The government has set the national default planning fee at a level of 90% cost recovery to “reduce the shortfall currently facing local planning authorities”.
The move follows a consultation with developers, planning authorities and industry members and is designed to support the delivery of housing, the government said.
The “new national default” fee will apply to all local planning authorities, along with structural changes to specific fee categories.
Danny Pinder, policy director at Real Estate:UK, said he was “disappointed” the government had opted for a higher cap on fees than the sector had asked for.
However, he added: “Developers recognise that planning departments have constrained resources and processing applications can be extremely complex given the environmental, heritage and economic considerations. Planning delays are a huge barrier to development, so if higher fees reduce delays and improve the operation of the system, that would be a cost-effective benefit, helping to build more homes and workplaces more quickly.
“As long as fees are transparent, genuinely fund the planning service and result in quicker decisions, we are pleased that this long-overdue reform has come in.”
Of the 167 responses submitted for the proposal to set the national default fee schedule at 90% of full estimate cost, 59% said they supported it. Local planning authorities were largely supportive, at 68%. Developers and landowners were less supportive but still broadly positive overall, with 52% in favour, 30% opposed and 17% unsure.
Developers and landowners said their key concern was the lack of clear links to service improvements. Respondents emphasised that higher fees would only be supported if ringfenced for planning services.
The government said: “The government recognises that current planning fees do not fully reflect the costs incurred by local planning authorities, contributing to under-resourcing and inconsistent performance. We therefore intend to establish a new national default fee schedule by increasing all planning fees up to an estimated 90% cost recovery.
“This represents a proportionate approach, with applicants meeting a significantly greater share of the costs of the service they use while incentivising efficiency gains, alongside wider government investment to strengthen capacity and capability across the planning system.”
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