Data Insights Report Planning JUN2022.pdf

Data insights report:
Planning
applications
© 2022 Landmark Information Group. All rights reserved.

INTRODUCTION
DATA ANALYSIS
The regional rates of
planning applications
Planning applications by type
Granted applications
versus refusals
Renewable energy
Planning and flood zones
Amenities and planning
02
04
contents 25 CLOSING REMARKS
Looking beyond the ‘Covid effect’ for
planning trends: Chris Loaring (Legal)
Planning data and the levelling up agenda
are inextricably linked: Piers Edgell (Geodata)
The detail is in the data
Data sources and copyrights
Definition of planning types
01

The current government has long held an ambition to shake up planning
laws in the UK. Effective reform would mean unpicking cumbersome
and often outdated processes, along with reimagining land use and
development design and reshaping the role of communities in the
decisions that affect their locale. It is striking to note that the last
significant update to the planning system was codified in 1947,
a fact which underlines an urgent need for modernisation.
The Planning Bill that was announced in 2021 was the start; this has now been
rolled into the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, one of 38 new bills announced
in the 2022 Queen’s Speech. Within the broader context of lofty ambitions to
deliver better opportunities and standards of living across the UK, the new
Bill is likely to include radical (in the context of the somewhat archaic planning
status quo) measures such as local referenda on proposed developments,
and the replacement of section 106 with a community infrastructure levy.
But perhaps of most interest to the average person is the likelihood of a digital
planning system coming into effect, to bring efficiency to the process and
allow local communities to engage more easily with planning applications.
At Landmark Information Group, we believe that digitisation is fundamental
to delivering planning change; by making a predominantly analogue service
digital, it will ultimately help people to find planning information more easily,
and to understand, share and interact with it in a medium that makes sense
to their daily lives. We already know, from our own work within the property
and land sector, that developments such as interactive geospatial technology,
real-time data, high-quality virtual simulations and standardised data offer an
opportunity to deliver positive shifts in the planning process. By bringing speed
and enhancing the quality of decision making through the ready availability of
relevant data and pertinent insights, a more thoughtful, collaborative and
accessible process could take shape.
Introduction
02

As things stand, the rate of planning applications is increasing, year on
year: our data shows us that in 2012, over 684,000 applications were
processed, jumping to more than 878,000 in 2021 – of which 217,000
were for new build projects, while over 350,000 were for extensions.
Data plays and increasingly vital role in supporting the process and
smoothing the flow of applications for planning departments under
immense pressure to review and process increasing volumes.
It is the wealth of environmental, property and land data that we gather,
manage and supply to property industry every day that we have use as
the basis for our Data Insights Reports and, in this edition, planning data
is the focus. In this timely edition, we have zeroed in on relevant datasets
to provide a summary of planning trends between 2012 and 2021. We
looked into regional differences and application types, as well as offering
snapshots of applications relating to renewable energy, planning and
flood zones. Lastly, given the close relationship between planning and
the government’s current Levelling Up agenda, we thought it would be
interesting to also look at planning data in relation to local amenities.
Therefore, as we eagerly anticipate further progress on planning reform,
this Data Insights Report aims to provide property and land professionals
with helpful insights into planning trends over the last ten years, while
demonstrating the significant breadth of data managed by Landmark.
We hope that you find it interesting reading.
03

