News Type: Legislation Update

On 26^th July 2025, the Department for Business and Trade unveiled proposed reforms to help support the revitalisation of town centres by simplifying some of the rules around planning and licensing to make it easier for new cafes, bars and music venues to open in place of vacant retail premises. The measures proposed include a new ‘National Licencing Policy Framework’, the introduction of dedicated ‘hospitality zones’, and the roll-out of the High Street Rental Auction Scheme.

The Government is proposing to introduce a new ‘National Licensing Policy Framework’ which is intended to streamline and standardise the process of obtaining planning permission and licenses, to promote the opening of small businesses.

Part of this process includes the introduction of the ‘Agent of Change’ principle into National Planning and Licensing Policy. The ‘Agent of Change’ principle means that developers building near existing pubs, clubs, or music venues must soundproof their properties to protect existing venues and premises from potential future noise complaints.

Proposed ‘Hospitality Zones’ will be dedicated zones designed to benefit from fast-track decisions for proposals for alfresco dining, pubs, bars, street parties, and extended opening hours, in order to help increase vitality and footfall into town centres.

The proposals will sit alongside existing Government initiatives namely the High Street Rental Auction Scheme, which allows Councils to lease long‑vacant commercial units at auction to sponsors interested in hospitality use, helping bring empty premises back into use.

Next Steps

The proposals are not, with the exception of the High Street Rental Auction Scheme, yet formally part of Government Policy, and no detail has been provided as to how the proposed measures will sit alongside the existing policy framework at the national level. It is understood that a ‘Call for Evidence’ will be made in due course to seek views and evidence on the proposals. There is currently no timescale provided by the Government for next steps, however we will continue to monitor for this on behalf our clients in the retail, town centres and food & beverage sectors.

The Planning Inspectorate (PINS) has announced a major expansion of its “simplified” planning appeals process, aiming to fast-track decisions on a much broader range of cases. The purpose of this is to streamline the planning system, reduce delays, and improve certainty for applicants and local authorities.

The simplified route was previously reserved for householder and minor commercial appeals, known as the Part 1 Written Representations process. The process will now be expanded to include a wider range of appeals, including appeals in relation to:

• The refusal of planning permission or reserved matters

• Imposition of conditions on approvals

• The refusal of prior notification or prior approval

Under this process, Planning Inspectors will make decisions based solely on the information submitted with the planning application, and no new evidence will be accepted during the appeal stage. No changes are proposed to the time limits to appeal a decision.

PINS will retain discretion to transfer appeals to the standard written representations process, a hearing, or an inquiry if a case is deemed unsuitable for the simplified route.

“Submit Once, Submit Right”

A central aim of the reform is to encourage applicants and planning authorities to ensure that applications are complete and “appeal-ready” from the outset. Appeals will be determined based on the application form, decision notice, and accompanying documents, supported by concise written statements.

This is a shift from a system where applicants could previously submit additional evidence or revised plans when appealing.

Anticipated Benefits

The Government has framed the expansion as a key part of its drive to speed up the planning system, cut unnecessary bureaucracy, and reduce pressure on the Planning Inspectorate. Key benefits include:

• Faster decisions through reduced documentation and a more simplified process

• Less administrative burdens on local authorities and appellants

• Greater certainty for all parties, with fewer delays and late-stage surprises

• Improved focus on the initial planning application and local decision-making

Looking Ahead

Regulations to implement these changes are expected to be introduced by the end of 2025. Once the revised process is in effect, it will apply only to appeals concerning planning applications submitted after the new regulations take effect. Appeals related to applications received before that point will continue to follow existing appeal routes.

These changes place even more importance on ensuring the original planning submission is comprehensively prepared for any project. Should you require any assistance in understanding how these changes will impact on your projects, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Article prepared by: Abid Mirza & Raveen Bhamra
Contact: info@firstplan.co.uk.

On 11th March 2025, the Government introduced the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, aiming to expedite housing development and major infrastructure projects. The Bill sets a target of constructing 1.5 million homes by the end of this parliamentary term and seeks to streamline the approval process for over 150 significant infrastructure initiatives, including roads, railways, and renewable energy projects.

Key provisions of the Bill include:

Planning:

• The Bill includes provisions that will allow local planning authorities to set their own planning fees (capped at cost recovery).

• A ‘national scheme of delegation’ for planning decisions in England will be introduced, that will set out which planning functions should be delegated to planning officers for a decision and which should go instead to a planning committee or subcommittee. Committee members will be required to undertake mandatory training before they can take planning decisions.  It is hoped that this ‘national scheme of delegation’ will help provide a greater degree of certainty in decision making.

