• A new partnership has been agreed today to use cutting edge technology to speed up the planning process so we can build the homes and infrastructure this country needs.
  • The Memorandum of Understanding, signed by the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Director General Joanna Key and the Digital Task Force for Planning CEO, Dr Wei Yang, will introduce new software to give communities more a say on planning applications, and improve experiences of buying or selling properties. 
  • The new technology will also enable developers to quickly identify suitable sites for new homes and unblock development stuck in the planning system.  
  • The Government has already given local authorities over £12m through the PropTech Innovation Fund, which has supported over 100 pilots across the country, using digital to save councils thousands of pounds and hundreds of hours during the planning process.  
  • The programme is part of the Long-Term Plan for Housing to help speed up housing and infrastructure delivery, using new and innovative tools to build in the right places with the consent of local people.  


A Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities spokesperson said: 
 
“This partnership paves the way for a new age of planning, speeding up decision making while giving communities more of a say on the housing and infrastructure in their area.  

 
“We are already using PropTech to accelerate the planning system, helping identify new sites for homes whilst protecting biodiversity. This new technology is helping our Long-Term Plan for Housing to go even further to build the right homes in the right places.” 

CEO of the Digital Task Force for Planning, Dr Wei Yang said:  
  
“We are delighted to have signed the MOU with DLUHC, representing a significant step forward in our efforts to reinvigorate spatial planning as a positive force in addressing the multifaceted challenges we face through a holistic approach. 

“This MoU will enable collaboration across our respective digital planning programmes and draw links to digital planning’s macro-economic and environmental impacts, as well as fostering future means of collaboration with local authorities and other organisations. 

“I believe the MoU will help the Task Force achieve our mission of building a Digital ‘National Trust’ for the long-term benefit of our future generations by promoting valuable knowledge sharing as assets for the public good.”