Planning and Architecture

  • The benefits of pre-application discussions and processing agreements

    24th April 2025 by

    This blog highlights the benefits of collaborative pre-application discussions and processing agreements. Both can help to provide greater clarity and certainty to prospective applicants and make the planning application journey smoother, quicker and potentially cheaper.  Pre-application discussions  Pre-application discussions are discussions between a prospective applicant and the relevant planning authority prior to the submission of…

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  • Championing proportionality of planning assessments

    3rd April 2025 by

    Requiring or providing too much or too little information to accompany planning applications can add costs and delays to the determination process. That is why we convened the Proportionality of Assessment Short Life Working Group. This blog highlights key principles and best practice identified by the Group. It promotes a proportionate approach to planning applications…

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  • Planning, Infrastructure and Place Advisory Group Annual Report 2025

    13th February 2025 by

    After a busy few months, the Planning, Infrastructure and Place Advisory Group (PIPAG) have published their first Annual Report, on the 13 February 2025. PIPAG was established to find solutions to infrastructure challenges, support the delivery of National Planning Framework 4, and to promote joined-up, place-based delivery of development and infrastructure in Scotland. The group, which…

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  • NPF4 early engagement – Feb 2020

    3rd February 2020 by

    NPF4 – Getting Involved   One month into 2020 and the substantial task of producing Scotland’s fourth National Planning Framework is well in motion and picking up pace. Now it’s time for you to join in!   NPF4 is going to have a powerful influence on how we shape the development of Scotland between now…

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  • Designing Places Student Competition

    5th December 2019 by

    10 years This year celebrated 10 year of the Designing Places Student Competition. Click here to see a short film celebrating 10 years of the competition. To mark the 10th Anniversary of this year’s competition, we wanted to do something special. So, for the first time ever – we took students ‘on site’ to Clydebank,…

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  • Scottish Youth Parliament Event – 27 October 2019 – Dunfermline High School

    1st November 2019 by

    Blog – SYP event 27 Oct 2019 The NPF4 team was delighted to be invited to participate in a discussion with members of the Scottish Youth Parliament to consider the sort of place Scotland can be in 2050. The attached blog provides a summary of the event. #scotplan

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  • Regional Spatial Strategies – exploratory event

    25th October 2019 by

    RSS Event – 2 Oct – summary note A collaborative event, held on 2 October 2019 at the Engine Shed in Stirling, explored arrangements to consider regional spatial strategies that will emerge from the Planning (Scotland) Act. The attached summary note of the day provides links to the various presentations and reflects some of the…

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  • National Planning Framework 4 – Scottish Planning Policy Research.

    9th October 2019 by

    We have today published research by Ironside Farrar relating to the existing Scottish Planning Policy (SPP). The research looks into how effective the existing SPP policies are in influencing the preparation of local development plans and determining planning applications. The SPP will be incorporated into National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4). Work is underway on this…

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  • National Planning Framework 4 – The Essentials!

    8th October 2019 by

    What is the National Planning Framework (NPF)? The NPF is a long term spatial plan for Scotland that sets out where development and infrastructure is needed to support sustainable and inclusive growth. We have started work to prepare our fourth NPF (NPF4) which will look to Scotland in 2050. It will guide spatial development, set…

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  • Designing Places Student Competition 2018

    21st March 2018 by

    Date: 17th March 2018 Location: The Lighthouse, Glasgow This year’s Designing Places Competition took place on St Patrick’s Day, at The Lighthouse, in Glasgow. The day was led by the Scottish Government through Susie Stirling (Head of Placemaking and Housing) and Kristen Anderson (Senior Planner) supported by Ian Alexander (JM Architects), Rowena Statt (Anderson Bell…

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