Data
analysis

05
The regional rates of planning applications
In every region, except for London, the number of planning applications
submitted per 100,000 people was at its highest in 2021, since 2012.
London experienced its highest volume of applications some time ago,
during 2015 and 2016. The region reporting the highest volumes, at
1784 per 100,000 residents, was the South East. In contrast, the North
East of England saw the lowest with 843 per 100,000 residents.
When looking at the impact of the pandemic in relation to volume trends,
the data shows that every region saw the number of planning applications
increase when comparing 2021 data with 2019. Even though it reported
the lowest volumes overall by region, the North East of England experienced
the largest percentage increase, of +16%. This was followed by the East of
England (+14%), the North West of England (+13.5%) and both the South East
and East Midlands (+12.5%). London experienced the smallest percentage
increase of just +4%, which could be attributed to the trend observed during
the pandemic of people seeking to relocate from urban areas to more
rural settings.
If we consider planning application volumes by local authorities, the City of
London recorded the highest at 10,240 per 100,000 residents. However, this is
significantly lower than 2019’s pre-pandemic rate of 13,301 per 10,000 (-23%).
When looking at the 30 council areas recording the fewest planning application
volumes in 2021, just under two-thirds are located in Scotland and the West
Midlands, and a third are located in the North East and North West of England.
01

06
2021
City of London 10,240
Cotswold District Council 4,157
Sevenoaks District Council 3,423
South Hams District Council 3,355
Uttlesford District Council 3,351
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea 3,332
Chichester District Council 3,327
Westminster City Council 3,244
North Norfolk District Council 3,110
Rutland Unitary Council 3,034
2012
City of London 17,166
Westminster City Council 5,331
Tunbridge Wells Borough Council 3,847
Orkney Islands Council 3,711
Chichester District Council 3,535
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea 3,187
Uttlesford District Council 3,136
South Hams District Council 3,019
Sevenoaks District Council 2,761
Cotswold District Council 2,754
Highest volume of planning applications by LA

07
2021
Stoke-on-Trent City Council 410
North Lanarkshire Council 414
Glasgow City Council 448
Falkirk District Council 463
Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council 498
Renfrewshire Council 511
Cannock Chase District Council 539
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council 544
Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council 556
Hyndburn Borough Council 561
2012
Isles of Scilly Council 176
West Dunbartonshire Council 362
North Lanarkshire Council 378
Stoke-on-Trent City Council 396
Kingston upon Hull City Council 409
Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council 421
Blackpool Borough Council 422
Dundee City Council 435
Halton Borough Council 435
Lowest volume of planning applications by LA
1 These figures show the number of Planning Applications (all types) submitted in each Local Authority per 100,000 residents for each year between 2012 and 2021.
2 The figures are normalised and do not show the total volumes: since there is a large range of populations this allows for better comparison between Local Authorities and durations.
3 2012-2020 use their respective year’s population data, while 2021 uses 2020 data as this is the most recent population data available.
© 2022 Barbour ABI. All rights reserved; Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2022; Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

08
Planning applications by type
02
2021 %
Bury Metropolitan Borough Council 66.7
Broxtowe Borough Council 64.4
Oadby and Wigston Borough Council 64.2
London Borough of Waltham Forest 63.4
Castle Point Borough Council 63.2
East Dunbartonshire Council 62.9
London Borough of Bexley 62.6
London Borough of Sutton 61.9
London Borough of Harrow 61.5
East Renfrewshire Council 61.3
2021 extensions (% of all application types)
Extensions
Every region has witnessed an increase in planning applications relating
to property extensions over the past decade – the North West of England
and London have both seen increases of +10% over the ten-year period.
When looking specifically at what has changed since the onset of the
pandemic, the data shows a further increase across every region in the
country between 2019 and 2021. Given the resourcing challenges facing
local authority planning teams, this certainly would have added to pressure
on planning departments across the country (source: Planning magazine).

