Governments appetite for seeking out red tape seems to be unlimited. Business Secretary Sajid Javid has launched a review of the way local authorities regulate businesses. This exercise will take into account “burdens imposed by […]
Creating New Communities – good practice guides
The Town and Country Planning Association have launched a set of practical guides to help local authorities and developers involves in creating new communities. John Jennings who is working on master-plans for two new housing […]
Are utility companies restricting housing growth?
A new Housing & Finance Institute report has highlighted that housing growth is being held back by sluggish performance by utility companies. Perhaps there is then some truth in our long standing stance that housing […]
Recent changes to permitted development rights
The Department for Communities and Local Government has laid before Parliament the regulations which make office to residential conversions a permanent feature of permitted development (PD) rights from 6 April. The rights were first introduced […]
A budget for new garden cities?
Wednesday’s Budget announcements confirmed the government’s appetite for a new wave of garden settlements with a promise of legislation to make it easier for local authorities to work together to create new garden towns and […]
Planning permission secured for charity’s solar farm
Durham county council have granted permission for our clients proposed 5MW Solar farm in Comsett. Ethical partnership were the agents for the application and prepared the scheme designs together with the heritage and landscape impact assesments […]
Lords issue critical report on government housing policies
Peers have added their voice to those criticising current government policies as unlikely to meet demand for either the quantity or quality of new homes needed. The Lords Select Committee on National Policy for the […]
Restoration of a Georgian House
Northumberland Square is part of the fine North Shields conservation area, we’re proud to be contributing to its preservation with the sensitive restoration on one of the Georgian terrace houses – we’re proposing the sensitive reconstruction of […]
From railway sidings to housing
The Locomotive works at Horwich have a long and proud history, closing in 1983 they have remained largely vacant and become increasingly derelict in the intervening years – we’ve been retained by the landowners to […]
Contracts for Difference – Northern Ireland
DECC have called for evidence on the extension of the CfD mechanism into Northern Ireland – it poses some interesting issues which we discuss below. we’ve clients in ther reneable sector in Northern Ireland so […]
New community owned solar farm
We have just submitted a planning application on behalf of ‘Sustainable Charlbury’ for planning permission for a photovoltaic installation (solar farm) on agricultural land south of Charlbury in Oxfordshire. it will be both community-run and […]
Regenerating Elswick
The planning application for 415 new homes has been submitted – we’ll be updating with news regularly from now on until we get planning permission, hopefully in August.