Planners, developers and communities are all anxious to secure a well-balanced national planning framework for Scotland following the implementation of NPF4. However, a range of challenges lie ahead in meeting the demands around development planning and management, resourcing the planning system adequately and driving best practice performance. This conference looks at the key themes flowing from the adoption and implementation of NPF4 and the roll out of supporting guidance. It will also examine what all stakeholders need to know about what is happening now and what is coming next.
Scotland’s NPF4 aims to guide spatial development, designate national developments, prescribe national planning policies and clarify regional spatial priorities for the next 20 years. The challenges of doing so are magnified by the task of recovering from COVID-related impacts on planners and the planning system, labour market shortages and real hurdles in adequately resourcing planning in local government.
Coming to terms with the burdens and demands faced by both planning authorities and applicants as reform develops is key. Local planning authorities must have the staff, experience, direction and certainty to make a success of NPF4 and its associated guidance and consequential reforms. Is the speed and performance of our planning system improving? If not how can that be improved? If it is, how can that best practice be shared? What is the key to unlocking effective development management and planning? How do we ensure that much need housing and other developments are delivered quickly, fairly and with balance?
This conference looks at where we stand following implementation of NPF4 and with reform of the planning system. It considers the key challenges and opportunities for national and local government, developers and communities. It reflects on the challenge of ensuring that implementation of reform delivers a robust, efficient, manageable and fair system which supports sustainable development.
The conference examines these challenges in three sessions:
Topics to be discussed
Who Should Attend
This conference will be relevant for anyone involved in the planning process as applicants, regulators, community interest groups, promoters of economic development & growth, and participants in the strategic planning, development & placemaking processes.
This includes planners, planning committee members, developers, housebuilders, community representatives, lawyers with planning specialisms, architects & designers, planning advisors, planning academics and – more generally – all public sector bodies with planning interests and responsibilities, private companies with engagement in the planning system, strategic bodies with an interest in spatial planning (such as transport bodies and companies), third & community sector organisations, and agencies and departments supporting economic development and inclusive growth.
Chief Executive
PAS - Planning Aid for Scotland
Director - Research and Strategy
Rettie & Co
National Planning Improvement Champion
Improvement Service
Director
Stefano Smith Planning
Johanna Boyd
Chief Executive
PAS - Planning Aid for Scotland
Johanna is a dual-qualified English barrister and Scottish solicitor. She practised as a barrister at a leading set of chambers in London for 10 years, specialising in planning, administrative and public law, and local government law, and ranked as a leading planning junior in the Legal 500.
On returning to Scotland, Johanna was the first woman to lead Stirling Council and the youngest council leader in Scotland at that time. As council leader, she secured a historic £214m City Region Deal for Stirling and Clackmannanshire, closed the gender pay gap for council employees, amongst other achievements.
Following her decision to move on from politics, Johanna worked with the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) on a programme of work to ensure that equalities best practices is embedded into City Region and Growth Deals.
Johanna joined PAS from the Government, Regulation and Competition team at Brodies LLP, where she regularly advised across public, private and third sectors on all aspects of planning, administrative, public, local government and regulatory law.
John Boyle (Dr)
Director - Research and Strategy
Rettie & Co
Dr John Boyle leads the Rettie & Co Research Team, providing a cutting-edge research and consultancy function. His work informs clients on sales, lettings, investment and development opportunities. He also analyses the current status of property markets and assesses how they are likely to change. Over the last 17 years, he has worked for all of the major house builders in Scotland, the Scottish Government, many local authorities and investors. He led the Scottish Government’s study into the 5-year Review of the Home Report. He sits on Homes for Scotland’s Policy Advisory Group and is a member of the Society of Property Researchers and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
Craig McLaren FRTPI
National Planning Improvement Champion
Improvement Service
Craig McLaren is Scotland's first National Planning Improvement Champion, a role that was established in the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019 to monitor the performance of planning authorities and support them to identify and tackle areas of improvement. Craig is based in the Improvement Service and took up post in September 2023.
Prior to that he was Director of Scotland, Ireland and English Regions in the Royal Town Planning Institute and previously was Director of the Scottish Centre for Regeneration in Communities Scotland/ Scottish Government; Chief Executive of SURF (Scottish Urban Regeneration Forum); Scottish Policy Officer at RTPI; and a planner in the London Borough of Kingston upon Thames.
Craig is a Fellow of both the RTPI and the RSA. He has also sat on the Boards of Scotland's Towns Partnership, Built Environment Forum Scotland, Greenspace Scotland, Resilient Scotland and the Jim Boyack Memorial Trust.
Stefano Smith FRTPI
Director
Stefano Smith Planning
Stefano is a commercial and pragmatic development planner with a strong customer focus. Stefano has nearly 30 years of UK professional experience of managing multi-disciplinary teams within a planning, environmental, design and engineering consultancy.
He has extensive experience in providing development planning and project management services in the environment, infrastructure, energy, commercial, industrial, housing and mixed-use sectors. He is a Chartered Fellow of the Royal Town Planning Institute (FRTPI) with experience in statutory planning (including approvals & consents and expert witness), sustainability, regeneration, master planning & urban design, consultation & engagement strategies and tools & development economics. He is a seasoned practitioner in stakeholder engagement and the development of communication strategies, as well as the use of appraisal and assessment tools.
Stefano has successfully advised, negotiated, and delivered complex land development and infrastructure projects of ranging sizes. He has worked in both the private and public sectors, particularly pertaining to the principles and practice of the economics of urban regeneration, land development, sustainability, urban design, complex environmental assessment, and project management.
Book delegate places or purchase video recording.