09
New Builds
Scotland appeared to take the lead in 2021, from a new build planning
application point of view, when analysing by local authority. In fact, the
ten local authorities that recorded the highest proportion of new build
applications are all located in Scotland, except for just two: East Lindsey
District Council in Lincolnshire and Ceredigion Council in Wales. This
follows news of Scotland’s resilient housebuilding industry, which
recorded a 43% increase in NHBC new-build registrations in 2021
compared to 2020 (Source: Scottish Construction Now).
Alterations and conversions
When looking at the proportion of applications that focused on alterations
or conversions, every region across the country saw a marginal percentage
reduction when comparing data from 2019 to 2021. The South West of
England recorded the highest percentage, at 39.7%.
2021 %
Western Isles Council, Scotland 61.3
Shetland Islands Council, Scotland 56.3
The Highland Council, Scotland 55.4
Argyll and Bute Council, Scotland 51
Orkney Islands Council, Scotland 47.7
Ceredigion Council, Wales 45.4
East Lindsey District Council, Lincs 45.1
East Ayrshire Council, Scotland 45
Aberdeenshire Council, Scotland 44.2
Dumfries And Galloway Council, Scotland 44
2021 new build applications (% of all application types)
1 These figures show the proportion as a percentage of each type of Planning Application submitted within each Region by year.
2 Barbour ABI provide up to five categorisations for each planning application. The data recorded here count a planning application against a type if it is provided
as one of five stated categories. As an example, if a planning application involves demolishing an office building and replacing with housing, it will be counted
under Demolitions (office being destroyed), Alterations and Conversions (change of purpose), New Builds (new houses being built).
© 2022 Barbour ABI. All rights reserved; Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2022.

10
Granted applications versus refused
03
Granted applications
In 2021:
• 31% of local authorities granted 90% or more of the planning
applications they received (113 local authorities out of 362)
• The average rate of granted applications across all local
authorities was 86.6%
Looking at the last five years, local authorities recording the highest
percentage of granted planning applications since 2016 are spread
across multiple areas of the country – with four of the highest rates
being recorded in 2021 alone.
Since 2016 % Year
South Derbyshire District Council 98 2021
Western Isles Council 96.9 2018
Western Isles Council 96.7 2016
North East Lincolnshire Council 96.5 2017
Shetland Islands Council 96.2 2021
Renfrewshire Council 96.2 2016
City of London 96.1 2021
Ryedale District Council 96.1 2021
Rushmoor Borough Council 96 2016
Rushmoor Borough Council 95.8 2020
Local Authorities granting planning permission since 2016

11
Refused applications
In 2021:
• 6% of local authorities had refusal rates exceeding 20%
(22 local authorities out of 362)
• The average refusal rate of all local authorities was 8.9%
The local authorities recording the highest percentage of refused
planning applications since 2016 are all located within Greater London.
Since 2016 % Year
London Borough of Harrow 29.7 2019
London Borough of Brent 28.4 2021
London Borough of Barking and Dagenham 26.5 2020
London Borough of Enfield 26.2 2017
London Borough of Hillingdon 25.6 2020
London Borough of Enfield 25.5 2016
London Borough of Redbridge 25.5 2020
London Borough of Harrow 25.5 2017
Local Authorities refusing planning permission since 2016

12
When looking at 2021 specifically, the authorities with the highest
refusal rates were all in Greater London and the South East:
Local Authorities in Greater London and the South East
refusing planning permission in 2021
1 These figures show the proportion (as a %) of each decision type of Planning Decision submitted within each Local Authority and by year.
© 2022 Barbour ABI. All rights reserved; Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2022.
2021 %
London Borough of Brent 28.4
Watford Borough Council 24.4
Maldon District Council 23.9
Epping Forest District Council 23.3
Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames 23.3
London Borough of Hillingdon 23.2
London Borough of Croydon 22.4
Castle Point Borough Council 22.1
Southend-on-Sea Borough Council 22.1
East Hertfordshire District Council 22

