Scottish Government

INTRODUCTION

1. This document is a statement of Scottish Government policy on land use planning.

2. In addition to the National Planning Framework which expresses the spatial aspects of the Government Economic Strategy, Scottish Government Planning Policies will comprise 3 elements:

• The Scottish Government's view of the purpose of planning and the core principles for the operation of the system
• The objectives for key parts of the system
• Thematic policies on planning structured around
• • the contribution to the Scottish Government's Central Purpose
  • concise expression of policy
  • implications for development planning
  • implications for development management

3. This approach seeks to place planning in the wider context of Scottish Government aims and policies and clarify the expectations of the system and the service. It is, therefore, a brief statement of policy direction and does not attempt to provide a comprehensive summary of planning in Scotland, nor to describe the diverse range of objectives to which planning may contribute.

The Purpose of Planning

4. Planning guides the future development and use of land. Planning is about where development should happen, where it should not and how it interacts with its surroundings. This requires promoting and facilitating development, while protecting and enhancing the natural and built environment in which we live, work and spend our leisure time. Careful attention to layout, design and construction should result in places where people want to be.

5. The Scottish Government believes that a properly functioning planning system is essential to achieving its central purpose of increasing sustainable economic growth. The way in which the planning system is structured and operated should be directed towards that purpose and to supporting the Scottish Government's
5 strategic objectives.

6. The Government believes strongly in the value of forward-looking, visionary and ambitious plans that will guide development. They will provide guidance to potential investors in Scotland's future on likely paths to success; provide various interests the opportunity to participate in shaping the future of their nation and their communities; and give public authorities a structure within which decisions can be made with confidence. Plans should seek to lead and guide change. The statutory requirement to keep plans up to date should ensure that they reflect and respond to emerging pressures and issues.

7. Planning has a critical balancing role to play when competing interests emerge in the consideration of future development. It is essential to recognise that planning issues, by their very nature, will often bring differing interests into opposition and disagreement and the resolution of those issues one way or another will inevitably disappoint some parties. Planning cannot be expected to satisfy all interests all of the time. It should, however, enable speedy decision making in ways which are transparent and demonstrably fair.

Core Principles

8. The legislative framework for Planning in Scotland has recently undergone a major overhaul through the Planning etc (Scotland) Act 2006. The secondary legislation required for its full implementation is being introduced at Holyrood from autumn 2008.

The Government believes that the following broad principles should underpin the modernised system:

• There should be a genuinely plan-led system, in which succinct development plans set out ambitious, long-term visions for their area. They will be kept up to date, and provide a practical framework within which the outcome of planning applications can be decided with a degree of certainty and efficiency.
• The primary responsibility for the operation of the planning system and service is with local and national park authorities.
• Confidence in the planning system needs to be reinforced through: the efficient and predictable preparation of plans and handling of applications; transparency in decision-making and reliable enforcement of the law and planning decisions.
• The constraints and requirements that planning imposes should be necessary and proportionate.
• The system should operate to engage all interests as early and as fully as possible to inform decisions and allow issues of contention and controversy to be identified and tackled quickly and smoothly.
• There should be a clear focus on the quality of outcomes, with due attention given to considerations of the sustainable use of land, good design and the protection and enhancement of the built and natural environment.

9. Successful reform of the planning system will only be achieved if all those involved in planning - applicants, planning authorities, agencies and consultees, communities, representative organisations, public bodies, the Government and the general public - commit themselves to engaging as constructively as possible in development planning and development management, so that the planning system can contribute effectively to increasing sustainable economic growth.

DEVELOPMENT PLANS

10. The development plan comprises a local development plan supported by supplementary planning guidance, and in the 4 largest city regions, strategic development plans will additionally address land use issues that cross local authority boundaries and strategic infrastructure.

11. Development plans should guide the future use of land and the appearance of cities, towns and rural areas. They should indicate where development, including regeneration, should happen and where it should not. Development plans must be accessible to the communities they serve; they should be concise and written in plain English.

12. There is a statutory duty on development plans to contribute to sustainable development. The Government will publish the statutory guidance before the new system of development plans is commenced.

Preparation

13. The development plan scheme should indicate the programme for plan preparation. All planning authorities should publish their first schemes by
31 March 2009. The emphasis should be on actions that have to be taken to ensure that an up to date development plan is in place as swiftly as possible.

14. The processes of engagement, information gathering, analysis and assessment should be geared towards the date of submission of the plan to Ministers. These processes must be proportionate and fit for purpose. Contracting out parts of plan preparation, including community engagement, may offer scope for effective management of the process.

Content

15. Development plans should be concerned primarily with land and infrastructure. The efficient use of land and good infrastructure are important for the wellbeing of an area, particularly where they are supported by the commitment to the maintenance and creation of high quality places. Development plans should provide clear guidance on what will or will not be permitted and where. This should be very clear from the proposals map. Only policies that provide a clear indication of how a decision maker will react to a proposal should be included in the plan. Plans should therefore provide opportunity and stability.

