Below you will find links to Friends of the Earth's guides to using the planning system, our consultation responses, policy briefings, evidence to committees and so on. If you are looking to engage with the planning system in some way, such as at a public inquiry, then the Community Rights Resource Pack is an excellent first port of call. If you would like to talk to someone about your legal rights with respect to environmental issues in your community then you could also contact Friends of the Earth's Rights & Justice Centre, details of which are on the Contacts page.
Community Rights Resource Pack 
This pack consisits of an accessible yet comprehensive set of campaigner guides. There are three sections to it that deal with the three main ways you can get involved in planning and environmental decision-making more generally. The sections are: Your right to access information; Your right to participate in the planning system; Your right to use the law when things go wrong.
We also have a wide range of other resources on the following main areas:
Planning Bill - Campaigner's Briefing (PDF†) December 2007
A Campaigners guide to the Planning Bill as published in November 2007. This document demonstrates the Bill's weaknesses and explains how improvements can be made to ensure democratic accountability, a duty to reduce carbon emissions, and people's right to be heard at all stages of the planning inquiry.
Climate change and Local Development Frameworks
(PDF†) November 2007
Councils are putting together their Local Development Frameworks - planning guidelines for their area. This excerpt from the Community Rights Resource Pack explains how you can use this excellent opportunity to get measures to tackle climate change included in local plans.
Friends of the Earth official response to the Planning White Paper consultation
(PDF†) August 2007
Friends of the Earth's official response to the Planning White Paper Consultation. This document provides a thorough criticism of the PWP proposals, demonstrating why they represent a disaster for rights, environment and democracy.
Planning White Paper Consultation: some consultation questions answered (PDF†) August 2007
A selection of questions, and Friends of the Earth's suggested responses, from the DCLG consultation on the May 2007 Planning White Paper. These highlight Friends of the Earth's concerns that the Planning White Paper proposals would be disastrous for rights, for democracy and for the environment.
A Better Plan: an alternative view of the land use planning system
(PDF†) Feb 2007
This report highlights the damaging proposals recommended by the Treasury to streamline planning for the benefit of big business. We believe that with reform, planning has the potential to deliver a social policy agenda of inclusion, community empowerment, democratic renewal, and the delivery of sustainable development.
Regional Spatial
Strategy:
a blueprint for justice and sustainable development in the English regions
(PDF†) Mar 2006
A spatial expression of Friends of the Earth's vision of a sustainable
and environmentally just society. It provides a set of clear spatial
policies and is a useful resource for communities, campaigners and planning
practitioners who want to achieve a positive future for their regions.
How
to: use your rights in planning applications
(PDF†) Nov 2005
There are key steps you can take to influence the planning application
process in your favour. This 'how to' guide outlines the process and
explains how to make best use of your rights when objecting to an application.
PPS
10: Planning for Sustainable Waste Management
(PDF†) Nov 2005
This briefing note summarises the key differences between Planning Policy
Statement 10 and previous planning guidance on waste and explains how
to use PPS10 to influence what is happening on waste in your area.
Strategic
environmental assessment (SEA): a
campaigner's guide
(PDF†) Oct 2005
The SEA system provides important opportunities to understand the environmental
impacts of new policies and plans. This guide explains what the SEA
directive is all about and how it is used to assess your environment.
Environmental
impact assessment (EIA): a campaigner's guide
(PDF†) Oct 2005
EIA applies to major development proposals and is supposed to help us
understand the potential development effects on the environment. This
guide explains how to get to grips with EIA and how to check they are
done right.
Planning
and supermarkets
Opposing a supermarket application in your area? This link will take
you to the range of resources and actions Friends of the Earth have
developed for our Real Food campaign.
Planning
and Climate Change resources
Sep 2005
Friends of the Earth is campaigning at all levels of Government to try
and ensure that planning policy plays its part in tackling climate change.
This link will take you to the range of resources and actions Friends
of the Earth have developed for our climate campaign.
