On the Quantity and Quality of Planning Applications

Abstract

The number and the quality of planning applications through which permission is sought to undertake building and engineering works in Britain varies for different types of development, over time, and between areas. The determinants of application quantity and application quality (being the extent to which applications conform to material considerations) are argued and then explored using data on application numbers and refusal rates. The analysis indicates relative application quality for each of six main development types. It also identifies changes over time in local authority planning policy (as evidenced by the decisions that the authority takes), in applicant awareness of that policy, and application quality, and suggests policy, awareness, and quality differences between areas. In particular, changes in the number and quality of applications from the second half of the 1970s to the first half of the 1980s are determined and explained, as are differences in the number and quality of applications made inside and outside the national parks.