Writing a Design statement for planning?

[CisMyArse]

Has anyone ever done this? My architect wants me to write down a design letter - containing intentions, justifications, reasons for wanting to extend the property we are looking at, making the 100 year old house a more energy efficient one etc.

To be honest, I don't really know where to start. Has anyone got any pointers/templates that I can look at?

Huge thanks.

All you need to write down is your wishes and need for the additional space/proposed works. This is more in the form of a Supporting Statement. A Design Statement as per its name is something a ‘designer’ should prepare. Why have they asked for you to provide some text... is the site quite contentious?

I would look up some planning applications online for similar extensions that have been approved and see what their design statements say. Your local authority should have them all on their planning website.

I am surprised that this is something being batted onto you as the client.

Generally design and access statements are provided by your agent (which may be your architect, or may be a planning consultant).

The design and access statement should not necessarily be personal to you as the applicant (as planning generally relates to bricks and mortar rather than individual occupiers) but should provide detail on why the proposal should be considered acceptable/policy compliant. So would generally cover the materials, bulk, appearance and siting of the development, technical details including energy efficiency or sustainability, parking, impact on neighbours, how it would tie in with its surroundings and so on. The level of detail required will be informed by the type/scale of the development. So if a single storey rear or two storey side extension, would not be as detailed as an application for a new house or multiple houses.

Get a new architect.

A quick chat and they should be able to extract and information you can contribute and they can fill in the rest of the info for you to check.

To be honest, a DAS is only really needed on major developments so a simple extension should require it at all

This is what you pay the architect for..

DH is an Architect and this is always something he does for clients. A lot of his work is on listed buildings or those in conservation areas, so the design statement can be crucial to the outcome.
Get your Architect to do it, are they fully qualified?

I think people are getting mixed up as to what the OP’s architect is asking. However, I read it as them requiring the OP to provide a design statement as to why they want the proposed extension/conversion/alteration. A D&AS is something very much different and you’d only normally provide one if the LPA’s validation requirements ask you to.

Yes Devil, you're right. He wants us to put in writing the reasoning behind the proposed design, why we want to live in the area, our aim for energy efficiency etc.

"Get a new architect" ? Why would we want to do that? He has designed something we absolutely love within our budget and we've worked well with him for nearly 12 months! Wanting us to write a letter for the planning committee isn't a deal breaker fgs.

Ask them again what they are suggesting, some on this thread are confusing the Design and Access statement with the planning statement.

The planning statement includes all relevant policy and how the proposal meets them, or if they don't why it is still acceptable (can be conflicts in policy for example). The design and access statement is much less text based and a document thst explains the design against a set criteria. Both of these are submitted at the point of submitting a planning g application and neither include anything to do with I like green or I love being able to look out at cows from my new living room.

But is it that you are referring to as you mention the planning committee, have you already submitted an application? The application first is assessed by the planning team, the planning officer thrn collates the responses from their internal consultees and then writes a report that goes to the planning committee (who are local councillors and lay people) justifying why the application should be approved or refused
The committee then balance their argument and go with or against the planners recommendation. So two different things.

Is the architect suggesting you write a justification to speak at the committee? Sounds more like it. In which case you are being asked to write a 2 minute speech to address the committee and you can put this together as in the absence of having a planning consultantant or an architect willing to do it you can as the applicant. It should still be professional and do attend a committee meeting before you so as you need to be careful in your behaviour, address the committee chair in thr correct manor and be prepared to answer questions again in the correct manor.

Why isn't the architect willing to do it for you, I suspect fees? Ask them to send you an example it would take them two minutes to do that so at least you know what you are looking to provide.

It is unheard of for an applicant you to write either of these documents, you aren't positioned to do it and neither are letters they are both well researched and professionally put together documents.

I've done these before - we live in a listed building and the majority of changes we've made don't involve an architect.

For example - we wanted to change the boarded up flue with gas fire in front and no mantelpiece to something more in keeping with the period of the house.

I took lots of photos, found a few online from similar age houses, and added photos of what we intended to put in its place. Very little text - mostly 'we think this will enhance the character and appearance of e listed building' but enough to tell the story about what it is that you want to do and why you think (not in policy terms, but practically) that it should be allowed.

@badpuma Providing a statement for works to a listed building is slightly different. Although some form of supporting statement from the applicant would be of some use, the LPA would usually request something in the form of a Heritage Statement. This would provide information on the age/layout of the original property along with any heritage assets or features.

Is he undertaking the role of designer for CDM ? Or is this his was of passing that responsibility over to you? If it is, you will need to comply with all that that entails !

[quote DevilDamo]@badpuma Providing a statement for works to a listed building is slightly different. Although some form of supporting statement from the applicant would be of some use, the LPA would usually request something in the form of a Heritage Statement. This would provide information on the age/layout of the original property along with any heritage assets or features.[/quote]
Yes I know thanks. Unless the architect is expecting the op to do all the work, the basic principles for a domestic application are the same.

@waitrosetrollydolly

Is he undertaking the role of designer for CDM ? Or is this his was of passing that responsibility over to you? If it is, you will need to comply with all that that entails !

It won't be sufficient to do that. Planning applications have no bearing on CDM responsibility.