‘Only 4% of applications are dealt with within the statutory 13-week timetable’
Our byzantine planning system has stymied housing output for years: this is what the LPDF propose should be done about it.
If you have not noticed the UK’s housing crisis, you have not been paying attention. We have not built enough homes for decades. New research by Lichfields for Richborough and the LPDF reveals a stark reality: at its very heart, our sluggish planning system is undermining our national ambitions to build the housing we need. The report, titled ‘How Long is a Piece of String’ evaluated 18,000 major applications for new homes between 2014 and 2024. It shows, clearly, that while application numbers have dropped, the length of time taken to get a decision has soared.
Back in 2014 it took an average of 8 months to get a decision on a major outline planning application. An outline application does not, keep in mind, include detailed design – it is simply for the applicant to establish the ‘principle of development’. It considers what kind of development should take place on the site, how many new homes, shops, workplaces etc. and what infrastructure might be needed. By 2024, Lichfields’ research shows that the average had ballooned to 2 years. Only 4% of applications are dealt with within the statutory 13-week timetable.
One might presume that this was because planning officers have been overwhelmed by rising numbers of applications, but the research shows that whilst the volume of outline applications dropped by third, the time taken to process them doubled. Why does this matter? Firstly, because housing delayed is housing denied. Secondly, because it deters investment, especially from the smaller and medium-sized enterprises that are so critical to increasing output.
No one can deny that Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) have lost substantial resources in the past decade. Figures from the RTPI show that between 2009/10 and 2021/22 their budgets were slashed by 43%, and the number of planning officers fell by 25%. This is not about workload though given that application volumes have fallen even more steeply. It is about the increasingly complex, bureaucratic and uncertain system.
Today, according to further Lichfields research for the LPDF (‘Small builders, big burdens’), outline applications can require over 30 supporting documents. Ever-increasing policy demands such as, for example, Biodiversity Net Gain, Nutrient Neutrality and the Flood Risk Sequential Test may seem well intentioned, but they can either block housing all together or drive perverse outcomes even if schemes can be made viable.
Official statistics offer a misleading picture. How can 90% of applications be reported as being decided ‘on time’ when determination periods have rocketed to an average of 2 years? The answer is through the massaging of data. Planning performance agreements and extension of time clauses should be used for flexibility and to support an efficient system. In practice LPDF members see inefficiencies being papered over and decisions on planning applications pushed ever further into the future. For SMEs, who lack the resources to overcome such barriers, these are very challenges to the operation of their business.
The appeals system is being viewed as the more reliable route for decision making, which ultimately undermines the integrity of the system. The average time it takes to get a decision through the Planning Inspectorate is now 6 months less than through a LPA. This is fundamentally the wrong way around.
So what is to be done? The Government’s changes to the policy environment, by way of the NPPF, and to the legislative environment, by way of the Planning & Infrastructre Bill, are admirable, but more can be done to improve the practical operation of the development management system:
-Codify Sustainable Development: The government should use National Development Management Policies (NDMPs) to reinforce a strong presumption in favour of sustainable development, streamlining decision-making when applications meet core standards.
-Empower Smaller Sites: national level planning policies should be revised to ensure that small sites are allocated for SMEs to help them gain approval quicker
-Copy the streamlining that’s happened within the appeals process: Apply the successful reforms from the appeals process to LPAs, including streamlined procedures and performance monitoring.
Let outlines be outline: Reduce unnecessary detail at the outline stage. Many current requirements go well beyond what is needed to determine the principle of development.
-Standardise Legal Agreements: Introduce model Section 106 agreements to reduce negotiation time, particularly on common issues like affordable housing.
-Leverage Digital Tools: Harness AI and planning technology to automate repetitive tasks and support officers in faster, evidence-based decision-making.
-Support Planning Officers: Update working practices to help planning teams operate more effectively in an era of hybrid work and increasing complexity.
-Report Real Performance: Replace misleading “on time” metrics with data reflecting actual elapsed time from submission to decision.
-Reform Statutory Consultees: Mandate timely, proportionate responses from statutory bodies, avoiding unnecessary use of planning conditions to enforce other regulations.
Timely planning decisions are integral to the government’s plan to build 1.5 million homes. The development industry needs to see swift and systemic reform to make sure the planning system does what it should: plan for the homes we need. “How long is a piece of string?” may be a rhetorical question, but for UK housing policy, it has a troublingly precise answer: too long to deliver the homes that we need.
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