With the UK focused on increasing its adoption of low-carbon, renewable
energies and decreasing reliance on fossil fuels, there is considerable
pressure on the Government to address the way planning applications
are handled for renewable energy projects (Source: FT).
We assessed the increasing rate of large renewable energy projects and
the associated planning applications to identify notable trends. This included
projects relating to solar photovoltaics, wind (onshore and offshore), dedicated
biomass, landfill gas, tidal barrage and tidal stream, compressed air energy
storage, battery sites, pumped storage hydroelectricity, energy from waste
(EFW) incineration, anaerobic digestion, small and large hydro, liquid air
energy storage, and ground source heat pumps.
Our data shows:
• Between 2017 and 2021, there have been a total of 1393 planning
applications submitted for renewal energy projects
• 89% of those applications were approved
• 45% of applications were for solar photovoltaics projects
• 30.5% were battery applications, to store power generated
by renewable sources
• 13% were for onshore wind turbines
• 3% were for small hydro projects
Approved by year
There data shows an upward trend in the percentage of
renewable energy projects receiving approval, year on year:
13
Renewable energy
04
Year %
2017 69
2018 82
2019 85
2020 96
2021 98

14
1 Renewable energy project applications were reviewed that were for projects upwards of 150mwatts – i.e. larger projects rather than single installations.
Advanced conversion technologies
Biomass (dedicated)
Ground source heat pumps
Pumped storage hydroelectricity
Wind offshore
Air source heat pumps
Compressed air energy storage
Landfill gas
Small hydro
Wind onshore
Anaerobic digestion
Efw incineration
Large hydro
Solar photovoltaics
Battery
Gas fired CHP
Liquid air energy storage
Tidal barrage and tidal stream
TBC
Approved renewable energy sites
Count
of
type
of
renewable
energy
500
400
300
200
100
0
2017 2019
Year
2018 2020 2021

15
With climate change predicted to bring warmer, wetter winters to the
UK, combined with the onset of generally more unseasonable weather
conditions, the topic of flood risk is never far away. Many communities
across the country are increasingly impacted by flooding and research
shows that the risk of surface, river and coastal flooding is on the up.
We assessed data on large-scale planning applications made in relation
to designated flood risk zones in 2016, and five years later in 2021 to
see if we can identify any potential trends in relation to approval rates.
For this analysis, we assessed data on applications in England and
Wales only.
Approvals granted (%)
In 2016 an average of 84.7% of large planning applications located in
a flood zone were approved, compared to 79.9% in 2021. If we review
rates by region, we note that London had the lowest approval percentage
in 2021, at 64%, compared to other regions. In the West Midlands, there
were 20% fewer approvals in 2021, compared to 2016:
Planning and flood zones
05
2016 (%) 2021 (%)
East Midlands 87 85
East of England 81 78.5
London 79 64
North East 84.5 87
North West 87 86
South East 81.5 73
South West 85 81
Wales 83 85
West Midlands 91 71
Yorkshire and The Humber 88 88
Approvals granted in a flood zone (2016 v 2021 comparison)

16
In 2016 an average of 6.3% of large planning applications located in a
flood zone were refused, compared to 11.4% in 2021. Outside of London,
which had a refusal rate of 32% in 2021, the South East followed with
a refusal rate of 19%.
Applications refused in a flood zone (2016 v 2021 comparison)
2016 (%) 2021 (%)
East Midlands 5 8
East of England 8 15
London 8 32
North East 2 4
North West 5 3
South East 10 19
South West 7 7
Wales 9 7.5
West Midlands 4 13
Yorkshire and The Humber 6 6
1 Summary statistics for Flood Zone Decisions (England and Wales ONLY).
2 Flood Zone considers all (residential and commercial) large planning applications.
Definitions
A large planning application is defined as any Commercial over 10,000 square meters in area, or any Residential with more than 10 houses
or over 5,000 square meters in area or, where number of houses/area are both unavailable, any application estimated to cost over £100,000.
TBC

When any large residential planning application is lodged with a local
authority, a common issue raised by local community members is the
impact a development may have on local amenities – both positive and
negative. Large developments can of course bring more footfall to high
streets, leisure and hospitality outlets, yet they also have the potential
to place additional strain on essential local services such as healthcare
and schools.
We reviewed our extensive amenities data from between 2017 to 2021 to
plot approved large planning applications against the average number of
amenities within a 5km area. We have assessed the data in two tranches:
London boroughs and outside of London.
17
Amenities and planning
06

