Our professional team of Town & Country Planning consultants has the experience, expertise and contact network to advise clients on any aspect of the planning process.

Appraisals
The preparation and production of planning appraisals can take a number of forms, from a simple assessment of a site’s development potential – and the likelihood of obtaining the desired planning consent – to detailed research aimed at establishing whether a specific development proposal is suitable to be taken forward.

Development Briefs
Effectively promoting larger sites for commercial and residential development requires a pro-active approach. We have found that the production of development or planning briefs is a vital tool in agreeing the basic rules of site development with local authorities and key stakeholders. The production of briefs can enhance the chances of success of a development scheme and improve the overall timeframe for achieving the desired consent through the early identification of key issues and the chance to resolve difficult matters prior to submission of an application.

Applications
Our success rate is founded in experience and knowledge of the workings of individual local planning authorities, with which good professional relationships have been forged over the years. Teams of Chartered Surveyors and Town Planners work closely to achieve a very high percentage of first-time consents, attending to the detail and taking great care in the preparation of planning applications, so that positive outcomes can be obtained even in complex and contentious circumstances.

Appeals
We have become well known in planning circles for our professional handling of appeal work, whether by means of written representations, at hearings or public inquiry. Once a thorough appraisal of a planning authority’s reasons for refusal has been carried out, clients are advised on the prospects of them being overturned at appeal. Where a decision to appeal is advised, our success rate is impressive. If an appeal is heard at a public inquiry, we can also provide direct professional access to the advocacy services of the Planning Bar.

Development Plans
The new system of development plans introduced by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 has stalled badly due to the inability of resource sticken Local Authorities to produce the new generation of plans in the form required by the Government.  As a result, and as the older generation of saved Local Plans expire, a plethora of new documents are about to be the subject of lengthy, albeit, foreshortened, consultation procedures.  Due to the availability of considerable in-house expertise, Adams Holmes Associates is able to offer clients a service which includes strategic site promotions, advice on policy and procedural matters, preparation of representations and appearance at Examinations.  As the policies of the new Plans will be reviewed less often than the old Local Plans, it is highly recommended to those with interests to seek to have their position protected now rather than wait many years to be able to make the necessary changes.