Natural England - Standing Advice for Local Authorities
Standing Advice for Local Authorities
This guidance will help Local Authority planners or ecological consultants decide when to request or carry out protected species surveys to accompany a planning application. The survey requirements are based upon the habitats that are present on an application site and the likelihood of a species being present. This guidance should result in higher quality planning applications and fewer objections from Natural England (and subsequent associated delays to decision timetables) due to lack of survey information.
This guidance also provides Local Authority planners (or their in-house/retained ecologist) with a basic framework of how to assess the survey information and any mitigation proposals received. This should enable the Local Authority to adequately assess the majority of planning applications in-house without the need to consult Natural England, although thresholds for when to seek our further advice are also provided.
In the areas to which this advice applies:
Natural England will not comment on applications that are submitted without the relevant protected species surveys (see flowchart) if there are no other issues (i.e. in relation to Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) or landscape).
Natural England will only comment on applications that are submitted with the relevant protected species surveys (see flowchart), if the level of impacts indicated in the survey results meet the consultation thresholds provided.
Natural England will not comment on scoping surveys that recommend further surveys where these have not been undertaken and submitted with the scoping reports.
Natural England will continue to comment on Environmental Impact Assessments in accordance with the current applicable legislation.
Natural England will continue to comment on applications which affect designated landscapes and SSSIs unless we have issued other Standing Advice covering those subjects in which case that Standing Advice should be referred to.
Please continue to the full standing advice for protected species