10 ways councils are making budgets go further
Discover 10 ways councils are stretching budgets further, from digital transformation and energy efficiency to community partnerships and data-driven decision-making.
Ministers seek 'holding direction' powers
14/10/2025 The Government is seeking to gain more powers to prevent councils refusing planning permission. |
Decision on Chinese embassy plans to be delayed
13/10/2025 The UK Government is reportedly set to postpone its final decision on the Chinese Government’s proposed new embassy near the Tower of London. |
Council greenlights John Lewis rental home project
10/10/2025 John Lewis’ plans to deliver 170 new homes in Reading have been unanimously supported by the council. |
New Towns report: 'stars align' for mayors
09/10/2025 Mayors are set to take more prominent roles in planning matters, a think-tank has said. |
Planning delays and costs hit small home builders
08/10/2025 SME home builders are facing mounting barriers on small sites, with planning delays, rising costs, and new levies threatening their viability, report warns. |
Councils face 10 house building hurdles, report says
06/10/2025 Rising costs, skills shortages, and complex regulation are among the key challenges faced by local authorities when it comes to delivering new houses. |
Four in five major grey belt housing appeals allowed
02/10/2025 Four in five major residential planning appeals on grey belt land have been approved since the Government’s policy came into force in 2024, analysis finds. |
Oxfordshire councils told to scrap joint housing plan
02/10/2025 Two Oxfordshire councils have been told to withdraw their joint local plan due to concerns there was not enough cooperation with Oxford City Council. |
Town Centre Regeneration: Funding, Investment, and Strategy
29/09/2025 Emma Lloyd, partner in the property team at Anthony Collins, explores how local authorities can turn town centres into thriving hubs once again. |
Gwynedd to appeal court block on second homes clampdown
29/09/2025 Gwynedd Council is preparing to launch an appeal after losing a legal challenge to its clampdown on second homes. |
Labour conference: Reed reveals 12 new town sites
29/09/2025 Housing secretary Steve Reed has revealed the location of 12 new towns as part of his pledge to ‘build, baby, build'. |
Planning recruitment at risk as apprenticeship funding cuts bite
25/09/2025 Thirty-three organisations across planning, housing, nature, and energy are urging the Government to provide £7m to recruit and train apprentice planners. |
Council decides gorilla statue must go
10/09/2025 Wakefield Council has instructed a resident to take down a 4ft gorilla statue outside her property. |
Epping Forest suffers legal blow
03/09/2025 Epping Forest DC has remained defiant in its opposition to use of The Bell Hotel for asylum accommodation despite a further legal setback. |
Councils call for restrictions on office-to-home conversions
01/09/2025 Local authority leaders are calling on the Government to limit office-to-residential conversions, warning they are undermining affordable housing delivery. |
Rayner faces legal challenge over AI data centre on green belt
21/08/2025 Legal action has been launched challenging Angela Rayner’s decision to approve a major data centre on green belt land. |
A Local Ruling with National Consequences
20/08/2025 The Epping Forest asylum hotel case exposes a planning problem far bigger than Essex, says Faraz Baber, Chief Operating Officer at Lanpro. |
Devolution Revolution: Solving the Data Deficit
19/08/2025 Jonathan Marwood, Partner at Hartnell Taylor Cook, explains why robust real estate data is essential for devolution, housing delivery, and regeneration. |
Housing plan prompts backlash from Sunderland A.F.C
13/08/2025 Sunderland A.F.C has announced plans to object to Sunderland City Council’s housing development proposals. |
Residents want more say in new town development plans, survey reveals
13/08/2025 A survey has revealed that 73% of people don’t feel confident that the Government’s new towns scheme will fulfil future ‘community needs’. |
Planning reform proposals could deliver thousands of new homes
04/08/2025 New think tank report urges rapid local planning changes to boost housing supply and support council-led development |
Council planning blunder stalls Jamie Oliver bakery
01/08/2025 The plans of the celebrity chef Jamie Oliver to turn a former stable block at his historic home into a bakery have been delayed after a council blunder. |
Council hit with concerns about AI data centre proposals
29/07/2025 A council has received objections to development plans for an AI data centre due to concerns about water supply. |
Private allotment site receives council approval
24/07/2025 North Somerset Council has provided planning permission for a private allotment site in Abbots Leigh. |
Majority of rural councils have no social housing targets
16/07/2025 Only one in five rural local authorities have planning targets for building new social homes despite a shortage of new houses in rural areas. |
Skyscraper proposals spark concern amongst residents
15/07/2025 Salford City Council is set to discuss proposals for the third tallest skyscraper in the UK. |
Brum councillors reject plan to demolish Bull Ring
07/07/2025 Councillors on Birmingham City Council's planning committee have rejected proposals to demolish the historic Bull Ring Indoor Market. |
Council warned against gas well project proposals
07/07/2025 Environmental group Friends of the Earth (FoE) has urged North Yorkshire Council to oppose a gas well planning application. |
EXCLUSIVE: Government turns to councils for extra building inspector capacity
