Chapter 4: Service Propositions

Overview

36 This section identifies the main service propositions that will meet the varied user needs and help to deliver the e-planning vision.

37 Much of the work on e-planning to date has been focused on internal procedures rather than better services to customers. If e-planning is to be recognised as delivering customer-focused services then all those engaged in its delivery must demonstrate four critical strengths - that they:

a. Understand the customer groups - clarity about who the customers are, how they are defined, their interests, needs and behaviours and what central and local government wants to do for/with them, for each major component of service being delivered.

b. Build operations around the customers - ensure that the basic building blocks of the service deliverers - such as strategy, performance measures, systems, processes, structure and behaviours - support a focus on delivering desired customer outcomes.

c. Manage stakeholder relationships - make it important to manage relationships openly and communicate effectively, both with end customers and with other stakeholders such as the planning professions and others and service partners.

d. Use an understanding of customers to develop target outcomes - exploit the investment in the previous areas to improve performance against objectives and maximise efficiency.

38 This approach is based on the Treasury (HMT) Public Services Productivity Panel Framework published in October 2002 'Customer-Focused Government - From policy to delivery'. This sets out how transformation of public services must start with the customer and work back to the design and delivery of operational services.

e-Planning Services

39 The e-planning services must be designed around the needs of each of the main customer groups outlined in the previous section. We have identified 9 main services which are required to achieve the e-Planning Vision - the first six of these describe specific stages in the planning process, with the final three being envisaged as cross-cutting services, applicable to several stages in the planning system. The nine main services are:

a. Strategic Planning Services

b. Pre-Application Planning Information Service

c. Planning Application Service

d. Planning Appeals and Call-Ins Service

e. Planning Enforcement Service

f. Associated Services (e.g. Building Regulations and Control)

g. Planning Consultation Service

h. Information and Advisory Service (Knowledge Management)

i. Planning Performance Management and Monitoring Service

40 Whilst some of these services overlap, we believe there is merit in maintaining the distinctive focus of each. These services are described in more detail below in terms of the:

• Main features of each service
• Principal benefits
• Target dates for service availability

41 Take-up targets are outlined in section 8. The service definitions, described below, will be further developed, based on feedback, through the work packages set out in section 9.

Specific E-Planning Services

Strategic Planning Services

42 This service will deliver on-line access to strategic planning documents, as envisaged under the new spatial planning approach, as well as on-line services that will assist in the development, analysis and assessment of planning policy options at the national, regional and local level. Initial research has been carried out in the area by PARSOL, the Planning Portal and DPRAS projects, with a view to providing standard services that will help meet the 2006/07 targets for creation of Local Development Frameworks (LDFs) and introduction of Regional Spatial Strategies (RSSs). There are also a number of university research projects that are looking at the future possibility of using computer simulation, visualisation and modelling techniques to enable a new, interactive approach to spatial planning at national, regional and local levels.

Features

43 Users will be able to:

• Access on-line, electronic national, regional and local policy development documents e.g. LDFs and RSSs to consistent standards including interactive spatial plans where appropriate
• Perform scenario modelling and envisioning of the future - for example - what would a particular town look like in 5 years time if a high growth policy were pursued compared with a low growth policy, including impact appraisal
• Performing 'what if? analysis' at site level - for example, what would be the impact on the local services infrastructure of building and populating 'X' new houses on a particular brownfield site?

Benefits

• Delivers a streamlined process for developing LDFs to meet PSA 6 targets - reduces costs for LPAs
• Streamlines the policy development process by reducing the time taken to develop and appraise alternative options

Service Availability

• 80% of existing local plans to be on-line by end 2005
• 20% of new local and regional plans (LDFs and RSSs) on-line by end 2005, 60% by end 2008, 100% by 2011 (including on-line scenario modelling services available by end 2008)

Pre-Application Planning Information Service 

44 This service will enable users to explore planning and development information that is relevant to a particular geographic area, irrespective of administrative boundaries. The key aim will be to enable users to identify sites that might provide opportunities for development e.g. brownfield sites, to better understand any planning constraints e.g. conservation or flood-risk areas and to view current and historical planning-related activity in a particular area. The service will also support users in moving to further development of proposals for site-specific projects. This pre-application information facility is already partially provided by the Planning Portal and projects such as PARSOL and the Environmental Information System for Planners (EISP). Further work will be required to develop the existing services and projects to ensure that information is available for all geographic areas and to a greater degree of detail. This service will enable achievement of 'good' outcome 5 (G5) of the Local e-Government Priority Outcomes.

