A

Amenity Space
Amenity space should normally have some sunlight, and should normally be directly accessible from a room other than a bedroom. It excludes the first 2m of space at the side of dwellings (measured from the boundary) and the first 6m of front garden space (measured from the front boundary) which are treated as landscaping space and not exclusively amenity space. The large majority of amenity space should be grassed and landscaped. For family housing and category 1 elderly persons accommodation, amenity space should mainly be provided in the form of gardens (in the latter case wheelchair accessible planting bays should be provided).

Ancillary Use
A subsidiary use of a building or piece of land connected to the main use e.g. storage and office floor space in a factory.

Article 4 (2) Direction
A direction granted by the local planning authority following public consultation under the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995. It can be used to remove "Permitted Development" rights for certain forms of householder development in conservation areas. The removal of permitted development rights outside these categories and/or outside conservation areas still requires the confirmation of the Secretary of State for the Environment under Article 4(1).

B

Business Use
Use for the purposes of offices, research and development or industry, providing (Class B1) that such a use can be carried out in a residential area without detriment to the amenity of that area (definition derived from "The Use Classes Order 1987" –Department of the Environment Statutory Instrument 764, 1987).

Brownfield Sites
Previously developed sites (Previously developed urban land).

C

Children's Play Space
In new residential developments intended for families, a standard of 3 m2. local play space per child bed space in addition to the appropriate amenity space standard will normally be applied. (All bedrooms other than the main bedroom are counted as child bed spaces with bedrooms at or above the Council's size standards for double bedrooms being counted as two child bed spaces.)

Circulars
Occasional government advice to aid interpretation of legislation and to advise local authorities on government expectations in their delivery of services.

Commercial Development
New building for warehousing and storage; the term may also include shopping and office development.

Conservation Area
An area of special architectural or historic interest identified by the Local Planning Authority under the Planning (Listed Buildings & Conservation Areas) Act 1990. There is a statutory duty to pre-serve or enhance the character or appearance of such areas. Buildings in such areas are protected from unauthorised demolition in part or in full, and trees may not be felled or pruned without 14 days notice.

D

Development Control
The activity of the local planning authority to decide whether development may proceed and thus Planning Permission be given, with reference to the development plan for the area and other material considerations.

Development Plan

Durable Goods
Goods for which purchase involves comparison by the customer and which while not being purchased frequently must nevertheless be stocked in a wide range of size, styles, colours and qualities e.g. clothes and footwear, fashion wear, fabrics, jewellery, furniture and goods normally sold at specialist shops and general stores. (Definition derived from "Development Control Policy Note 13" - Department of the Environment, 1977).

Dwelling
A building or any part of a building that forms a separate and self-contained set of premises designed to be occupied by a single family or household. (definition derived from "The Census 1981 Definitions Great Britain" - Office of Population Censuses and Surveys, 1981).

E

Employment Use
· B1 (such as offices, research & development, light industry);
· B2 (such as general industry/manufacturing);
· B8, (warehousing & distribution); and
· Closely related uses not falling within a use class – Sui Generis (such as haulage yards, bus garages and MOT testing stations), but which are commonly found in industrial estates. Car sales are not an employment use, but may be ancillary to car repairs.

G

General Permitted Development Order (GPDO)
Statement by central government of the type and scale of Development which does not require Planning Permission.

General Industrial Use (Class B2)
An industrial use, other than those which can be carried out in any residential area without detriment to the amenity of that area, and which is not in Classes B3-B7 of the Use Classes Order (definition derived from "The Use Classes Order 1987" - Department of the Environment Statutory Instrument 764, 1987).

H

Habitable Room
Habitable rooms are all rooms except hallways, bathrooms, WCs, laundry rooms and storage cupboards. For the purposes of density calculations solely only kitchens of above 13 m2 count as habitable rooms; bed sitting rooms are counted as 1.5 habitable rooms. The maximum size for a single habitable room is counted as 18 m2, where the room can be easily subdivided to provide an additional bedroom. With larger rooms counted as two habitable rooms. For all other purposes including day lighting, sun lighting, privacy and outlook kitchens are counted as habitable rooms whatever their size. In accordance with BS206: Part 2:1992 for purposes of day lighting and sun lighting habitable rooms will be assessed in the following order of declining importance: Kitchens, living rooms, bedrooms.

Highway
An area of land for which the public has the right of way to pass under or through.

Housing Density
The number of dwellings per Net Residential Area, measured in Habitable Rooms per hectare.

