Introduction to Planning Policies on Cranborne Chase
Although legally designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) since 1981, there was no effective mechanism for Cranborne Chase National Landscape to influence planning processes prior to the Countryside and Rights of Way (CRoW) Act of 2000.
That legislation made our Management Plans statutory, a duty of regard for conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of National Landscapes was placed on local authorities, and local planning authorities were empowered to take all such action as would be expedient to achieve the conservation and enhancement of natural beauty. Updated every five years, our Management Plan is a material consideration in planning in and around the National Landscape.
We now have national funding of National Landscape teams, and Landscape Character Assessment studies, enabling us to play a much more proactive role in providing advice to the Local Planning Authorities.
Each of our Local Planning Authorities prepare their own Local Plan, and we seek to ensure a consistent policy approach across the National Landscape through our contributions to the evolution of those plans. We are also happy to work with Neighbourhood Groups to ensure that attention is given at a more detailed level to conserving and enhancing natural beauty.
National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)
The NPPF has set out nationwide policy in England since 2012. Whilst focusing on sustainable development, the NPPF gives great emphasis to conserving and enhancing the natural, historic, and cultural environments.
Because the policy is updated over time by government, care should be taken when referring to current or previous versions of the NPPF. There are two key paragraphs which relate to National Landscapes and paragraph 182 (December 2023) states that:
“Great weight should be given to conserving and enhancing landscape and scenic beauty in National Parks, the Broads and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which have the highest status of protection in relation to these issues.”
“The conservation and enhancement of wildlife and cultural heritage are also important considerations in these areas, and should be given great weight in National Parks and the Broads. The scale and extent of development within all these designated areas should be limited, while development within their setting should be sensitively located and designed to avoid or minimise adverse impacts on the designated areas.”
Paragraph 183 goes on to state:
“When considering applications for development within National parks, the Broads and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, planning permission should be refused for major development other than in exceptional circumstances, and where it can be demonstrated that the development is in the public interest.”
Consideration of such applications should include an assessment of:
- the need for the development, including in terms of any national considerations, and the impact of permitting it, or refusing it, upon the local economy;
- the cost of, and scope for, developing outside the designated area, or meeting the need for it in some other way; and
- any detrimental effect on the environment, the landscape and recreational opportunities, and the extent to which that could be moderated.”
Read the full National Planning Policy Framework.
Relevant Acts of Parliament
The Guidance confirms that the Duty of Regard set out at Section 85 (A1) of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 is applicable to all local planning authorities and is also relevant in considering development proposals that are situated outside of National Landscape boundaries but which impact on their setting.
In 2023 the Act was reinforced by the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act and a statutory duty is now placed on all relevant authorities to seek to further the purposes of a National Landscape’s designation.
Find further information in our Planning Resources…
