Consultation - Design and Placemaking PPG

Draft Design and Placemaking Planning Practice Guidance has been published for consultation. The stated aim of the guidance is to outline and illustrate the government’s priorities for well-designed places, and how planning policies and decisions should support this. The draft guidance recognises that noise is an environmental factor that should be considered in design of dwellings and communities. It also acknowledges the role of green infrastructure/planting in noise mitigation, and in introducing positive sounds like birdsong and water.  The documant states “successful communities… are located to complement rather than conflict with neighbouring uses in terms of noise, servicing and ventilation “ and “Well-designed homes and buildings are efficient and cost effective to run. They have good ventilation, avoid overheating, minimise sound pollution and have good air quality, while providing comfort and personal control for their users.”  In a section on healthy and comfortable buildings, it says  “To mitigate the impact of noise, development proposals should consider the orientation of dwellings and specifying materials that help reduce sound between dwellings and from outside.” The guidance consolidates four existing guidance documents and is intended to support the application of policies in the draft National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) 2025, and applies to England. The consultation closes on the same day as the NPPG consultation – March 10^th. An IOA working group is examining both consultations.