30/06/2025 The Government has turned to councils for extra building inspector capacity as high-rise housing projects continue to be dogged by regulatory hold-ups. |
Creating a lasting legacy through a RIBA Design Competition
24/06/2025 Kingston Uni needed to meet educational needs and make students feel welcome when designing their Town House building, so they turned to RIBA. |
Chinese embassy plans supported by Planning Inspectorate
23/06/2025 Plans for a new Chinese embassy development at the Royal Mint Court have been backed by the Planning Inspectorate. |
Housing target threatened by planning officer shortage, says UNISON
16/06/2025 The Government’s efforts to boost affordable housing could be derailed if the shortage of planning officers in England is not addressed, UNISON warns. |
Mapping successful 15-minute cities
11/06/2025 Is GIS the difference between success and failure for 15-minute neighbourhoods? Alex Zirpolo, principal GIS consultant at Lanpro, argues it is. |
Call for strengthening oversight of developer contributions system
06/06/2025 Weaknesses in developer contributions system intended to fund affordable housing are undermining the councils' ability to negotiate with developers, NAO says. |
Housebuilders call for ‘meaningful action’ on planning staff crisis
05/06/2025 The association representing housebuilders in England and Wales has called on the Government to tackle the staffing shortage in local planning authorities. |
Government makes EV chargepoints more accessible to drivers
30/05/2025 Drivers could save thousands each year following new electric vehicle (EV) chargepoint regulations. |
John Lewis wins approval for plan to build 430 homes
28/05/2025 The John Lewis Partnership’s largest build-to-rent project has been given the go ahead in West London despite objections from the local council. |
Government proposes easing environmental protections to boost housing
28/05/2025 The Government has announced a raft of reforms aimed at easing planning regulations and environmental protections to support smaller housebuilders in England. |
New housebuilding rules to offset ‘years of inaction’
23/05/2025 Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner tells housebuilders to ‘get on and build’ as the Government introduces delivery timeframes for developers. |
Ministers accused of 'centralising zeal'
20/05/2025 Ministers have been accused of ‘taking away decision-making powers from local people' in a new amendment to its Planning and Infrastructure Bill. |
Judge rules in favour of campaigner in Battle for Brockwell
16/05/2025 A judge has ruled in favour of a campaigner who took legal action against Lambeth Council to stop it allowing the use of a local park for festivals. |
Council’s anti-slavery policy used to fight solar farm
12/05/2025 Locals opposed to a solar panel project on the Hampshire-Berkshire border are attempting to stop it by arguing it could breach anti-slavery commitments. |
Call for caution over land value capture reform
24/04/2025 Experts have urged against wholesale reform of developer contributions, despite the flaws within the current system. |
Horsham challenges local plan decision
23/04/2025 Horsham District Council has complained to the planning inspectorate after its local plan was rejected. |
Councils click into the future of planning
22/04/2025 In town halls across the country, planning officers are racing to update their Local Plans — but this time, the process looks very different. |
Council spends £220k demolishing ‘man cave’
22/04/2025 Forest of Dean District Council was forced to spend £220,000 demolishing an illegally built leisure complex belonging to a millionaire. |
Council plans major repairs to Victorian-era bridge
14/04/2025 Leicester City Council has submitted a planning application for major repairs to the Victorian-era Rialto Bridge. |
Minister blocks Oldham exit from development plan
10/04/2025 Oldham MBC's attempt to exit an agreement that could see the development of 11,500 new homes has been stymied by the Government. |
Luton Airport expansion gets the green light
04/04/2025 The Government has signed off on the expansion of Luton Airport despite concerns about the environmental impact and a predicted increase in noise pollution. |
Local planning authorities working to out-of-date plans
01/04/2025 Two-thirds of local planning authorities (LPAs) outside of London are working to out-of-date research plans, new analysis has revealed. |
Council warns against ‘ploughing ahead’ with Stansted expansion
11/03/2025 Hertfordshire County Council has warned that plans to expand Stansted airport would lead to an increase in noise and air pollution for local residents. |
CCN: Planning legislation would ‘dilute’ local oversight
11/03/2025 Legislation aimed at speeding up planning decisions would ‘dilute’ the role of councillors on planning committees, warns the County Council Network (CCN). |
Council green lights multi-billion-pound data centre
06/03/2025 Plans for a multi-billion-pound data centre are a step closer to being realised after the local authority granted the proposals planning permission. |
Close planning loophole to save pubs, campaigners say
03/03/2025 Campaigners have written to Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner urging her to back calls for a change in the planning laws to protect pubs. |
Planning breaches uncovered at £6m mansion
03/03/2025 North Norfolk DC has launched an investigation after it was alleged the owners of a £6m house had built a pool and tennis court without planning permission. |
Local plans ‘overhaul’ announced
28/02/2025 The Government has announced an ‘overhaul’ of the local plan process in a bid to speed up development. |
Is enough being done to meet the 1.5m housing target?