Community
Strategies and Local Strategic Partnerships
(PDF†) Apr 2005
Under the Local Government Act 2000, all local authorities are bound
to prepare Local Strategic Partnerships, more commonly known as Community
Strategies. This explains how they are set up within your locality,
how they are run, what they intend to achieve and how you - the campaigner
- can use them to your best advantage.
A
Local Campaigners Guide to the New English Planning System
(PDF†) Feb 2005
This is a guide to talk local campaigners through the new english planning
system. It tells people how the system works, how they can get involved,
and recommends policy statements (on some core areas) that Friends of
the Earth advocates, and would like to see in the final documents produced
by English local authorities.
A
guide to Local Development Schemes
(PDF†) Jan 2005
A guide to how and when local authorities write the documents which
go to make up local development frameworks.
Statements
of Community Involvement: A Conformity Checklist
(PDF†) Feb 2005
A Checklist to see whether your Local Authority has conformed to what
key principles Friends of the Earth believes should be contained within
a Statement of Community Involvement.
Briefing for MPs on the Planning Bill (PDF†) December 2007
This MPs briefing outlines the problems with the Planning Bill as published in November 2007 and makes the case for improvements to the Bill so that Planning Reform does not come at the expense of people's rights, democracy and the environment.
Tackling climate change through the planning system. Looking at the new planning policy statement on climate change (PDF†) April 2007
This briefing focuses on the Government's "Planning Policy Statement: Planning and Climate Change. Supplement to Planning Policy Statement 1", determining how we can use it to deliver our vision of a low carbon society.
Planning for the Future
(PDF†) August 2007
Prompted by the rush to disastrous reform represented by the May 2007 Planning White Paper (PWP), this briefing demonstrates the democratic and sustainable development principles that underpin the planning system, explores a possible "new vision for planning" and suggests how we could get there.
Planning White Paper: MPs' briefing
(PDF†) Jun 2007
The Government's Planning White Paper sets out a series of reforms to make the planning system better for business. This briefing for MPs summarises our concerns on the serious implications the White Paper has for local people and the environment.
Tackling Climate Change Through Planning:
a discussion paper for PPS 26
(PDF†) Sep 2006
This report has been produced by Friends of the Earth and the Town and Country Planning Association. It recommends the scope and detail for the Government's forthcoming Planning Policy Statement on climate change. It aims to specifically address the patchy delivery of climate change policy at present, suggesting a systematic policy approach covering both mitigation and adaptation and additionally provides best practice guidance.
Barker Review of Land Use Planning: analysis of the Interim Report
(PDF†) Aug 2006
The Barker Review will have a dramatic impact on the way we shape the future of our communities. This interim report heralds the beginning of a further major program of reform and deregulation. But the analysis in the interim report is based on a flawed understanding of the purpose of planning and lacks both a rigorous evidence base and a coherent analytical approach.
Planning Shake-up:
the Treasury’s agenda for our
local communities
MPs briefing
(PDF†) Aug 2006
The Treasury is driving forward a series of Government initiatives that will dramatically change land-use planning. Friends of the Earth fears these will lead to a significant attack on people’s rights and the environment, without improving prosperity for communities. These concerns are summarised in this MPs briefing.
Regional Spatial
Strategy:
a blueprint for justice and sustainable development in the English regions
(PDF†) Mar 2006
A spatial expression of Friends of the Earth's vision of a sustainable
and environmentally just society. It provides a set of clear spatial
policies and is a useful resource for communities, campaigners and planning
practitioners who want to achieve a positive future for their regions.
The
second Barker review of land use planning:
a
response by Friends of the Earth on the terms of reference
(PDF†) Mar 2006
The Treasury sets out terms of reference for this review that aim to
deregulate the planning system. Friends of the Earth's response shows
that it is social and environmental goals which are presently not met.
The approach chosen in the review to deliver reform will deliver damaging
and inefficient results, because it does not integrate economic, social
and environmental considerations.
Delivering
Sustainable Housing: MPs briefing
(PDF†) Jan 2006
The government consultations on Planning Policy Statement 3
(PPS 3) and the Code for Sustainable Homes have missed a major opportunity
to secure a step change in the environmental performance of housing.