18
Outside of London
Doctors surgeries
Our data shows that, outside of London, the following locations had
the highest density of doctors surgeries within a 5km area of large,
approved planning applications in 2021.
In contrast, the local authorities with just one doctors surgery within
a 5km radius of a large approved planning application in 2021 were:
• Aberdeenshire Council
• Argyll And Bute Council
• Craven District Council
• Eden District Council
• Hambleton District Council
• Melton Borough Council
• Moray Council
• Pembrokeshire County Council
• Powys County Council
• Rutland Unitary Council
• Ryedale District Council
• Scottish Borders Council
• Shetland Islands Council
• West Devon District (B)
• Western Isles Council
Surgeries per application area
Birmingham City Council 64
Leicester City Council 59
Manchester City Council 59
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council 53

19
Bookmakers
When we plotted bookmakers within a 5km zone of a large planning
application, the resulting data showed that Glasgow topped the chart in
2021 with 86 betting shops per application area. This is in stark comparison
to the 57 doctors surgeries per application area that we plotted in Glasgow.
Manchester City Council, meanwhile, had equal numbers of doctors surgeries
and bookmakers per application area in 2021. The locations with the most
bookmakers within 5km of a large planning application were in Scotland,
and the North East and North West of England:
Libraries
Our data revealed that 13 local authority areas approved large planning
applications with no public libraries located within a 5km radius:
• North Northamptonshire Council
• Fylde Borough Council
• Harrogate Borough Council
• Richmondshire District Council
• Rother District Council
• Stratford-on-Avon District Council
• Ribble Valley Borough Council
• Uttlesford District Council
• Derbyshire Dales District Council
• Eden District Council
• Hambleton District Council
• Argyll And Bute Council
• West Devon District (B)
Bookmakers per application area
Liverpool City Council 82
Manchester City Council 59
Salford City Council 48
City of Newcastle upon Tyne Council 48

20
Takeaway food outlets
Our data confirms that takeaway food outlets are an increasingly prominent
feature in many local authority urban areas. The highest volume recorded for
2021 was in the city of Manchester with (349 within 5km of large approved
planning applications), followed by Leicester (300), Birmingham City Council
(292) and Glasgow City Council (279). Unsurprisingly, we plotted far fewer
takeaway outlets within 5km of large planning applications in rural locations.
The lowest rates were:
Golf
Our data found that two of the top four local authority areas for gold
amenities within a 5km radius of large approved planning applications were
located in Scotland, with the City of Edinburgh Council coming out on top:
The following local authorities also scored well on leisure amenities, each
recording seven separate facilities for golf alone: Glasgow City Council,
Blackpool Borough Council, Aberdeen City Council, Elmbridge Borough
Council, Hertsmere Borough Council and East Dunbartonshire Council.
Takeaway outlets per application area
Western Isles Council 2
Shetland Islands Council 3
West Devon District (B) 4
Argyll and Bute Council 4
Golf courses per application area
City of Edinburgh Council 12
Watford Borough Council 9
Woking Borough Council 8
East Renfrewshire Council 8

21
However, the national picture is an uneven one, with takeaway outlets
far outstripping other essential community amenities and services.
For example:
Just one gym but… Takeaways Playgrounds Hospitals Stations Schools GPs Golf
Staffordshire Moorlands District Council 19 7 1 1 22 3 1
Melton Borough Council 11 6 1 0 13 1 1
Torridge District Council 10
10
1 0 9 2 1
East Lindsey District Council 10
3 0 0 9 2 1
East Cambridgeshire District Council 9 6 0 0
11
2 1
Derbyshire Dales District Council 8 6 1 0
12
2 1
Mid Devon District Council 9 12 0 0 11 2 1
Eden District Council 7 2 0 0 8 1 1
Rutland Unitary Council 7 5 1 0
11
1 1
North Norfolk District Council 7 3 0 0 7 2 0
Isle of Anglesey Council 6 4 0 0 7 2 1
Breckland District Council 7 5 0 0
11
2 1
Hambleton District Council 5 4 0 0 9 1 1

