An Overview

A short word that covers the wide spectrum of how development in all its forms is managed and controlled from the public sector by Central and Local Government via policies to ‘guide’ us. The objective being to ensure that in simple terms, anything that is built or proposed to be built, looks and functions without undue detriment/harm to our environment and in doing so, hopefully, enhances the process.

Planning Guidance

Available ‘Guidance’ material to help with deciding whether or not a planning proposal is approved, a scheme to develop, has in recent years been subjected to drastic change, bringing a fair helping of ambiguity in its wake. A comprehensive and beautifully precise document, all two hundred pages covering ‘Planning in the Historic Environment (PPG15)’ went into the shredder. It was replaced by thirteen pages (PPS5) with the same title, but lacked clarity. This flimsy publication was then replaced by what we have now, ‘The National Planning Policy Framework 2012’, some of which again wanders into what could be termed ‘generalisation’, as it similarly lacks clarity.

Guidance documents currently available to your Parish Council’s Planning Committee include:

• The National Policy Planning Framework (NPPF) 2012
• Planning — Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas Act 1990
• The Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (And general Permitted Development)
• Wokingham Borough Council’s Core Strategy (and supplementary detail)
• The Borough Design Guide
• Wokingham Borough Council Highways Design Guide
• Manual for Streets
• Manual for Streets 2
• Plus forthcoming changes to Listed Buildings Regulations from the Department for Communities and Local Government