Renesha Hodgson, Trainee Solicitor, shares her top 5 reflections from her seat in Planning
1. It all starts with planning
Planning is a very wide-ranging area of law which covers more areas than just planning permissions. From listed buildings to compulsory purchase, tree regulations to the new high street rental auction processes, the area is very diverse. Planning can arise in all manner of transactions, whether it be as part of a corporate deal or as part of matrimonial proceedings.
As a trainee I have been involved in assisting with traditional planning & highway agreements and due diligence, but have also learnt about how planning more generally plays a key role in the development. Without the correct planning permission, a site’s value can be impacted and without a planning permission having been correctly implemented, planning permission can lapse. These are key commercial considerations.
I have been particularly interested to learn that certain planning liabilities run with the land meaning a landowner can be liable for unpaid monies or the cost of rectification for unlawful works undertaken by previous owners (in the case of listed buildings). This means it very important to undertake thorough due diligence. Just because a planning permission or agreement is old does not mean it is irrelevant!
2. Planning is a very political, dynamic and ever-changing area of law
I was very lucky to start my planning seat not long after the arrival of the new Labour Government. This allowed me to experience how dynamic and political planning is and therefore how important it is to have an understanding of the political and commercial background, as it shapes the direction of planning law and policy.
Whilst the backbone of planning law legislation (The Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and the earlier statutes) has been in place for decades, planning policies, guidance, and even societal expectations and pressures are always changing. The evolving nature of planning law means it is imperative to keep up to date.
3. Have an opinion
Planning is very often about judgement and therefore requires you to have an opinion. There is a requirement to think outside the box and come up with creative solutions. The correct legal answer may not be the best practical answer depending on the client’s timeframes and objectives. This emphasises the importance of collaborative team working to enable everyone’s experiences to be drawn upon.
4. Sustainability is increasingly at the heart of planning
Both environmental and social improvement are at the centre of planning decision making. In my first few weeks in the department, I had come across so many initiatives and schemes designed to ensure social and environmental responsibility. From biodiversity and wind farms to local labour and apprenticeship provisions, there are many areas that developers must consider, driven by increasingly stringent planning policy requirements.
For example, the new BNG legislation requires that most new planning applications (from April 2024 onwards) enhance the natural habitats on site by at least 10%.
Researching this area really opened my eyes to how technical and specialist it is and therefore how important it is for clients to have the right professional consultants on board when submitting a planning application.
5. The acronyms!
If there is one final piece of advice I can give anyone before venturing into the world of planning it is to watch out for the acronyms! There are plenty of key terms in planning with very similar names: a ‘Special Area of Conservation’ is different to a ‘Conservation Area’ which is also separate from a ‘Special Protection Area’. Learning the acronyms is key.
My favourite acronym is NIMBY – Not in My Backyard – which is a term that refers to locals who object to development in their local area. A more positive relation to NIMBYs, are YIMBYs -Yes in My Backyard – who support and strongly encourage development to improve the local area.