22
Areas providing a good balance of amenities
Bookmakers Golf Gyms Hospitals GP Libraries Playgrounds Schools Transport Takeaways
Cambridge City Council 14 2 22 5 23 8 56
89 3 77
Three Rivers District Council 13 6 14 2 14 3 31
93 5 76
Knowsley Metropolitan B Council 35 5 10 2 28 4 24
105
4 89
Plymouth City Council 17 3 17 3 24 6 66
110
4
114
Cheltenham Borough Council 12 1 13 3 14 5 28
81 4 68
Slough Borough Council 26 6 15 5 22 8 59
110
3
107

23
London Boroughs
Bookmakers
When looking at bookmakers within a 5km zone of a large planning
application, our data revealed the City of London local authority area
to have the highest volume of outlets in 2021, when compared to
the other London boroughs.
Golf
The following London boroughs are not short of fairways and greens, with
Kingston upon Thames at the top with nine golfing facilities within 5km of
large approved planning applications, while both Harrow and Bromley were
also able to demonstrate richness of amenities for the local community.
Bookmakers per application area
City of London 185
London Borough of Hackney 158
London Borough of Tower Hamlets 147
London Borough of Islington 146
London Borough of Southwark 146
Golf courses per application area
Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames 9
London Borough of Harrow 7
London Borough of Bromley 7
London Borough of Enfield 6
London Borough of Ealing 6
London Borough of Merton 6
London Borough of Barnet 6
London Borough of Croydon 6
London Borough of Havering 6

24
Gyms
London boroughs also showed a wealth of choice for fitness amenities,
with the City of London topping the 2021 data with 159 separate
facilities for local residents within a 5km radius of a large approved
planning application.
Doctors surgeries
The 2021 volume of doctors surgeries in the London boroughs were some
of the highest in the country, based on the density of population. The City of
London local authority area records the highest number of separate doctors
facilities within a 5km radius of a large approved planning application.
Gyms per application area
City of London 159
London Borough of Camden 131
Doctors surgeries per application area
City of London 139
London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham 115
London Borough of Lambeth 108

25
Takeaway food outlets
The volume of takeaway outlets in London boroughs is significantly higher
than those outside of London. Consider, for example, that the City of London
has almost 1000 outlets within 5km of large approved planning applications,
compared with the largest volume outside of London in the City of Manchester
(349). The top 15 local authority areas for volume of takeaway food outlets
in 2021 were all located in London boroughs.
Takeaway food outlets per application area
City of London 980
London Borough of Lambeth 571
Definitions
A large residential planning application is defined as having more than 10 houses or over 5000 square metres in area or where number of houses/area is
unavailable, any residential application estimated to cost over £100,000.
Amenity types
‘Bookmakers’ includes Bookmakers / ‘Golf’ includes Golf Courses, Clubs and Driving Ranges / ‘Gyms’ includes Gyms, Sports Hall, Leisure Centres / ‘Hospitals’
includes Hospitals / ‘Doctors Surgeries’ includes Doctors Surgeries / ‘Libraries’ includes Libraries / ‘Children’s Playgrounds & Activity Centres’ includes Adventure
Playgrounds, Skate Parks, Play Areas, Children’s Activity Centres / ‘Schools, Nurseries & Colleges’ includes Nurseries, Primary and Secondary Schools, Sixth
Forms, Independent and Preparatory Schools / ‘Public Transport Stations’ includes Bus and Coach Stations, Depots, Tram, Metro and Light Railway Stations and
Stops / ‘Takeaways’ includes Fast Food and Takeaway Outlets, Fast Food Delivery Services, Fish and Chip Shops.
1 These statistics show the average number of each amenity within 5km of large residential applications submitted between 2017 and 2021, where the
application has been approved.
© 2022 Barbour ABI. All rights reserved; Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2022; PointX © Database Right/Copyright.