16. Development plans should be aspirational and realistic. They should address the spatial implications of economic, social and environmental change, in particular opportunities for development. They should be clear as to the scale of anticipated change and demonstrate the underlying reasons for the preferred location and the likely sequence of development.

17. Investment in infrastructure may be required as a consequence of existing
under provision and/or planned growth. These issues should be addressed in development plans and not left to the development management process to be resolved.

18. The Scottish Government expects development plans to:

• have a sharp focus on land and infrastructure
• concentrate on what will happen, where and why
• make more use of maps and plans to explain and justify the long term settlement strategy
• contain policies and proposals that will achieve predictable outcomes.

Implementation, Monitoring and Review

19. The action programme is a key means of delivering the plan's objectives. It should set out how the plan is to be implemented, in particular what should happen over the following 2 years.

20. A key element will be the programme of supplementary planning guidance. Where this is to form part of the development plan, authorities should ensure the guidance:

• is derived from the plan
• has been the subject of discussion and engagement.

Supplementary planning guidance should not be applied to development proposals until it has been formally agreed by the authority following consideration of comments and representations on the draft.

21. Monitoring should focus on what has changed, for example the extent to which key assumptions remain tenable, whether land allocations have proved viable and investment in infrastructure has been forthcoming. Monitoring should set the direction for the future review of the plan.

22. The review, which should take place at least every 5 years, should focus on what has to change rather than invite the re-opening of settled issues.

DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT

23. Development management is a key part of the planning system and must operate in support of the Government's central purpose. This means providing greater certainty and speed of decision making as a means of creating good quality sustainable places.

24. Development management should operate within a climate of continuous improvement. Processes must be responsive, reliable, transparent and efficient. Decisions should be taken against a framework of up to date and effective development plans and supplementary planning guidance.

25 The planning system operates in the long term public interest. It does not exist to protect the interests of one person or business against the activities of another. However, it is important that stakeholders understand their role in the planning process and how decisions have been arrived at. There should be clear but concise reports of the considerations that have been taken into account in reaching decisions on all planning applications.

26. The Scottish Government's expectation is that schemes of delegation provide maximum scope for officials to determine planning applications, thus ensuring elected members focus on complex or controversial issues.

Determining Planning Applications

27. The Scottish Government strongly encourages pre - application discussions and consultation. This part of the planning process is intended to allow meaningful consultation to take place with communities. Pre - application discussions are vital to ensure that all parties - communities, key agencies, planning authorities and developers have a shared understanding of the prospects for a proposed development, information requirements and the likely timescales for determination. Processing agreements will support the delivery of decisions on Major and National developments to agreed timescales. While the Scottish Government does not intend to introduce financial penalties where the terms of an agreement have not been met, authorities and key agencies should respond positively to requests for such agreements.

28. The Planning Acts require decisions to be made in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. Material considerations should be related to the development and use of land. Where a proposal is in accordance with the development plan, the principle of development should be taken as established and the process of assessment should not be used by the planning authority or key agencies to revisit that.

29. Conditions imposed on the grant of planning permission can enable development proposals to proceed where it would otherwise have been necessary to withhold planning permission. While the power to impose conditions is wide, it must be exercised in a manner which is fair, reasonable and practicable and the conditions imposed must accord with the established tests set out in Circular 4/1998.

30. Planning obligations/agreements can be used to overcome obstacles to the grant of planning permission but they should not be used to obtain a benefit which is unrelated to the nature or scale of the proposed development. Planning authorities should use the development plan and supplementary planning guidance to set out their approach to planning agreements/obligations and should not seek to introduce agreements late in the development management process. Planning agreements should only be used where the obligation cannot be secured by condition or by other means.

Enforcement

31. Effective enforcement is important as a means of sustaining public confidence in the planning system. The 2006 Planning Act contains a range of additional powers on enforcement and planning authorities should use the full range of powers available to them to ensure that enforcement action is appropriate, speedy and effective.

Role of the Scottish Government

32. Scottish Ministers have a general power to intervene in planning applications.
A revised Circular and accompanying notification direction, will be published in early 2009. They will signal a more proportionate involvement in planning cases by the Scottish Government.

Appeals and Local Reviews

33. The 2006 Act introduces important changes to the appeal process aimed at improving efficiency. Central to this is frontloading the planning process and a proportionate approach which ensures that the person taking the decision follows an examination process that is appropriate to the case. All parties should be clear that new material should not be introduced late in the process except in exceptional circumstances.

Assessment

34. The Government does not intend, at present, to commence the provisions in the 2006 Act for planning assessment but will work with authorities to promote a framework of self assessment which reflects the new relationship with local government, the new approach to audit and inspection and a culture of continuous improvement that is generated from within the planning service. The Planning Divisions of the Scottish Government and the Directorate for Planning and Environmental Appeals will also produce annual reports on performance and priorities for improvement.