GovWire

The government has published national infrastructure planning guidance, which applicants and other parties should read. The guidance should be read alongside the Planning Act 2008 (the Planning Act).

This advice is non-statutory. However, the Planning Inspectorates advice about running the infrastructure planning system and matters of process is drawn from good practice and applicants and others should follow our recommendations. It is intended to complement the legislation, regulations and guidance issued by government and is produced under section 51 of the Planning Act.

The Planning Act and regulations 5, 6 and 7 of The Infrastructure Planning (Applications: Prescribed Forms and Procedure) Regulations 2009 (the APFP Regulations 2009) set out requirements for the documents and information that must accompany an NSIP application.

Applicants should discuss with the Planning Inspectorate about how their application and supporting information should be prepared and submitted. The governments statutory guidance on the Pre-application stage explains the requirements and expectations in the preparation of an NSIP application. This includes the production of a Programme Document, which applicants need to introduce at the Inception Meeting with the Planning Inspectorate and explain how it will be developed and maintained throughout the pre-application stage. The applicants Programme Document sets out the intended programme for the pre-application stage and what work and studies are required for the preparation of an application.

The governments guidance on the Pre-application stage and the Planning Inspectorates Pre-application Prospectus explains the three different pre-application services offered by the Planning Inspectorate to applicants, with information about the related fees given in the governments guidance on Cost Recovery and in the Planning Inspectorates Pre-application Prospectus. Applicants should read these documents to understand the levels of service they can expect from the Planning Inspectorate on matters such as advice on draft documents, answering questions relating to potential examination issues and the readiness of an application to be submitted.

Applicants should ensure their proposals are fully developed and consulted upon before submission. The ability to change a submitted application is limited and we cannot accept new information during the acceptance stage. Applicants must ensure that their NSIP applications meet all relevant legislation, policy, and guidance to be accepted for examination and to enable the Secretary of State to decide whether to grant development consent.

The application form

Theapplication form for NSIPs is prescribed by legislation and must be used by applicants (see schedule 2 of the APFP Regulations 2009).

Please see the governments guidance on the application form about how to make an application for development consent.

A link to the form and further information is given in the Planning Inspectorates advice on how to submit an application for development consent.

Government guidance on the Pre-application stage and on the Content of a Development Consent Order published on the National Infrastructure Planning Guidance Portal also provide information on the content of applications.

Submitting the application

Government services are digital by default, and we ask applicants and others to submit documents, data and other information electronically to us where possible.

Applicants should submit their NSIP applications electronically to the Planning Inspectorate using a file transfer website. Applicants should email a link to the Planning Inspectorates mailbox for the project to enable us to access the application electronic files. Please contact the Planning Inspectorates case team if you intend to apply by another method.

Applicants should test the arrangements for submitting the application information with the Planning Inspectorates case team before the application is submitted.

Completed applications should be sent to the Planning Inspectorate between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday except for UK public holidays. Applications received after 5pm will be processed the next working day.

Applications should be submitted in line with this advice, to ensure consistency and compatibility with the Planning Inspectorates digital systems.

The Examining Authority may ask for printed copies of some, or all, of the application information before or during examination. The number of printed copies of information needed will depend on the project, the size of the Examining Authority, and the number of assessors or legal advisers involved where relevant.

Order of application information and file indexing

The order, indexing and filing of application documents and data is important to ensure large volumes of information can be easily found.

Applicants should follow the advice in Annex A for how to order the application documents.

There is also an acceptance application index that applicants should use (Appendix 1). Additionally, Appendix 2 sets out information about how to prepare the application index to accompany an NSIP application.