Closing
remarks

27
Looking beyond the ‘Covid effect’
for planning trends
When we look at the UK property market in general at this stage, there is
undoubtedly supply in the system, we just need to move it through faster
and establish processes to allow more efficient delivery overall – from
site identification through to new home delivery. Digital is key to this.
The role of digital in planning
One of the most pressing needs for digital that I see within the planning
process is in stakeholder management. Connecting local authorities,
developers, and other associated stakeholders within an efficient system
will bring huge benefits all round. Critically, digitalisation of the planning
system would make community engagement (appeals, development
notices etc.) far more efficient, inclusive and productive.
“The aspect of the recent Levelling Up and
Regeneration Bill that I was watching with perhaps
the most interest was the issue of digitisation around
planning. After all, this is our route to speed of delivery
– and arguably, improving that impacts the number of
new-build homes delivered more than any other change.”
Chris Loaring
Managing Director (Legal),
Landmark Information

28
What the data tells us
When we started looking at this tranche of planning data, I was keen to see
if the ’Covid effect’ of more widespread and long-term remote working had
manifested yet. It looks to have started; the data shows more growth and
demand in areas outside of London and other big urban conurbations, in line
with the evolving employment landscape which now offers more location
freedom. It will be interesting to track the planning data in the next year or
two to see what kinds of trends emerge in planning within the context of
an increasing focus on climate change and the urgency of the journey to
net zero.
Accelerating the journey to net zero
We know that the built environment has a huge role to play in the wider net
zero ambition and that new-build development is a major factor within that.
Equally, we will watch with interest to see how the data evolves in regard
to planning applications relating to existing housing stock and the retrofit
options and upgrades many homeowners are now choosing to undertake.
In the near future, I would hope to see a continuation - or even acceleration
- of environmental considerations in new build planning policies. Concepts
such as renewable energy installations on housing developments of a certain
size, for example, would be great to see. Meanwhile, new build developments
could well pave the way for widespread progress in new policies for establishing
electric car charging ports. This might seem, on the face of it, a small point but
collectively, ease of access to electric charging points as a given would make
a huge difference in easing the transition from fossil fuel based to electric
transport options.

29
“We have seen much debate and anticipation around
the original Planning Bill, and now the Levelling Up and
Regeneration Bill which supersedes it. In terms of the new
proposed bill, it will be interesting to see how its content
evolves during its passage through parliament, and
precisely which elements are ultimately given final
Royal Assent.”
There are some sound new principles being introduced, particularly around
creating beautiful places to live and regarding regeneration. However, the
proposed bill appears to frame the digitalisation of the planning process
as having little to do with strategy and instead, considering digital as more
of a document format or end product. From the perspective of someone
working in the area of geospatial data, this feels like a missed opportunity.
Making planning digital
Now, more than ever, the UK property industry needs to fully embrace digital
to help it work through the multitudes of complex rules, physical, social and
economic factors. Digitalisation will ensure that the best outcomes can be
realised - for now and for the future. Digital is already playing a role within
the planning process, but as far as realising its full potential is concerned,
we are barely scratching the surface. Now, we need to fully embrace digital
to benefit from its ability to do the ‘heavy lifting’ when it comes to evaluation
and decision making.
This will facilitate future development, delivered within the context of ‘the
bigger picture’ regionally and nationally, to ensure we can meet key goals
relating to economic opportunity, levelling up, provision, resilience, sustainability
and the environment. Digitalisation and data will help us all make better use
of our resources, creating opportunity and amenity in areas previously viewed
simply as being problematic to develop.
Planning data and the levelling up
agenda are inextricably linked
Piers Edgell,
Client Director (Geodata),
Landmark Information

