Monthly Archives: March 2016

The second edition of the Land Use Strategy for Scotland has been published and covers the period from 2016-2021, with measures for community involvement and connection with land use issues discussed.  The Scottish Government writes: Our land is our biggest … Continue reading →

Changes have been introduced for permitted development (PD) relating to mobile telecommunications infrastructure; a new rule applies allowing new masts of up to 20 metres in protected areas in England. Brandon Lewis (Minister of State for Housing and Planning) writes: … Continue reading →

Expressions of interest are being invited by DCLG from Local Authorities (LAs) that want to develop new garden city settlements as a new prospectus is launched with a closing date of 31 July for villages relating to up to 10,000 … Continue reading →

The 30 year anniversary of the designation of four castles which form the Gwynedd World Heritage Site (WHS) is being celebrated by Cadw through organising 30 special and innovative events which tie in with Wales’ Year of Adventure 2016.  Cadw … Continue reading →

21 projects have received allocations from the £7.5 million Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) Flexible and Structured Fund which is designed to address skills gaps, and a third round of funding will be open for applications from 19 April.  CITB … Continue reading →

A major competition which was launched by English Heritage to design a new landmark bridge for the sensitive landscape access to Tintagel Castle has been won by Ney & Partners Civil Engineers and William Matthews Associates.  English Heritage writes: A … Continue reading →

A DoENI report shows how the £2.5million Northern Ireland (NI) Coastal Communities Fund has benefitted coastal communities, including building renovation work, and the Environment Minister has urged more communities to consider applying when the next phase of applications opens in … Continue reading →

A review of the compulsory purchase order (CPO) system in England and Wales has been launched by DCLG with a closing date of 15 May, aiming to make CPO’s ‘clearer, fairer and faster’ through new methods of assessing market value, … Continue reading →

The Welsh Government (WG) has announced that any planning application connected to the gasification of coal must be now be referred to Welsh Ministers where local planning authorities are minded to approve them.  The Welsh Government writes: The Minister has … Continue reading →

New opportunities for heritage may arise from the recently published Culture White Paper, as a new church buildings task force will be established to help share best practice in church care and repair; heritage action zones are to be launched … Continue reading →

The DoENI (Department of the Environment in Northern Ireland) is consulting on proposals to remove exemption from listed building controls on active places of worship because the ‘parallel systems of control for named denominations’ used elsewhere to manage such ‘Ecclesiastical … Continue reading →

The House of Lords has been debating amendments to the Housing and Planning Bill, with the latest debate on 22 and 23 March assessing matters including amendments to planning permission in principle (22 March) and basement construction issues (23 March) … Continue reading →

The Welsh Government (WG) has allocated a further £12.8 million from the Vibrant and Viable Places programme, bringing the total value of the regeneration scheme to date to £118 million. The Welsh Government writes: Twelve regeneration projects are set to … Continue reading →

DCLG has released a consultation from the work of the Local Plans Expert Group considering changes to speed up the production of Local Plans, with a deadline for responses of 27 April.  DCLG writes: Proposals to speed up and simplify … Continue reading →

The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) has issued a report that rebukes the argument that brownfield land is more difficult to develop than greenfield, claiming that brownfield sites actually complete more quickly, urging the government to prioritise brownfield developments … Continue reading →

The new Growth Deal applications are now open and details of how the process has benefited projects to date revealed; this includes investment in historic buildings (HB’s), with Saltaire WHS receiving funding for refurbishment of a listed college building. DCLG … Continue reading →

An appeal decision for the erection of two 500WW wind turbines in Staffordshire has been dismissed, with the Secretary of State refusing planning permission and citing the introduction of ‘alien industrial features’ as being unacceptable in terms of landscape impact. … Continue reading →

The Tourism Investment Support Scheme (TISS) in Wales now has £2m available (with a closing date of 29 April for this round of the Regional Tourism Engagement Fund); which may present opportunities for heritage projects under the ‘sense of place’ … Continue reading →