The Norfolk Chamber Planning and Development Group met with planning officers from Norfolk’s local authorities last night to debate how the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) could be used to unlock growth in the county.
The debate gave the local authorities the opportunity to outline how they intended to implement the NPPF in their areas, together with their concerns to an audience of surveyors, developers, engineers, lawyers and architects involved in the planning and development industry. Members of the Chamber Planning and Development Group highlighted areas of concern with aspects of the NPPF that they felt needed addressing from a planning industry perspective.
The local authorities have broadly welcomed the NPPF, as it was much less prescriptive than previous guidance and allows for greater accessibility and scope for regeneration and development.
The concerns surrounding aspects of the NPPF for both the development industry and the local authorities were remarkably similar, although they were being approached from different angles, therefore common ground could be sought and a way forward developed. It was agreed that Norfolk needed to be proactive to ensure the best possible environment for development was created within the guidelines. It was also agreed that the Norfolk local authority planners and the business community working together could show real leadership.
Jonathan Cage, Chair of the Norfolk Chamber Planning Group, said “Both the planning industry and the local authority planners agree that the solutions needed to be based on the private and public sectors working together to develop sustainable growth that would incorporate adaptability for social and economic reasons.”