Features 

45 Users who wish to explore and develop site-specific proposals within a particular geographic area value easier access to information about development opportunities and constraints. Users will be able to:

• Access a wide range of high quality, on-line, planning-related geographic information derived from LDFs and RSSs including brownfield sites, flood-risk zones, greenbelt and conservation areas. The data can be used to support the development of proposals for site-specific projects
• Search for data in a variety of ways via either a map, geographic area such as Local Authority/postcode/streetname and/or by searching for a particular type of data such as greenbelt area or brownfield site
• View current and historical planning applications, by location, in their chosen geographic area

Benefits 

• Improved services for customers - less time spent searching for information - measured by increase in customer satisfaction
• Efficiencies for LPA - reduces time spent providing pre-application information and advice - measured by productivity increases relating to take-up targets

Service Availability 

• Initial service to be available nationally by end 2005

Planning Application Service

46 This electronic service will enable users to self-validate and submit planning applications to LPAs, track progress and comment on relevant planning applications on-line with a view to improving the responsiveness and certainty of outcome of local planning services. It will enable achievement of required outcome 8 (R8) of the Local e-Government Priority Outcomes.

47 The Planning and Regulatory Services On-Line (PARSOL) project, working with local planning authorities and the Planning Portal, has already ensured that some aspects of this service are already available from progressive local authorities. Further work is needed to ensure that this service is available across all LPAs.

Features

48 Users submitting a planning application electronically will be able to:

• Select from a variety of channels such as web sites of either the Planning Portal, their local LPA, an intermediary of their choice or other such as digital TV
• Access all relevant information at the point of online application (or enquiry through pre-application discussions) to enable a 'right first time' submission
• Submit a variety of types of information from simple forms, to electronic maps and plans, computer-aided designs and 3-D models
• Benefit from a new 'intelligent' application process that would guide the activity and provide instant feedback on compliance (or non-compliance) with planning policy and guidance
• Receive automatic alerts once a decision has been reached. The same type of service would notify statutory consultees and interested parties of new and relevant applications
• Track progress of applications at any time from any location using a choice of channels

Benefits

• Improved services for customers - more responsive services - measured by increase in % of applicants (commercial and non-commercial) satisfied with service and reduced time from submission of application to decision date
• Improved certainty of outcome for applicants - reduces uncertainty - measured by decrease in proportion of planning application refusals
• Efficiencies for LPA - streamlines the administrative process of handling planning applications by increasing the quality of information submitted - reduces officer time to manage and track an application - measured by reduced cost per transaction or increased productivity (estimated increases of up to 5% as more applications are dealt with by the same level of staff)
• Efficiencies for applicant (public and professionals) - reduces time spent compiling planning application - measured by reduced cost per application against a baseline
• Increased transparency of process - direct access will, over time, encourage an increase in quality of planning applications, thereby improving performance of the planning system as a whole

Service Availability

• Users will be able to submit a planning application on-line for any location within in England by end 2005 irrespective of administrative boundaries
• All applicants will be able to track progress of a planning application, including viewing current application and associated documents and decisions, by end 2005

Planning Appeals And Call-Ins Service

49 Similar to the service described above, this electronic service will enable users to submit and track progress on planning appeals and call-ins resulting in a more transparent service. The Planning Casework Service (PCS) project, working with the Planning Portal has started to deliver new e-services in this area and further work is planned to engage with the full spectrum of potential users of this service and to complete development work.

Features

• Users submitting an appeal electronically will be able to access all relevant information at the point of making an on-line appeal to enable a right first time submission (via Planning Portal)
• Organisations involved in handling appeals and call-ins such as ODPM, PINS, NAW, GOs and LPAs will have access to a new electronic service that will enable efficient access to shared information about each case and its history, including relevant correspondence (via Planning Casework Service (PCS))
• Automatic alerts will be provided to interested parties notifying them of a change in status such as a key decision being reached and publicised

Benefits 

• Efficiency gains for LPAs, planning professionals and the public - reducing time taken for handling appeals - measured by reduction in average time taken to handle appeals and productivity gain of 5%

Service Availability

• All appellants (and their agents) will be able to submit appeals and track progress on-line by end 2005
• All organisations involved in handling appeals (including LPAs) will be able to handle appeals electronically by end 2005 (via direct access to PCS)

Planning Enforcement Service 

50 There is potential to streamline some of the processes that form part of the Planning Enforcement Service offered by Local Authorities, including opportunities to engage with users on-line and collect data in more efficient ways. An e-enforcement service may also increase the number of cases being measured and could reduce the number of complaints being made through better access to information by users. The PARSOL project will deliver best practice advice and toolkits that can be further developed to ensure more widespread implementation. This Service will help to achieve the good outcome 6 (G6) of the Local e-Government Priority Outcomes.

Features 

51 Users will have access to:

• Facilities to enable on-line submission of cases to LPAs
• A range of planning enforcement-related databases e.g. cases, notices, decisions

Benefits

• Improved services for users (measured by user satisfaction), with better access to information possibly leading to a reduction in the number of complaints being pursued
• More efficient processes for LPA staff - increases productivity - measured by reduced time per case

Service Availability

• Users to be able to submit cases and access key enforcement databases on-line for all geographic locations by end 2005

Associated Services (E.G. Building Regulations And Control)

52 It will be important for the new e-planning services to be integrated as far as possible with other linked services such as Building Regulations and Control, Environmental Health and licensing. Users will be able to seamlessly interact with all relevant services that underpin the development process. This Service will help to achieve the required outcome 8 (R8) and good outcome 7 (G7) of the Local e-Government Priority Outcomes. Electronic access to Building Regulations and supporting guidance in Approved Documents will also be improved to enable users to more easily find the information they require.

