The Northwest Design Review has now been operating for three years and has looked at the full range of development proposals from masterplans to detailed designs for individual buildings and spaces intended to form part of a planning application.  At times we have been called in to look at strategic documents that support a more coherent approach to development, intended to avoid the kind of piecemeal interventions that cause longterm physical, economic and social barriers for communities and local economies.

Places Matter! has introduced a new service to comment specifically on Local Development Frameworks (LDFs) in the Northwest.  The planners amongst you will feel at home with these documents that were introduced as part of the Planning and Compulsory Act in 2004 but for those of you involved in other aspects of development the term may be less familiar.  The Local Development Framework is a non-statutory term used to describe a folder of documents, which includes all the local planning authority's local development documents. An LDF comprises:

• Development Plan Documents (which form part of the statutory development plan and include the Core Strategy and Spatial Options)
• Supplementary Planning Documents

The local development framework will also include:

• the Statement of Community Involvement
• the Local Development Scheme
• the Annual Monitoring Report
• any Local Development Orders or Simplified Planning Zones that may have been added

Crucial in terms of how our towns, cities and neighbourhoods will function in the future it is important to get these policies right from the outset.  The team at Places Matter! are able to draw upon the skills and expertise of our independent professionals that sit on the Northwest Design Review Panel to provide appropriate, informed and constructive feedback on these documents, intended to provide a framework for local authority and clarity for those involved in development.

For further information on Local Development Framework Design Reviews at Places Matter! please contact Charlotte Myhrum, Places Matter! Design Review Manager on charlotte.myhrum@placesmatter.co.uk / 0151 703 0135 and for more information on LDFs generally please visit the Planning Portal on www.planningportal.gov.uk.