• The Bill introduces Strategic Planning Authorities (‘SPAs’), these will be strategic planning boards, combined authorities, combined county authorities, upper-tier county councils or a unitary authority (for areas in England). SPAs will be required to prepare a Spatial Development Strategy (‘SDS’), which will form part of an authority’s development plan. The Bill sets out various requirements for SDSs and they will be required to contribute to climate change mitigation, and take account of any local nature recovery strategy.  The Bill sets out the procedure for the preparation and adoption of SDSs, and gives the Secretary of State powers to intervene.

Infrastructure:

• National Policy Statements (‘NPS‘) to be reviewed and updated every five years, with a more streamlined process for parliament to make changes to NPSs where needed outside of the formal review process;

• Changes to the pre-application and acceptance stages for Development Consent Order (‘DCO’) applications, intended to make consultation requirements more proportionate.

• Reforms to the judicial review process as it relates to NSIPs, including the removal of the paper permission stage for challenges to NPSs and DCOs, and limits on appeals in cases deemed totally without merit.

• Provisions to allow renewable energy schemes on forestry land and to give financial incentives to the both the development of long-term energy storage schemes, and separately, to local communities to accept the development of pylons or other “energy transmission infrastructure” in their area.

Nature Restoration:

• The Bill establishes the Nature Restoration Fund, an alternative approach for developers to meet certain environmental obligations relating to protected sites and species.

• It allows Natural England (or another designated delivery body) to bring forward Environmental Delivery Plans, which would set out conservation measures to be carried out at a strategic level within an area. The measures would be funded by a ‘Nature Restoration Levy’ paid by developers.

Development Corporations:

• The Bill seeks to enable greater flexibility for development corporations in terms of the variety, extent and types of the geographical areas over which they can operate.

• It also seeks to update and standardise the types of infrastructure development corporations can deliver, including heat networks.

• Improve collaboration between development corporations and local transport authorities, through a new duty to cooperate, which will ensure that new towns are seamlessly integrated into the wider spatial plan for the area. Where appropriate, the Bill will ensure that development corporations are able to exercise transport planning functions to achieve this goal.

Compulsory Purchase:

• Allowing statutory notices related to CPOs to be delivered electronically.

• Simplifying the information required in newspaper notices.

• Increasing delegation of decisions to streamline the CPO process.

• Enabling quicker vesting of land and properties.

• Reforming the loss payments regime to improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

Conclusion

The Bill is a lengthy complex document that sets out a number of provisions that will have implications on the planning system, particularly through the introduction of an additional strategic tier of planning. Proposed changes to regularise determination of planning applications will hopefully provide applicants and developers with a greater degree of certainty that their applications will be positively determined and may therefore encourage investment in this respect. Proposals for infrastructure and DCOs offer potential for a more streamlined approach to enabling major infrastructure projects to come forward.  Please do contact one of our team members if you would like to know more about the new Planning and Infrastructure Bill.

Article prepared by: Raveen Bhamra & Jeannie Banks. Please contact the Firstplan team at info@firstplan.co.uk.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has announced proposed changes to short-term lets in England, which should come into effect from this summer. As part of these changes, people may be required to apply for planning permission from their local authority to turn their home into a short-term let. The rules will not apply to people renting out their main home for less than 90 nights a year.

The announcement follows on from the Government’s consultation, launched in April 2023, in respect of changes to planning measures that would help local areas have greater ability to control any future increase in the number of short-term lets in their area and support the retention of existing properties to buy or to rent.

The proposed planning changes would see a new planning ‘use class’ in England – Use Class C5 ‘short term let’ –for future short-term lets that are not used as a sole or main home. Under proposed Use Class C5, a short-term let can be defined as the “use of a dwellinghouse that is not a sole or main residence for temporary sleeping accommodation for the purpose of holiday, leisure, recreation, business or other travel”.

Existing dedicated short-term lets will automatically be reclassified into the new use class and will not require a planning application.

The Government also intends to introduce associated permitted development rights – one allowing for a property to be changed from a short-term let to a residential dwelling, and a second that would allow a residential dwelling to be changed to a short-term let. There are currently no further details on the wording of these permitted development rights, however, local planning authorities would be able to remove these permitted development rights through the implementation of Article 4 Directions in areas where there is already an abundance of short-term lets.

In addition, a new mandatory national register will be introduced which will allow local authorities to keep track of the number and distribution of short-term lets across England.

The proposed measures are focussed on short-term lets, and therefore the planning changes and the register will not affect hotels, hostels or B&Bs.

