About this event
Join Good Homes Alliance (GHA) and Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) for a joint online event showcasing the progressive work of Local Authorities in developing, and successfully adopting, net zero planning policies.
We will hear more about recent good news coming out of Bath & North East Somerset (B&NES) and Cornwall Council, whose local plan updates have both been found sound and legally compliant by the Planning Inspectorate. Both policies set absolute energy targets for housing (energy use intensity) and seek to maximise renewable energy generation on-site. The policies use a different framework from the Building Regulations and cover both regulated and unregulated energy.
These announcements reaffirm the fact that forward-thinking councils can set their own ambitious targets that go above and beyond minimum national standards. The work at B&NES, Cornwall, Cambridgeshire and others will help set a precedent for other Local Authorities to follow in their footsteps and meet their climate emergency commitments.
We are also delighted to be joined by experts from the consultancies who have been supporting progressive councils in developing evidence bases to support their new policies, and providing guidance on how to implement the policies in practice.
Good Homes Alliance
This event builds upon previous GHA webinars with Bioregional, targeted at our Local Authority Vanguard Network members, on ‘Why we need zero carbon planning policies‘ and ‘Spatial implications of developing zero carbon local plans‘. The event also ties in with our ongoing Planning & Placemaking working group, chaired by GHA Chair Lynne Sullivan OBE, which has been running during 2022-23 as part of our Build Net Zero Now campaign phase two. The working group is open to GHA members and invited experts, and outputs for the group later in the year include a ‘mini-guide’, case studies and a database of progressive planning policies.
Town and Country Planning Association
In February, TCPA and RTPI held a webinar to launch a fourth edition of their joint guidance for local authorities on planning for climate change. This introductory level resource provides an overview of UK policy and legislation which can be used to address climate change (both mitigation and adaptation) through plan making and development management processes. The guide is accompanied by an online case study hub which features practical examples from across the UK and will be regularly updated to reflect current best practice.
Speakers
Programme
12:00 Welcome from GHA – Lynne Sullivan OBE, Chair, Good Homes Alliance
12:05 Welcome from TCPA – Celia Davis, Projects and Policy Manager, Town and Country Planning Association
12:10 What is the landscape for LAs in regard to setting progressive planning policies? – Marina Goodyear, Project Manager/Lewis Knight, Head of Sustainable Places, Bioregional
12:25 Planning policies successfully adopted! Lessons learned from B&NES and Cornwall, and implementation challenges
– Alex McCann, former Climate Policy Officer at Bath and North East Somerset Council (B&NES); now part of the Bioregional Sustainable Places team
– Emily Rubin, Principal Development Officer, Cornwall Council
12:45 Emerging planning policy: Net zero, circular economy, design codes and more – Greater Cambridge – Emma Davies, Principal Sustainability Officer, Greater Cambridge Shared Planning
12:55 Next steps for local authorities: How can the recent good news set a precedent for other progressive LAs? And what are the challenges? – Thomas Lefevre, Director, Etude
13:10 Q&A/panel discussion: How will updates to national policy and standards impact progressive local authorities?
13:30 Close
Key details
Date: Tuesday 18th April 2023
Time: 12:00-13:30
Location: Online (Zoom)
Registration
- Free-to-attend for GHA members, BPN members and TCPA members
- £20 for members of GHA partner organisations*
- £30 for non-members
NOTE: Our booking service Eventbrite has been experiencing technical issues globally today. If you are unable to register online, please contact richard@goodhomes.org.uk.
*Partner organisations include: AECB, Passivhaus Trust, SuperHomes, STBA, TCPA, The Green Register, The Alliance for Sustainable Building Products, UKIEG, Woodknowledge Wales.
Icon credit: Becris