Consultation Planning Policy Statement (PPS) 6:Planning for Town Centres launched

A consultation on revisions to Planning Policy Statement (PPS) 6:Planning for Town Centres has been launched. The closing date is 3 October 2008.

New proposals could councils better protect small shops through the current economic difficulties and create more vibrant town centres, Communities Secretary Hazel Blears has announced.

Read the CLG overview of new proposals here

They give councils more scope to refuse out of town development proposals that threaten the survival of high streets and small shops.

Objectives of proposed changes
The White Paper argued that the proposed revisions to town centre policy have two clear objectives. First, they must support current and prospective town centre investment, which contributes to economic prosperity, and to our social and environmental goals. The White Paper said that simply to remove the ‘needs test’ could put this at risk. Second, that it is important to ensure that planning promotes competition and consumer choice and does not unduly or disproportionately constrain the market.

Form of proposed changes
In the context of the above objectives it is proposed to refine the policy approach to planning for town centres in PPS6, rather than to make significant policy changes.

It is proposed to strengthen the Government’s policy on positive planning for town centres (Chapter 2). These changes are set out in Part 2a of this document.
There is no proposed change to the requirement for planning authorities to assess the need for new town centre development or to take account of scale, impact and accessibility considerations or the sequential approach in selecting sites for development in development plans.

The main changes relate to how some planning applications should be considered and tested. The proposals remove the requirement for an applicant to demonstrate ‘need’ for a proposal which is in an edge of centre or out of centre location and which is not in accordance with an up to date development plan strategy.

The policy replaces the existing impact assessment with a new impact assessment framework which applicants for proposals outside town centres need to undertake in certain circumstances. Key features of the new test are:

• Broader focus with emphasis on economic, social and environmental as well as – strategic planning impacts that enables positive and negative town centre and wider impacts to be taken into account.
• Identification of key impacts which applicants must assess, including: impact on – planned in-centre investment; whether the proposal is of an appropriate scale (the previous ‘scale’ test); and, impacts on in-centre trade/turnover which should take account of current and future consumer expenditure capacity. Where negative impacts are likely to be significant this will normally justify the refusal of planning permission.
• Identification of a number of wider impacts which should be considered, – including: accessibility (the previous ‘accessibility’ test) and sustainable transport considerations; impact on traffic; effects on employment and regeneration; and how the proposal will make efficient and effective use of land. Where there are likely to be some adverse impacts but these are likely to be outweighed by significant wider benefits arising from the proposal, the proposal should normally be approved.