Calls have previously been made by MPs representing popular holiday destinations, such as Cornwall, the Lake District and Norfolk, for stronger regulations around short-term lets on the basis that the increased numbers of these have resulted in difficulties for local people finding an affordable place to live within their communities.

In a statement, DLUHC said that “These changes are part of a long-term plan to prevent a ‘hollowing out’ of communities, address anti-social behaviour and ensure local people can continue to live in the place they call home”.

Under the reforms, Councils will be given greater power to control short-term lets by making them subject to the planning process. This should allow local communities to “take back control and find the right balance between protecting the visitor economy and ensuring local people get the homes they need”.

DLUHC said that further details on the measures will be set out in the Government’s responses to the consultations, which are due to be published this summer. In addition, this would include the timeline for implementation of the register, the new use class and the proposed permitted development rights. These changes are proposed to be introduced from this summer.

Article prepared by Raveen Bhamra

When ‘Class MA’ of the General Permitted Development Order (GDPO) came into force in 2021, it provided the mechanism to widen the scope for buildings to be converted to new homes without planning permission. The introduction of Class MA allowed for any building within Use Class E (commercial uses such as shops, restaurants, offices, gyms, etc.) to be converted to a residential use via a prior approval process. Like many permitted development rights, a number of conditions and limitations were applied to the legislation. Two notable exemptions were the requirements for a subject property or building to be vacant for three months prior to any application for prior approval, and a floorspace cap of 1,500sq.m GIA, above which Class MA was not applicable.

On 14th February 2024, following a public consultation undertaken last year, the Government further loosened the requirements by scrapping the three-month vacancy requirement and the ‘cap’ of 1,500sq.m for any application for prior approval submitted on or after 5th March 2024. There is now no cap to the floorspace which can be converted under Class MA, and no requirement for the building to be vacant for three months prior to the application being submitted. The intention of removing these restrictions is to allow more under-used Class E buildings to be converted to residential use, in turn providing a boost to the supply of homes.

The Government’s explanatory memorandum accompanying the changes explains that the flexibility of these permitted development rights should make an important contribution to the supply of homes. In the eight years to March 2023, permitted development rights for this change of use have delivered 102,830 new homes. This included 9,492 homes in the last year, which accounted for 4% of the overall housing supply in England.

The remainder of the Class MA prior approval requirements and tests will still apply. Significantly, the changes will not affect properties that are currently the subject of Article 4 Directions, which prevent the use of buildings for Class MA or where restrictive planning conditions are in place.

If you have any questions about Class E-to-residential PD rights or Class E uses more generally, please feel free to contact a member of the Firstplan team.

Article by Myranda Morrison

The Levelling-up and Regeneration Act (‘the Act’) received Royal Ascent on 26th October 2023. It proposes some wide-ranging changes to the planning system. It brings together proposals from both the Levelling-up White Paper and the ‘Planning for the Future’ White Paper (often referred to as the ‘Planning White Paper’). Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, has stated that the Government’s “landmark Levelling-Up and Regeneration Act will deliver more homes for communities across the country and unleash levelling up in left-behind places.”

We set out a summary of the key points of this important new legislation below.

Introduction of Section 73B

The Act introduces a new Section 73B to the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, expanding existing powers under sections 73 and 96A to vary or remove planning conditions attached to planning permissions or non-material amendments to planning permissions. Section 73B offers a new way of varying an existing planning permission, allowing greater flexibility for making ‘non-substantial changes’ to extant planning permissions. Consideration can only be given to the specific changes which have been applied for under a Section 73B application (as is the case with current Section 73 applications).

Design Codes

Local planning authorities will now be required to have a design code in place covering their authority areas. These area-wide codes will act as a framework, for which subsequent detailed design codes can come forward, led either by local planning authorities, neighbourhood planning groups or by developers as part of planning applications. Design codes can be included in Local Plans or as Supplementary Plans (see below).

National Development Management Policies

In regard to the hierarchy of planning policy, the Act proposes the introduction of National Development Management Policies (NDMPs), meaning that ‘issues that apply in most areas’ will now be covered by a new suite of national policies, rather than through Local Plans. The scope of local plans will therefore be limited to ‘locally specific matters’, which should, at least in theory, make Local Plans quicker and easier to produce.

As set out in the supporting legislation text, “general policies on issues that apply in most areas (such as general heritage protection) will be set out nationally and contained in a suite of National Development Management Policies (NDMPs), which will have the same weight as plans, so that they are able to be fully taken into account in decisions.” Ministers will be required to have regard to the need to mitigate and adapt to climate change in the preparation of the NDMPs. Once published, the NDMPs will be subject to public consultation.

