning departments do this, as they had requested (on which, see our November Spotlights), a sentiment we wouldn’t disagree with.

Implementation of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 2019 – as part of the continuing process of implementing the 2019 Act, the Scottish Government is consulting on:

• Draft Regulations and Guidance for Local Development Plans (LDPs), both of which relate to changes which seek to strengthen and simplify LDPs. The regulations have though been kept to the minimum necessary to implement the changes, with the detail of Scottish Ministers’ expectations for the new LDP system set out in the guidance, on the basis that this will provide flexibility and resilience, with the guidance able to be updated once the new system is in operation. The draft guidance then sets out the aims and expectations of new style plans (including that they be place-based, people-centred and focussed on delivery), the process for the preparation of these (including a new delivery programme, local place plans, an evidence report and gate check processes), and how they are expected to implement the draft National Planning Framework 4 policies (which, as highlighted in our blog Draft NPF4: a plan for all seasons?, will become part of the statutory development plan once adopted); and

• Draft Regulations for Open Space Strategies and Play Sufficiency Assessments, which will implement requirements for planning authorities to prepare and publish both an Open Space Strategy and a Play Sufficiency Assessment. Although these are separate provisions, covered by separate sets of regulations, an integrated approach has been taken to the preparation of these on the basis that there are a number of links and overlaps between planning for open space and play spaces, and that children and young people will play in a range of spaces, not just formal play parks. The consultation also recognises that there are significant inequalities in access to quality open space, with one of the proposed outcomes for the regulations being to advance equality and eliminate discrimination. Guidance to support these regulations is also expected in due course, in addition to which the Scottish Government is to explore how potential digital tools can support planning authorities in undertaking their new duties in terms of these.

Further details on both consultations are available here, with the consultations open until 31 March 2022.

Draft National Planning Framework 4 – as highlighted in our November Spotlights, the draft fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4) was published last month, and consultation on that is ongoing. The integrated impact assessment that supports the draft has now also been published for comment, drawing together findings from individual assessments of potential environmental, social, business and regulatory impacts of the proposed plan. At the same time, the integrated assessment highlights some of the key pressures and trends relevant to NPF4 – including the global climate emergency, declining biodiversity, long standing inequalities, and the COVID-19 pandemic – and how the draft seeks to address these. Further details, including a non-technical summary and how to comment, are available on the Scottish Government’s NPF4 consultation page here.

On planning applications

Edinburgh Castle solar panels – in a case that will be of interest to many people looking to install solar panels on the roofs of existing properties, Edinburgh City Council confirmed earlier this month that it did not consider the installation of solar panels on the roof of Edinburgh Castle to constitute development on the basis that they would only be visible from the air, and not from any public viewpoints on the ground. Notably, this was despite earlier pre-application advice having highlighted that the roofscape of Edinburgh city centre is often photographed from the air, referring to this as the ‘fifth elevation’, in which the proposed solar panels would be visible. The proposed solar panels do though still need to obtain scheduled monument consent before they can be installed, with a decision on that expected imminently. At the same time, although not something that could be taken into account by the Council when deciding that the panels do not constitute development, the case highlights the sometimes competing interests of improving environmental sustainability of historic assets while also keeping any interventions to a minimum, with there having been a number of objections to the proposals from local residents on the basis of the latter, including from Edinburgh’s Cockburn Association (a long standing campaign group which seeks to protect the historic environment of the city).

On other matters

Housebuilding – the latest quarterly housing statistics published by Scotland’s chief statistician show a significant downturn in housing starts and completions across the private-led, housing association and local authority sectors in 2020 compared to in 2019. Specifically, 35% fewer new-build homes were completed over this time period, and 27% fewer new-build homes were started. Also illustrative of the challenges facing the housebuilding sector at present, it has been announced that Countesswells Development Limited (the subsidiary of Stewart Milne Group set up to manage the £800million new community at Countesswells to the west of Aberdeen), has gone into administration with the development only partially completed, although administrators have stated that existing construction work will continue. The question now is whether the support for housebuilding outlined in next year’s budget will make 2022 a better year for the sector and help deliver on the aspirations of NPF4 in this regard.

Scotland’s building of the year – in a good news story for our home city of Aberdeen, Aberdeen Art Gallery has been named Scotland’s building of the year by the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland, who praised the building’s recent refurbishment for making it “more welcoming, more sustainable, and more accessible”. The refurbished building has also been hailed as a “showstopper” by VisitScotland and, having greatly enjoyed visits to it ourselves, we would agree with these endorsements and encourage you to do likewise.

On us

2021 has been another busy but rewarding year for us, and we’d like to thank everyone who has worked with us during this time. We’re now looking forward to Christmas holidays, and to seeing what 2022 brings!

On which, to find out how we can help with any aspect of the planning process, please visit our website or email us at info@auroraplanning.co.uk. Or, if you would like to see our other blogs or sign up for email updates, please click here.

Thanks for reading!

Pippa and Maggie

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