The State of Scotland’s Planning System

It is now over two years since National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) was adopted. We have been looking out for indications of how NPF4 is being interpreted, and the effectiveness of its policies. In an article written for the APRS Newsletter, Nikki Sinclair assesses the state of Scotland’s planning system.

The interpretation of NPF4 on the ground has been variable. For some of the policies of, it is the outcomes of planning appeals and legal challenges which have clarified interpretation (eg policy 16f for housing on un-allocated sites). However in other policy areas interpretation seems variable, and this is not helped by continuing gaps in supporting guidance (eg for biodiversity). In addition, the legacy of older Local Development Plan (LDP) allocations, section 42 applications (often known as “variations”) or new government initiatives such as Green Freeports complicate efforts to understand how NPF4 has influenced decision-making.

Several pieces of guidance have been published recently that implement parts of the 2019 Planning Act and which could help with aspects of implementation of NPF4. In December 2024 the Scottish Government published guidance on ‘effective community engagement on local development planning’ which sets out the expectations on local authorities and how they should engage people in the process of developing new LDPs.  We hope that people are taking the opportunities to engage with the new LDPs across the country – we know some APRS supporters are involved in the production of Local Place Plans, whilst others have responded to surveys, commented on topic papers, or responded to ‘calls for ideas’ as part of the evidence gathering stage of the LDP process. Nine Local Authorities (LAs) have so far submitted evidence to the Gatecheck process (Gatecheck progress can be viewed on the DPEA website).

This year guidance has been published on Housing Land Audits (HLAs) and Masterplan Consent Areas.  HLAs are important for the implementation of policy 16 Quality Homes and the monitoring of housing land pipelines and delivery of new housing. The guidance should encourage a more standardised approach to producing HLAs, which in the past varied considerably from LA to LA. 

Guidance on Masterplan Consent Areas (MCAs) was published in January. MCAs are a new consenting mechanism where the planning authority proactively sets out, and grants consent, in an MCA ‘scheme’ for development it wishes to be delivered. The main differences between the application route to planning permission and MCAs are that an MCA is led by the planning authority and can offer four types of consent (planning permission, roads construction consent, listed building consent and conservation area consent), which can be in place for up to 10 years.

MCAs do not have to be proposed in an LDP, though it is likely some will be considered during the process of developing a new LDP.  However, LAs are required to consider introducing MCAs every 5 years anyway, so potentially we will begin to see them in operation relatively soon.

Biodiversity and planning has been the focus of APRS and Planning Democracy’s joint webinar series over the winter. Unfortunately, the supporting guidance on biodiversity for relevant NPF4 policies is still in draft form. This includes guidance aimed at both local and major developments. The design of a biodiversity metric for Scotland is also still being worked on.  We did hear from Dr Stuart Bence (in the Webinar on 5 February “Planning conditions and enforcement”), that NatureScot is currently finalising an illustrated version of its guidance ‘Developing with Nature’ aimed mainly at local developments and this will be available soon. The new version will have more emphasis on engaging with communities than the previous one. 

The Scottish Government’s ‘Biodiversity: draft planning guidance’ was published in late 2023 and is still described as a living document. It gives guidance on NPF4 Policy 3b which deals with national, major or EIA developments and states that there are 8 core principles for designing development so that nature and nature recovery are an integral part of any proposal. The principles seem reasonable, but feedback on recent cases suggests the degree to which they are being adhered to is very variable. The principles are:

• Apply the mitigation hierarchy;
• Consider biodiversity from the outset;
• Provide synergies and connectivity for nature;
• Integrate nature to deliver multiple benefits;
• Prioritise on-site enhancement before off-site delivery;
• Take a place-based and inclusive approach;
• Ensure long term enhancement is secured; and
• Additionality.

On Green Belt policy, in particular, we continue to follow various cases in different local authority areas which highlight aspects of how NPF4 policy 8 is being interpreted. Mostly these are proposals that members of the public have contacted us about.  In recent weeks we have noted appeals being dismissed for a battery storage development and a tourism accommodation development, with both citing the Green Belt locations as part of the decision.  

There has been a notable change in decisions regarding large housing developments on unallocated sites since NPF4 was introduced. In October 2024 three planning permission cases for housing, which APRS has taken a close interest in over a long period of time, were dismissed at appeal by DPEA Reporters. The appeals were dismissed and planning permission was refused in each case, in large part because the sites were not allocated in the LDP. This has further clarified how part of NPF4 policy 16 was to be interpreted (following on from the Mossend decision at the Court of Session).

Very unusually APRS had submitted objections and then representations on each of the cases as they potentially illustrated the impact of a change in policy from that in the old Scottish Planning Policy to that in NPF4, for which we had long advocated. We now have case studies of the Ferniehill (City of Edinburgh), Dechmont (West Lothian) and Blairforkie (Stirling) decisions on our website  www.aprs.scot/case-studys.