local character. Applicants are also required to use their findings from context and character appraisals, in line with policy ENV 13a, to inform the design of the development and delivery design quality.
- Supporting documents such as Building for a Healthy Life, Sport England’s ‘Active Design’ guidance, and Natural England’s Green Infrastructure Planning and Design Guide offer practical tools to help developers address key issues like connectivity, accessibility, green infrastructure, and active lifestyles. These should be used to inform design thinking from the outset.
- Design quality is not just about aesthetics, it encompasses how places function, how they support our communities and environment, and how they can be successfully delivered over time. The council encourages early and meaningful engagement with communities, members and design review panels to help shape proposals that are contextually responsive and locally supported.
- A Design and Access Statement provides the narrative for the design approach and rationale for a proposal. It should explain the design principles that have informed the development, how the proposal responds to its context and local character, how relevant national and local planning policies have been addressed, and how consultation feedback has influenced the final design. Design and Access Statements should demonstrate that the proposal represents a suitable and high-quality response to the site and its setting, taking account of baseline information.
- A masterplan sets the overall vision and implementation strategy for a development. It focuses on site-specific proposals, including the scale and layout of development, the mix and disposition of uses, movement hierarchies, access arrangements, and the integration of green and blue infrastructure. Depending on the level of detail, a masterplan may illustrate the intended arrangement of buildings, streets and public spaces, and how the site relates to its surroundings.
- A design code may be used to provide more detailed and measurable design requirements for a site or area. Design codes translate broad planning policies and masterplan principles into specific parameters for the physical development of a place. They typically include both written and graphic components and should build upon the masterplan to ensure design quality is delivered consistently across a site.
- Design quality must be maintained throughout the development process, from initial concept to final delivery. This includes ensuring that approved schemes are not diluted through later changes, and that larger or more complex developments are guided by robust masterplans and codes that provide clarity and consistency.