Household
One person living alone or persons living at the same address with common housekeeping or sharing a common living or sitting room.

L

Large Retail Development
Development for retail use which provides for more than a purely local service such as a superstore (over 2,500 m2)

Listed Building
A building of special architectural or historic interest included on a statutory list compiled by the DoE. Planning Permission is required for the demolition or alteration of such a building.

Non-conforming Use
Any use which would be out of character and keeping with the established predominant use of an area, e.g. a general industrial use located in a primarily residential area.

Non-Retail Use
Use within shopping centres that are not within Use Class A1.

P

Permitted Development
Minor development which, by virtue of the General Development Order, does not require planning permission.

Planning Brief
A description of the type of development which the Council would expect on particular development sites, including land uses, features to be retained, overall design considerations and Planning Advantage where appropriate.

Planning Obligation
A legal undertaking entered into in connection with a planning permission under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. Such obligations may restrict development or use of land; require operations or activities to be carried out in, on, under or over the land; require the land to be used in any specified way; or require payments to be made to the planning authority either in a single sum or periodically. Planning obligations may be created by agreement or by unilateral undertakings on the part of the developer/owner of the land.

Planning Permission
Formal approval given by a local planning authority for Development requiring planning permission (see General Development Order), usually valid for five years for a full permission or three years for an outline permission in which details are reserved for subsequent approval.

Previously Developed Urban Land
Previously developed land is that which is or was occupied by a permanent (non-agricultural) structure, and associated fixed surface infrastructure
1. The definition covers the curtilage of the development
2. Previously developed land may occur in both built-up and rural settings. The definition includes defence buildings, and land used for mineral extraction and waste disposal where provision for restoration has not been made through development control procedures
3. The definition excludes land and buildings that have been used for agricultural purposes, forest and woodland, and land in built-up areas which has not been developed previously (e.g. parks, recreation grounds, and allotments - even though these areas may contain certain urban features such as paths, pavilions and other buildings). Also excluded is land that was previously developed but where the remains of any structure or activity have blended into the landscape in the process of time (to the extent that it can reasonably be considered as part of the natural surroundings), or has subsequently been put to an amenity use and cannot be regarded as requiring redevelopment.

1: In other words, the urban land uses as defined by the DETR's Land-Use Change Statistics (excluding 'urban land not previously developed').
2: The curtilage is defined as the area of land attached to a building. All of the land within the curtilage of the site (as defined above) will also be defined as previously developed. The curtilage will be that as defined for the DETR/ Ordnance Survey/ Land Use Change Statistics classification. However, this does not mean that the whole area of the curtilage should therefore be redeveloped. For example, where the footprint of a building only occupies a proportion of a site of which the remainder is open land (such as at an airfield or a hospital) the whole site should not normally be developed to the boundary of the curtilage. The local planning authority should make a judgement about site layout in this context, bearing in mind other planning considerations, such as policies for development in the countryside, requirements for on-site open space, buffer strips, landscaped areas, etc, and how the site relates to the surrounding area.
3: This relates to minerals and waste sites which are to remain unrestored after use because the planning permission allowing them did not include a restoration condition. All other such sites will be restored to 'Greenfield' status, by virtue of the planning condition.
Source: PPG3

Primary Shopping Frontage
That area of a shopping centre which is generally the busiest, and contains the largest shop units and major multiples. These are primarily in use Class A1. (See also Secondary Shopping Frontage).

R

Residential Density
The existing or proposed number of habitable rooms (defined above) in a given area - usually expressed in terms of habitable rooms per hectare or acre (definition derived from "The Greater London Development Plan", G.L.C., 1976).

Retail Warehouse
A single level retail store selling non-food goods direct to the public on the premises, usually occupying a purpose built structure with associated car parking, or an existing converted warehouse or industrial building.

S

Section 106
The section of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 that provides for the creation of 'Planning Obligations' (defined above).

Secondary Shopping Frontage
That part of a shopping centre outside the Primary Frontage usually on the fringe, where units are generally smaller and there is a higher proportion of non-retail uses (see Primary Shopping Frontage).

Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)
A site of special interest by reason of its flora, fauna, geological or physiographical features.

Sequential Approach
Government policy directing uses that attract a lot of people, such as retail and leisure, to town centres in the first instance.

Sui-Generis
Uses not falling within a defined use class, e.g. car sales, waste transfer, hostels, theatres, launderettes, petrol stations and amusement arcades.

Sustainable Development
Development which meets the needs of the present without com-promising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs and aspirations.

top
last updated 15/02/07