Duty to Co-Operate and Supplementary Plans

The Act abolishes the principle of ‘Duty to Co-Operate’, which requires LPAs to co-operate with each other during the plan-making process, and replace Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) with Supplementary Plans, which will be used to identify site-specific policies or area-wide design codes. Unlike SPDs, Supplementary Plans will carry the same weight as Local Plans in the determination of planning applications.

Commencement and Completion Notices

The Act will make it easier for local planning authorities to issue a completion notice to require developers to complete their projects. The changes to the completion notice system (Section 112 of the Act) are designed to speed up the completion notice procedure, make it more efficient, and use it as a mechanism to encourage developers to progress construction works.

In addition, Section 111 of the Act introduces commencement notices which will need to be served on a local planning authority by the person proposing to carry out a development, before it is commenced. The expected commencement date of the development is to be given. A local planning authority will be able to serve a notice requiring the relevant information to be provided if a developer is not forthcoming with a commencement notice. The introduction of Section 111 is designed to address perceptions of land banking and slow build-out rates by larger development companies.

Clause 67

New ‘Clause 67’ will allow local planning authorities to decline to determine planning applications from applicants who have previously not implemented a permission or who have sought to carry out the development “unreasonably slowly”.

Infrastructure Levy

Section 106 planning obligations and the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) are to be replaced with a new ‘Infrastructure Levy’. The Act sets out the basic legislative framework for this, although the mechanics of the changes will be delivered separately through the introduction of a new Section 204A to the Planning Act (2008). The new levy is expected to be introduced over a ten-year period, and ultimately be compulsory for all local planning authorities (unlike CIL). Like CIL, however, rates and thresholds will be set at the local level, enabling them to be tailored to local circumstances.

Street Votes

One of the more controversial aspects of the legislation is the introduction of a ‘street votes’ system that will enable residents to propose development on their street and hold a vote on whether planning permission should be given.

Timescales and Legislation

Although the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill achieved royal assent in late October, there remains much consultation and secondary legislation to bring it into force. We await a clear timeframe for implementation of these proposals from the Government and anticipate there will at least be further revisions to the NPPF, alongside the production of new documentation which will contain the proposed National Development Management Policies.  As always, Firstplan will keep a close eye on any further policy and legislative developments.

The above article is designed to provide a briefing/overview which may be of interest to our clients. It does not constitute formal planning advice. Please speak to a member of the Firstplan team if you require any further information.

Article by Joshua Hindle

It has been confirmed by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities that the increase in planning fees for England, which was expected to come into effect in April 2024, has been brought forward and will come into effect on 6th December 2023.

The Government is seeking to address the current funding shortfall for Local Planning Authorities through this increase. Planning fees in England were last increased in 2018.

The key changes include a 35% increase for major applications and a 25% increase for all other applications. The fees for some of the most common application types include:

• – Applications for < 10 dwellinghouses – £578 for each dwellinghouse (previously £462)
• – Householder Applications – £258 (previously £206)
• – Advertisements – £165 (previously £132)
• – Change of Use – £578 (previously £462)
• – Non-Material Amendments – £293 (previously £234)
• – Discharge of Planning Conditions (non-householder) – £145 (previously £116)
• – Discharge of Planning Conditions (householder) – £43 (previously £34)

Under the new Regulation 18A, planning fees will continue to be increased annually in line with inflation (capped at 10% per year) from 1st April 2025.

Other updates include the removal of the “free go” for repeat applications following the refusal or withdrawal of an earlier application. In addition, there will be a reduction in the “planning guarantee” period from 26 weeks to 16 weeks for non-major applications, which allows applications which remain undetermined and without an agreed extension of time to be eligible for a fee refund after 16 weeks.

There is also a new prior approval application fee of £120 in relation to Class TA permitted development rights for closed defence sites owned by the Crown.

The Planning Portal Administration Fee (currently £64) will still also apply.

If you have any questions about how the fee increases could affect your upcoming projects, please speak to one of the Firstplan team.

Article by Amy Murray

Following an announcement on 27th September 2023, the Government has set out a revised timeframe for the implementation of its 10% Biodiversity Net Gain requirement for planning applications, which was due to first come into force in November.

The updated timeframe is as follows:

– Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects are planned for 2025

– Small Sites will be applicable from April 2024

– Other Sites will be applicable from January 2024

The Government confirms that by the end of November 2023 it will publish all guidance and the regulations including:

– the statutory biodiversity metric, critical for calculating the correct biodiversity gain

– the draft Biodiversity Gain Plan template, which will help developers prepare for what they will need to complete during the planning application stages

– the Habitat Management and Monitoring Plan template, which will set out how the improved significant on-site and off-site habitats will be managed for the long term

– a package of Biodiversity Net Gain guidance that sets out further advice for landowners, developers, and Local Planning Authorities around their role and responsibilities in delivering mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain

It states that these materials will ensure that developers and planning authorities have access to the necessary tools and information to effectively implement Biodiversity Net Gain from January 2024.