This MPs briefing sets out practical policy recommendations for PPS
3 and the Code.
Implementing
the Barker Report:
or
how to wreck the environment and
ignore the homeless
(PDF†) Jul 2005
The Government's consultation paper on housing supply threatens to wreck
the planning system, cause massive house-building in the South East,
demolitions in the North and would have a huge impact on the environment.
PPS1 - creating
sustainable communities: a summary
(PDF†) Mar 2005
Planning Policy Statement 1 (PPS 1) is a vitally important document
for anyone campaigning on planning issues at the local and regional
level. PPS 1 is the Government's overarching statement on the purpose
of the planning system and sets out important objectives. Here Friends
of the Earth provide a summary.
Statements
of Community Involvement Key Principles: A Local Authority guide
(PDF†) Jul 2004
This guide is designed to assist Local Authorities to prepare their
Statements of Community Involvement. Based on our extensive experience
of the barriers to community participation in planning, the report identifies
the key principles that will help promote effective public involvement.
Legal Opinion in the matter of the Planning White Paper (PDF†)
October 2007
This legal opinion, by top barristers and experts in environmental and planning law, shows how the Planning White Paper proposals would breach UK, EU and international law in a number of areas.
Friends of the Earth official response to the Planning White Paper consultation (PDF†) August 2007
Response to the Barker Review of Land Use Planning: Interim Report (PDF†) Aug 2006
Response
to Treasury terms of reference:
The second Barker review of land use planning
(PDF†) Mar
2006
Planning
Policy Statement 3: Housing
(PDF†) Feb 2006
Response
to ODPM consultation paper: Planning for housing provision
(PDF†) Sep
2005
Planning
Policy Statement 1: Creating sustainable communities
(PDF†) May 2004
Planning
Policy Statement 6: Planning for town centres
(PDF†) Mar
2004
Planning
Policy Statement 7: Sustainable development in rural areas
(PDF†) Dec
2003
Planning
Policy Statement 9: Biodiversity and geological conservation
(PDF†) Dec
2004
Planning
Policy Statement 10: Planning for sustainable waste management
(PDF†) Mar 2005
Planning
Policy Statement 11: Regional planning
(PDF†) Jan
2004
Planning
Policy Statement 12: Local development frameworks
(PDF†) Jan
2004
Planning
Policy Statement 22: Renewable energy
(PDF†) Jan
2004
Response
to ODPM consultation paper:
Sustainability appraisal of regional spatial strategies and local development
frameworks
(PDF†) Sep
2004
Public Bills Committee on the Planning Bill
(PDF†) January 2008 Friends of the Earth's submission to the Public Bills Committee set up to scrutinise the Planning Bill. This submission highlights the Bill's shortcomings, particularly with respect to climate, democratic accountability and individual rights at inquiries, and recommends ammendments.
Planning White Paper
(PDF†) Jul 2007
The Government's Planning White Paper sets out a series of reforms to make the planning system better for business. This evidence summarises our concerns on the serious implications the white paper will have on local people and the environment.
Housing:
Building a sustainable future
(PDF†) Jun 2004
Evidence given by Friends of the Earth to the House of Commons Environmental
Audit Committee on the issue of housing in the wake of the Barker Review.
Housing:
Building a Sustainable Future - Supplementary evidence
(PDF†) Jun 2004
Supplementary Evidence given by Friends of the Earth to the House of
Commons Environmental Audit Committee on the issue of housing and the
Barker Review.
Planning for a Sustainable Future: Consultation on the Planning White Paper
Planning Policy Statement: Planning and Climate Change - Supplement to Planning Policy Statement 1 - Consultation
Barker Review of Land Use Planning: final report
Barker Review of Land Use Planning: interim report
Barker Review of Land Use Planning: call for evidence
Planning Policy Statement 3 (PPS 3) consultation
Code for Sustainable Homes consultation, ODPM
The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004
The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill
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