28/02/2025 Jonathan Pearson, director of Residentially, asks if the Government is doing enough to meet its 1.5 million new homes target. |
Council to approve statue of rock legend Lemmy
25/02/2025 Stoke-on-Trent City Council's cabinet is set to sign off today on a statue of rock legend Motorhead frontman Lemmy. |
Developers leave 1.4 million homes unbuilt
14/02/2025 Councils have given planning permission for more than 1.4 million homes since 2007 that have not been built, research has found. |
Council green lights Spurs park plans
13/02/2025 Enfield councillors have approved an application from Tottenham Hotspur for a new women’s training facility in a public park. |
Data reveals council areas with most fast food outlets
12/02/2025 The London borough of Camden has more fast food outlets per resident than any other local authority area in England, according to new analysis. |
LGA to provide salary grants for planners
12/02/2025 The Local Government Association is offering councils financial support to help boost their planning capacity through the Pathways to Planning initiative. |
Housing plan on MoD site scrapped due to acid grasslands
07/02/2025 Colchester City Council is set to remove a former Ministry of Defence firing range from its development plans due to the site's ‘environmental value.’ |
McDonald's defeats council efforts to stop branches opening
06/02/2025 McDonald’s has defeated councils’ attempts to stop it opening new branches by claiming the fast-food outlets promote healthier lifestyles, an investigation has revealed. |
Biodiversity Net Gain ‘failing to deliver’
06/02/2025 A lack of ambition on Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) has left the scheme failing to deliver, according to new research. |
Council green lights UK’s biggest battery site
30/01/2025 City of Doncaster Council has granted planning permission for what is billed to be the UK’s biggest battery site. |
Mayor warns of creating 'behemoths'
22/01/2025 A mayor has warned of creating local government ‘behemoths' overburdened with responsibilities. |
Tackling the ecological skills gap
21/01/2025 Catherine Spitzer, chief executive of Environment Bank, explains how private investment can help councils that are struggling to attract skilled ecologists. |
Cabinet ministers support plans for new Chinese embassy
17/01/2025 The Government has backed the Chinese Government's plans for a major new embassy complex at Royal Mint Court near the City of London. |
Former minister Maclean among 38 new peers
23/12/2024 Former Conservative housing and planning minister Rachel Maclean is among 38 new peers who will enter the House of Lords. |
Government changes rules to spot slow planners
17/12/2024 The speed with which councils decide planning applications will be assessed over a shorter time period by the Government. |
Plans for Europe’s joint-tallest building approved
16/12/2024 London's skyline is set to be transformed with the erection of a 74-storey tower, which is the same height as the Shard, Western Europe’s tallest building. |
EV chargepoints ‘on track’ for 2030 goal but challenges remain
13/12/2024 The UK is on track to reach 300,000 public electric vehicle (EV) chargepoints by 2030, the national public spending watchdog has found. |
Mandatory housebuilding targets confirmed
12/12/2024 English councils must deliver on an ‘ambitious’ combined target of 370,000 new homes a year, the Government has confirmed. |
Rayner: NIMBYs will no longer have upper hand
09/12/2024 Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner has announced plans to end the influence of NIMBYs on housebuilding, vowing they will ‘no longer have the upper hand'. |
M&S triumphant after three-year demolition bid
06/12/2024 Oxford Street’s M&S store can be demolished, the Government has ruled, more than three years after the retailer submitted plans to rebuild the flagship shop. |
Rayner may intervene over plans for tower block near synagogue
26/11/2024 The Government could step in amid a dispute over plans to build a 43-storey office block near Britain’s oldest synagogue in London. |
Councils get £47m for new homes stalled by nutrient neutrality rules
07/11/2024 Seven areas in England will benefit from a share of £45m to ‘unblock’ new housing developments that have been stalled by rules on nutrient neutrality. |
Planning policy fails to cut car reliance
