Following new research into delays in ‘Heritage-Related Planning Determinations in England’ from Historic England, IHBC President Mike Brown has highlighted the core issues of resources and capacity.
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… a snap-shot of the performance of a representative sample of Local Planning Authorities across England…
Following the publication of the research, ‘Heritage-Related Planning Determinations, June 2023’, Mike Brown, President of the IHBC and its representative on the Historic Environment Protection Reform Group, said: ‘The IHBC is pleased to see the publication of this valuable report that evidences the long-held belief of many owners and their agents in England that delays in getting consent from Local Planning Authorities for works to listed buildings is getting much, much worse.’
‘While this further detailed research is welcome, it should not blind us to the self-evident fact – any system starved of the necessary resources is inherently inefficient and will ultimately fail’.
Background
‘The Historic Environment Protection Reform Group with Historic England has published a report into its preliminary findings into the causes of delays in ‘Heritage-Related Planning Determinations in England’. This is a snap-shot of the performance of a representative sample of Local Planning Authorities across England, and is in response to the anecdotal evidence of owners organisations and owner’s agents that delays in the heritage planning system are getting worse. It also looks into the quality and effectiveness of Heritage Statements submitted to support a sample of applications.’
‘The HEPRG has worked with Historic England for many years to look for efficiencies in the consent system that might ease the problem and, while these have had some impact, any improvements generated are being flattened beneath the burden of the ‘elephant in the room’ – the evident lack of capacity and heritage expertise within many Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) to deal with the volume and complexity of applications.’
‘The report also notes that many submitted Heritage Statements are failing to do their primary job of describing the special interest of the listed building in question. Without this evidence, impact assessments at both design stage and later in determining applications, becomes much more difficult – often leading to controversy and further delays. The IHBC and the HEPRG will continue to work towards helping owners and their agents to better understand and discharge their roles in this regard.’
HEPRG and Historic England, having considered the report’s findings, have concluded that further research and analysis is required to develop a fuller picture of the causes of these lengthening delays (and I have no doubt similar concerns are being expressed elsewhere in the UK)’.
See the report, by IHBC HESPR member Purcell, ‘Heritage-Related Planning Determinations, June 2023’