Trudy Harrison, Biodiversity Minister said:

“The updated timetable and guidance we are setting out today will help smooth the transition ahead of the Biodiversity Net Gain going fully live in January 2024”.

As outlined by Trudy Harrison, this announcement will come as welcome news to many developers and Councils, enabling the publication of the much-needed guidance and regulations in advance of the implementation of Biodiversity Net Gain in the new year.

We await the publication of these materials at the end of November, which will only allow developers and Councils the month of December to get fully up to speed and to produce the necessary documentation in support of applications submitted from January 2024.

On Friday 31st March 2023, the Scottish Government introduced new legislation allowing shops, and the premises of financial services, and other professional services to be converted to office accommodation, light industrial units, restaurants, cafes, or car showrooms without applying for planning permission (subject to varying conditions being met).

The Scottish Use Classes Order was updated to combine former Use Class 1 (shops) and 2 (financial, professional, and other services) into a singular Class 1A (shops, and financial, professional and other services), therefore providing flexibility to move between the former uses without applying for planning permission. The Government’s Policy Note which accompanies the new legislation sets out that: “this new use class is intended to provide greater flexibility to change the use of buildings and/or for buildings to have multiple concurrent uses”.

Permitted development rights were also introduced under this new Use Class ‘1A’ allowing premises to be converted to office accommodation, light industrial units, restaurants, cafes or car showrooms without having to apply for a change of use (subject to restrictions).

This will come as welcome news to businesses, landlords and developers who will have far greater flexibility to switch between uses than was previously afforded, and who will be presented with new opportunities to bring vacant premises back into use. The new permitted development rights do however include some restrictions that will limit their usefulness within town centres: for instance the change of use to office and light industrial uses is only permitted for units up to 300 sqm in size (so will be limited to small-scale workspaces), the change of use to a car showroom is only permitted up to 235 sqm in size, and new Class 3 food and drink uses are not permitted when they are within 1m of an existing dwelling or if there are flats above (limiting the usefulness with town centres where there are often flats above commercial premises).  The Policy Note expands on this to confirm that the permitted development rights do not apply if:

–     Any part of a dwelling is located directly above part of a building that would change to class 3 (food and drink); or

–     A dwelling is located within 1 metre of a building (or part of a building) that would change to class 3. This measurement does not include any communal access (i.e. a communal passage, stairwell or landing).

The Policy Note further emphasises that the above restrictions should “not be taken as implying that changes of use to use class 3 adjacent to or directly below dwellings are inherently unacceptable in planning terms. Rather, it recognises that such changes of use may have impacts on residential amenity (e.g. as a result of cooking odours) that ought to be considered through a planning application and may require mitigation, for example through the provision of flues or ventilation systems”.

The rights also do not apply to hot food takeaways or bar uses, which continue to form their own separate Sui Generis uses and will continue to require change of use applications.

New permitted development rights have also been introduced for the placement of furniture on a public road (including the pavement) adjacent to class 3 (food and drink) premises, pubs and bars; however, relevant licensing controls will also continue to apply. Furniture is listed as the following:

1. Counters or stalls for selling or serving food or drink,

2. Tables, counters or shelves on which food or drink can be placed,

3. Chairs, benches or other forms of seating,

4. Umbrellas, ramps, barriers, heaters and other articles used in connection with the outdoor consumption of food or drink,

5. Decking structures for the purpose of creating a level surface on which items mentioned in sub-paragraphs (a) to (d) can be placed.

The updates to the permitted development schedule can be read in full at the link below:

The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development and Use Classes) (Scotland) Miscellaneous Amendment Order 2023 (legislation.gov.uk)

Generally, the changes are positive and should help to encourage regeneration in Scotland’s town centres. The approach taken by the Scottish Government is less bold than the approach taken in England, whereby restaurants, offices, professional/financial services, light industrial units, gyms and nurseries all fall within the same ‘commercial Class E’, and which are able to switch between uses or be within a mixture of these uses without any restrictions on the size of the unit or proximity to residential neighbours. Furthermore, the introduction of these relaxations by way of permitted development rights will also provide planning departments with the opportunity to introduce Article 4 Directions, where justified, which could further diminish their effectiveness.

For advice on these legislative updates, as well as more broadly the differences in regulations between Scotland and England, please contact Chris Jones or Sam Harper who will be happy to give advice.

Article by George Creamer