Northern Powerhouse beating Greater London for planning applications
A MAJOR survey has found that the Northern Powerhouse is delivering more planning decisions per capita than Greater London.
The fifth annual planning survey, published by the British Property Federation and GL Hearn, examined for the first time major application decisions across the North, showing they made 11 major decisions per 100,000 residents, compared to nine in London.
The largest ever independent assessment of the planning system has also shown that despite a lack of resources at some local planning authorities, the planning system has broadly stabilised after some years of flux.
Average decision making times remained stable at 31 weeks, overall approval ratings for major applications held steady at approximately 87% and there was a slight dip in the overall volume of major applications decided.
Despite this, the survey showed that overall sentiment in the industry is the worst it has ever been, with more planning officers (65%) and developers (36%) than ever concerned that the system is getting worse.
Some 80% of applicants were dissatisfied with the time it takes for decisions to be made on planning applications, the highest figure since the survey began in 2012.
The data has also shown that many in the industry are hopeful that a number of proposed policy solutions could reduce application decision times and help alleviate resourcing issues at LPAs.
Alastair Crowdy, managing director of Capita Real Estate Advisory and GL Hearn, said: “The fact that the Northern Powerhouse is deciding more major applications per resident than London is a hugely promising sign for growth in the North – and one that shows the consequent development has potential to drive economic growth right across the country.
“Given the concerns about the need for investment in the system expressed in 2015, it should be seen as positive that the planning system is delivering broadly as well as it was last year. However, our survey data shows that the majority of the industry is concerned that the status quo isn’t going to be enough to deliver the development that Britain needs.”
Melanie Leech, chief executive of the British Property Federation, said: “It is really encouraging to see the North live up to its ‘powerhouse’ moniker, and to be powering ahead with its development pipeline. The development industry has an important part to play in ensuring growth across the country, and it is good to see that there is lots of activity in the North West.”
The survey combines data on major planning application decisions from 74 local planning authorities and survey data from 385 developers and local authority planning officers across the country.