Features

53 Users will be able to:

• Access fully integrated land and property related services to meet their full range of needs e.g. building control, environmental health, fire and safety, conveyancing services
• Access user friendly, electronic Building Regulations and associated/supporting material that will be organised to enable easy navigation

Benefits

• Improved services for users - fewer, separate interactions with local authorities and other public bodies - to be measured by increase in user satisfaction
• Easier access to information will result in time savings for users and a higher level of satisfaction with the service - to be measured by feedback from customers

Service Availability

• Improved access to building regulations and guidance by end 2005
• Initial services to be available on-line by end 2008

Cross-Cutting Services

Planning Consultation Service

54 This service seeks to streamline and improve the consultation process by developing new, innovative ways of using technology to help to engage with the wider planning community. The e-consultation service could be applicable to the whole planning system, from the development of national Planning Policy Statements, RSSs and LDFs, to consultation on planning applications. It should be recognised, however, that development control and policy consultation exercises are different processes, engaging stakeholder groups in different ways. The PARSOL and Development Plans Representation and Administration Service (DPRAS) projects have already started to develop relevant services in this area but there is more to do to broaden the scope to ensure consistency of approach and service levels across all aspects of the planning process.

Features

55 Users, stakeholders and planning service providers will be able to:

• Engage with each other and communicate in an interactive way facilitated by the most appropriate electronic processes such as e-mail, on-line messaging, video-conferencing, web-casting, digital TV to support, for example, consultation processes or pre-planning application discussions
• These new channels of communication will be available for extended service hours to meet the needs of users, including 24x7 where appropriate
• Make use of national standards and guidance to engage better with communities on the development of Local Development Frameworks (LDFs) - (via the Development Plans Representation Administration Service (DPRAS) project) and planning applications/appeals

Benefits 

• Increased levels of community engagement in the planning process and better services for users - measured by increased user satisfaction with planning services
• Efficiencies for statutory consultees in handling casework and internal communications - to be measured by time spent handling each case

Service Availability 

• Users to have access to on-line consultation services for commenting on planning policies, applications, appeals and LDFs by end 2005

Information And Advisory Service (Knowledge Management)

56 This service will provide a simplified and streamlined electronic service offering access to relevant, high quality information on planning policy, process guidance and best practice for the benefit of the whole planning community.

57 Planning-related information is held on a variety of web-sites such as IDeA, ODPM and Info4Local, as well as the Planning Portal, ODPM, PINS, every local authority and Government Offices. We will aim to develop a 'Planning Centre of Excellence' that pulls together all these strands and builds an acknowledged knowledge base for e-planning. This will simplify and streamline the information retrieval process for users. The Planning Portal and PARSOL projects have already developed a range of initiatives that will contribute to this aim but there will be further work to do to develop this service to its full potential. In particular, this will involve greater co-ordination across a range of stakeholders and developing sustainable processes for keeping content up to date.

Features

58 Users will be able to access a single knowledge base of planning related information that:

• Is easily accessible, comprehensive and authoritative and available at any time (24x7) from any location (delivered via the Planning Portal)
• Links to all national Planning Policy Statements, RSS and other guidance to inform local communities about planning matters
• Includes a repository for all planning-related business and technical standards and specifications such as process models and XML schemas as well as core national databases held by central departments and agencies e.g. national brownfield sites database
• Is interactive and enables a self-service approach to engaging with the planning system.

Benefits 

• Efficiencies for users e.g. planning professionals - information held in a single location saves time taken in searching for data - to be measured by time savings recorded in on-line survey feedback from users

Service Availability 

• Initial service already available via the Planning Portal and will be further enhanced by end 2005

Planning Performance Management And Monitoring Service 

59 There is an increasing requirement for on-demand access to real-time information on planning performance and real-world change. Key users of this information will be ODPM, HM Treasury, Audit Commission, Local Authorities and others. There is an opportunity to develop shared information services that enable easier and faster collection and dissemination of relevant data. There has been some outline work to help scope requirements, carried out by ODPM and PARSOL. This can be used as a baseline for further development.

Features

60 Users will have access to:

• The most up to date planning performance-related information to support performances monitoring against targets e.g. Public Service Agreement targets such as speed of planning decisions, actual against planned developments, Best Value Performance Indicators, Comprehensive Performance Assessment scores, and the performance recording and monitoring requirements that will be introduced by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act

Benefits

• Improved information services - on demand access to real-time information - to be measured by reduction in time lag between date of relevance of data and submission and use of key datasets
• Efficiencies - reduced data collection and dissemination costs - productivity gain of 5% by streamlining the process by which data is collected, stored, managed and disseminated

Service Availability

• On-line performance management and monitoring service available to key users i.e. ODPM planning, regional and local government policy users by end 2005.

Summary and Next Actions 

61 The nine services along with service availability targets are summarised below:

62 The nine planning service propositions will be fully defined and validated with stakeholders