Our strategic planning team has noticed a marked recent increase in the number of local authorities seeking to develop evidence to support a positive planning policy framework for sustainable energy. This is despite a continued lack of subsidies for certain types of renewables.

During the 2010s demand for this kind of work, within England in particular, declined as the national policy environment became less favourable, especially towards onshore wind. However, we have recently worked on four renewable and low-carbon energy assessments with English local authorities. Having completed one study of this kind for Stroud District with the Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE), we have now teamed up with CSE again to deliver a renewable and low-carbon energy study for Test Valley.

The growth in interest in positive planning for renewables appears to align with the increasing prioritisation of climate change by local authorities, exemplified in particular by the climate emergency declarations that so many local authorities across the UK made during 2019.

Strategic energy studies at the local authority level are not without their challenges. There is no simple strategic ‘solution’ to the high hurdles set by the National Planning Policy Framework in relation to onshore wind. Local plan policies also cannot resolve delivery challenges such as a heavily constrained grid. However, assessing the potential renewable and low-carbon energy resources surely has to be a key part of any local authority’s consideration of what it may be able to do to address a declared climate emergency… so although it is early days, the renewed interest in renewables at a local authority level can only be encouraging.

LUC has a long history of producing evidence to support strategic planning for renewable and local carbon energy. If you are interested in talking further about LUC’s work in this area, please get in touch with Sarah Young or James Hopkins.