06/11/2024 A national planning objective to promote sustainable transport has failed to reduce car reliance in new housing developments, research has revealed. |
Oil firm continues production despite Supreme Court ruling
28/10/2024 Surrey County Council is considering enforcement action against an oil company that is operating two wells in the county, despite a Supreme Court ruling. |
Councils 'sitting on' £8bn of s106 and CIL money
21/10/2024 Councils in England and Wales have failed to spend over £8bn of section 106 and Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) money, according to a new report. |
Planning departments hit hardest by staff shortages
14/10/2024 Planning departments are facing the worst workforce shortages, with eight out of 10 experiencing recruitment and retention issues, new research has revealed. |
Sky to appeal film studio planning refusal
14/10/2024 Broadcaster Sky is planning to appeal Hertsmere Borough Council's decision to refuse planning permission for an expansion of Sky Studios Elstree. |
Council leaders call for Government approval of hospital plans
10/10/2024 Council leaders have called for Government approval of plans for a new hospital ahead of the Autumn Budget. |
Permission given for 7,000 homes in flood zones
09/10/2024 Planning permission has been granted to build more than 7,000 homes in the areas at the highest risk of flooding in England, a new report has revealed. |
Rayner to decide on Hollywood-backed studio plan
09/10/2024 Buckinghamshire Council’s decision to reject plans for a multi-million-pound film studio is set to be reviewed by the Government. |
Housing targets ‘weaken local decision making’, LGA warns
03/10/2024 The Local Government Association (LGA) has raised concerns that mandatory housebuilding targets for councils centralise policy and weaken local decision making. |
Council ‘alarmed’ by local plan rejection
02/10/2024 The leader of Oxford City Council has said she is ‘alarmed’ after planning inspectors recommended the council withdraw its draft local plan. |
Building costs may exceed house prices in 60 council areas
01/10/2024 The cost of building a home may be higher than house prices in up to 60 UK local authority areas, according to new research. |
Councils warn over ‘excessive’ housing targets
27/09/2024 Councils in county and rural areas have raised fears that ‘excessive’ new housing targets could leave them at the mercy of speculative development. |
A new outlook for strategic planning
26/09/2024 Mike Best at Turley looks at the future of strategic planning under a Labour Government. |
Localis: Counterproductive ‘tax landscape’ threatens pubs
23/09/2024 A think tank has warned that a ‘counterproductive regulatory and tax landscape’ threatens the future of local pubs. |
Council overruled as new incinerator gets go-ahead
18/09/2024 Dorset Council has accused the Government of ignoring residents’ views by approving a new waste incinerator on the Jurassic coastline. |
'Larger projects slowing down housebuilding rate'
18/09/2024 The speed of approving large developments is slowing down the rate of housebuilding in the UK rather than refusals, research from Warwick University has found. |
Ministers back Khan to pedestrianise Oxford Street
17/09/2024 The mayor of London has unveiled government-backed plans to pedestrianise the capital's most famous shopping street. |
High Court blocks Cumbria coal mine plan
16/09/2024 The High Court has quashed the planning permission granted for the UK’s first new deep coal mine in 30 years. |
Affordable housing at risk in cash-strapped council areas
10/09/2024 Half of the councils most impacted by austerity have not built any affordable homes using contributions from private developers since 2010, a think-tank has found. |
Man United joins regeneration drive
10/09/2024 Manchester United has joined forces with Trafford Council and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority to maximise regeneration opportunities. |
Devolution key to net zero transition, think-tank says
10/09/2024 Devolving powers to cities will be critical to the Government achieving its net zero goals, a think-tank has argued. |
New homes should be for Welsh speakers, council says
06/09/2024 A community council in Wales has objected to plans for a new affordable housing development amid fears of a decline in non-Welsh speakers. |