30
Levelling up and how data can help
And so, in terms of the data revealed in this report, it is notable that the list
of highest volume of planning applications by LA has changed very little
between 2012 and 2021. In comparison, the list of areas with the lowest
volumes of planning applications has changed between 2012 and 2021 yet
presents no surprises. This could suggest that some entrenched planning
trends are at play and that any government policy for nationwide levelling
up could be challenged by well-established regional development patterns.
Any attempts at levelling-up will take concerted effort, over a long duration.
What is notable to me, when we consider the planning data in this report
through the levelling up lens, is that planning is about so much more than
simply where developments will or will not be built. Every planning decision
impacts the immediate environment, and so planning data could and should
become a critical tool for informing and shaping social policies that aim to
improve – or level up – communities. What, for example, could the kinds
of planning data shown in this report tell us, when mapped against data on
increasing property values or household incomes? What could the data we
have summarised on amenities within the vicinity of planning applications
tell us about location-specific standards of living and local needs? From a
big picture point of view, we might even wonder how this kind of data might
correlate with health and wellbeing indices, mortality, employment and income
figures. My hunch is that it would underscore that planning has the potential
to alter communities and change life-chances, more broadly than its immediate
impact on the built environment.
Energy projects growth?
As we look ahead, I would expect to see continued growth in planning applications
for renewable energy projects over the next couple of years, as we anticipate
a gradual shift in emphasis away from generation of energy, and towards
the distribution and storage of energy. That might play out in trends such
as applications for public-use vehicle charging facilities becoming the most
prominent application type. I am sure I will be one of many hoping to see an
uptick in new applications for energy production by micro nuclear plant, to
build national resilience and to help bring consumer prices down. The data in
this report underscores the need for us, as a country, to build better for today,
with resilience built in to safeguard developments for tomorrow.

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31
The detail is in the data

32
Data sources and copyrights
Dataset Plan Apps Volumes Plan Apps Types Plan Apps Decisions Flood Renewable Energy Amenities Copyright Pages
Post 1997 Planning Applications © 2022 Barbour ABI. All rights reserved.
Local Authority Boundaries Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright
and database right 2022
Local Authority Population
Estimates
Contains public sector information licensed under
the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Flood Zone 3 © Environment Agency and database right 2022;
Contains Natural Resources Wales information © Natural
Resources Wales and Database Right. All rights Reserved.
Some features of this information are based on digital
spatial data licensed from the Centre for Ecology &
Hydrology © NERC (CEH). Defra, Met Office and DARD
Rivers Agency © Crown copyright. © Cranfield University.
© James Hutton Institute. Contains OS data © Crown
copyright and database right 2022. Land & Property
Services © Crown copyright and database right.
Areas Benefitting from Flood
Defences
© Environment Agency and database right 2022;
Contains Natural Resources Wales information ©
Natural Resources Wales and database right.
Renewable Energy Planning
Database
Contains public sector information licensed under the
Open Government Licence v3.0
Points of Interest PointX © Database Right/Copyright.

33
Definition of planning types
Alteration or Conversion: if description indicates and changes taking place
for a building, slight alterations or a possible complete change of use this
is the development type utilised. Can also be used for tree works or
telecommunication works etc and any other minor works.
Brownfield: this is added when demolition is usually taking place to indicate
that the land at the site is registered as brownfield – still need planning
permission to build on again but it is not protected land.
Demolition: any works being removed on the site on the planning application.
Extension: any works taking place that is an extension to the building already
on the site – adding extra footage.
Fit-out: Generally applies to shop fit outs or industrial – will usually be led
by the council description.
Greenfield: Greenfield land identified by councils as protected land and
usually difficult for any new build or changes to be granted permission.
New Build: any new works taking place that are not connected to a building
already in place – can have new build on a site e.g. Schools, Hospitals, Industrial.
Refurbishment or Repair: usually led by the council description, falls under
Alteration and conversion majority of time.
Works: this code is not used as often as others, but typically relates to more
civil works or industrial.
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makes no warranty about the correctness of the data included in the report.
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Data Insights Report Planning JUN2022.pdf

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